Python

Overview

Python is an interpreted programming language with many benefits. It is:

• Syntactically simple, making it:
  • Easy to learn
  • Quick to program in
• Object oriented, enabling flexibility and modularity
• Popular, resulting in many community-generated libraries

While Python can be used to create large and complex programs including graphical user interfaces and C bindings (e.g., for performing parallel applications), it also facilitates rapid development of useful scripts. The latter is the primary end-use of Python in the PHYC group.

Learning Resources

Invent with Python is a free and very useful book series aimed at teaching readers video game development. It is aimed at young children, and as a result is widely accessible. It uses an example-driven pedagogy to build more complex games, and ultimately can aid in understanding object-oriented programming (OOP).