Open Python interactive session and editor

Question

I am looking for some pieces of advices in order to accomplish a tiny task regarding Python. If someone would ask to provide a pic of a 'started interactive session of Python with your favorite editor with a Python script', what would you show to this person? Should it be a void script? How do you interpreter 'started interactive session'? How about your own favorite editor (I mean that you would suggest for Windows 10)?

Sorry for the triviality of my question,but I have just started with beginners' Python course

Just to make sure I am on the right way, if I have to submit to someone else a started interactive session and your favourite editor with a Python script, will be it sufficient to show the following windows as in the picture?

Answer 1

In terms of interactivity, you should really check out Jupyter Notebooks. It's industry standard for a lot of tasks, widely used and with great performance and support. Also, Jupyter has an in-built code editor than can be run via localhost in your browser.

However, for a code editor, I will never stop recommending VSCode. Huge game changer, light-weighted and with support for pretty much any language. Jupyter notebooks can be run directly from VSCode, and the latest features that Microsoft introduced in this regard make using Jupyter inside VSCode really easy and intuitive. Also, extensions are a positive point as well.

If you're only planning on programming with Python, maybe checking out PyCharm is also a good idea, but I have working mainly in Python for the past 3 years and I have never missed anything on VSCode, even though I've tried PyCharm several times.

Answer 2

The simplest answer: go with the IDLE IDE, it comes bundled with Python by default. It starts with an interactive session, so you just type at the prompt (>>>):

print ("Hello, world!")

and your task is done, if it prints out your "Hello, world!" line.

In general, you start your python interactive session (python REPL, python terminal, python console, there are several terms for the same thing) and, since it's an interpreted language, everything you type in, Python will interpret and execute, if valid. Nevertheless, except for atomic examples, you'll want to use a code editor or IDE.

As a beginner, I'd avoid jupyter for the time being, it could get cumbersome. Stick with the default IDLE editor (you open a new file and type away) until you feel confident, then make the switch toward some editor or IDE that you fancy - Visual Studio Code is popular and has python debugger, vim is old as Bible, can run on a calculator, but it's a modal editor, best used with touch typing, Notepad++ is also good for coding...