I719 Fundamentals of Python
About
This class is python for beginners, taugh Spring 2017
Contact
My email is eroman@itcollege.ee
Frequently Asked Questions
What should I know already
It would be good to know:
- How to use the unix command line
- GIT
What editor/IDE should I use?
Whatever you want! I recommend learning emacs or vim. If you do not know how to use any specific editor and do not want to learn one now, then use spyder for writing python.
What python version are we using?
I will teach using python 3
What books/resources do you recommend?
This page contains most of python's syntax: https://learnxinyminutes.com/docs/python3/
What software do I need to install?
You only need python 3 and an editor.
I recommend that you install an interactive python shell, like IPython1 or bpython2
Grading
There will be a test on the last day. It is pass/fail. You may do a project instead of the test. I recommend this, since it will be more fun and you will learn more.
Test
The test will cover only builtin python types and only use the standard library. There will be 3 test dates. The format will be A series of unit test cases which you must write a function that will make the unit test pass.
Example problem
from unittest import TestCase
class StringCountTestCase(TestCase):
"""
Write a function that for any string, prepends 'Hello '
>>> test_function('Bob')
'Hello Bob'
"""
def setUp(self):
self.test_function = None # Assign to your function
def test_sally(self):
result = self.test_function('Sally')
self.assertEqual(result, 'Hello Sally')
Example solution
python -m unittest exam.py
from unittest import TestCase
def prepend_hello(string):
return "Hello {}".format(string)
class StringCountTestCase(TestCase):
"""
Write a function that for any string, prepends 'Hello '
>>> test_function('Bob')
'Hello Bob'
"""
def setUp(self):
self.test_function = prepend_hello
def test_sally(self):
result = self.test_function('Sally')
self.assertEqual(result, 'Hello Sally')
Project due date
The project is due the class before the last class (March 16th). You may submit your project before then, and I will check it. If It does not meet the requirements, I will give you feedback.
Project Requirements
- it can do something
- it uses version control
- it has more than one commit
- it has commit messages that are relevant to the commit
- it has a relevant unit test
- it has a README that describes what it does and how to run it.
Project idea examples
- a game
- exploring a technology like image recognition
- a command line tool that does something
- a web application in python
- a web scraper
- many websites have HTTP APIs that can give you data, you can make something that uses data from public APIs.
If you want to do things with cryptography
- a cryptographic chat app
- a password storage bank like KeePassX
Can I ...?
Can I use python 2?
Yes
Can I use external libraries outside of the standard library?
Yes
If you use external libraries, include a requirements.txt
or setup.py
which has a list of packages required by your project
Lecture Notes
Recordings
recordings are found here: https://echo360.e-ope.ee/ess/portal/section/fc0c6bfd-9187-4365-b2c9-0085b3a89906
Lecture 1
Basic types, lists, for-loops, functions, imports and classes https://wiki.itcollege.ee/index.php/I719_Fundamentals_of_Python/lecture1
Lecture 2
importable modules, unit tests, dictionaries https://wiki.itcollege.ee/index.php/I719_Fundamentals_of_Python/lecture2
Lecture 3
Command line arguements, opening and using files, csv files https://wiki.itcollege.ee/index.php/I719_Fundamentals_of_Python/lecture3
Assets
file to count words in: http://pastebin.com/3faqcc5j csv file: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1uSbHeppEyKNxF0WncvhxTBF8wj_co0v5XOYlXKLL8Lg/edit?usp=sharing
Lecture 4
Exceptions, slices, Http request to get JSON data, Basic dynamic website https://wiki.itcollege.ee/index.php/I719_Fundamentals_of_Python/lecture4
Lecture 5
Advanced testing, datetime, python style guide.
survey https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeCu0boQIBbRsCcgLovm0Jis3JLYnjD8JhCBlh4nQUPpF6N1Q/viewform