Beyond the Basic Stuff with Python

Best Practices for Writing Clean Code

By Al Sweigart | Publisher: No Starch Press

About the book

BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN NOVICE AND PROFESSIONAL

You've completed a basic Python programming tutorial or finished Al Sweigart's bestseller, Automate the Boring Stuff with Python. What's the next step toward becoming a capable, confident software developer?

Welcome to Beyond the Basic Stuff with Python. More than a mere collection of advanced syntax and masterful tips for writing clean code, you'll learn how to advance your Python programming skills by using the command line and other professional tools like code formatters, type checkers, linters, and version control. Sweigart takes you through best practices for setting up your development environment, naming variables, and improving readability, then tackles documentation, organization and performance measurement, as well as object-oriented design and the Big-O algorithm analysis commonly used in coding interviews. The skills you learn will boost your ability to program--not just in Python but in any language.

You'll learn:

  • Coding style, and how to use Python's Black auto-formatting tool for cleaner code
  • Common sources of bugs, and how to detect them with static analyzers
  • How to structure the files in your code projects with the Cookiecutter template tool
  • Functional programming techniques like lambda and higher-order functions
  • How to profile the speed of your code with Python's built-in timeit and cProfile modules
  • The computer science behind Big-O algorithm analysis
  • How to make your comments and docstrings informative, and how often to write them
  • How to create classes in object-oriented programming, and why they're used to organize code

    • Toward the end of the book you'll read a detailed source-code breakdown of two classic command-line games, the Tower of Hanoi (a logic puzzle) and Four-in-a-Row (a two-player tile-dropping game), and a breakdown of how their code follows the book's best practices. You'll test your skills by implementing the program yourself.

    Of course, no single book can make you a professional software developer. But Beyond the Basic Stuff with Python will get you further down that path and make you a better programmer, as you learn to write readable code that's easy to debug and perfectly Pythonic

    Requirements: Covers Python 3.6 and higher

    Editions of Beyond the Basic Stuff with Python

    Paperback
    ISBN 9781593279660
    EBook
    ISBN 9781593279677

    Read an Excerpt

    BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN NOVICE AND PROFESSIONAL

    You've completed a basic Python programming tutorial or finished Al Sweigart's bestseller, Automate the Boring Stuff with Python. What's the next step toward becoming a capable, confident software developer?

    Welcome to Beyond the Basic Stuff with Python. More than a mere collection of advanced syntax and masterful tips for writing clean code, you'll learn how to advance your Python programming skills by using the command line and other professional tools like code formatters, type checkers, linters, and version control. Sweigart takes you through best practices for setting up your development environment, naming variables, and improving readability, then tackles documentation, organization and performance measurement, as well as object-oriented design and the Big-O algorithm analysis commonly used in coding interviews. The skills you learn will boost your ability to program--not just in Python but in any language.

    You'll learn:

  • Coding style, and how to use Python's Black auto-formatting tool for cleaner code
  • Common sources of bugs, and how to detect them with static analyzers
  • How to structure the files in your code projects with the Cookiecutter template tool
  • Functional programming techniques like lambda and higher-order functions
  • How to profile the speed of your code with Python's built-in timeit and cProfile modules
  • The computer science behind Big-O algorithm analysis
  • How to make your comments and docstrings informative, and how often to write them
  • How to create classes in object-oriented programming, and why they're used to organize code

    • Toward the end of the book you'll read a detailed source-code breakdown of two classic command-line games, the Tower of Hanoi (a logic puzzle) and Four-in-a-Row (a two-player tile-dropping game), and a breakdown of how their code follows the book's best practices. You'll test your skills by implementing the program yourself.

    Of course, no single book can make you a professional software developer. But Beyond the Basic Stuff with Python will get you further down that path and make you a better programmer, as you learn to write readable code that's easy to debug and perfectly Pythonic

    Requirements: Covers Python 3.6 and higher

    Frequently Asked Questions

    What is Beyond the Basic Stuff with Python about?

    BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN NOVICE AND PROFESSIONAL

    You've completed a basic Python programming tutorial or finished Al Sweigart's bestseller, Automate the Boring Stuff with Python. What's the next step toward becoming a capable, confident software developer?

    Welcome to Beyond the Basic Stuff with Python. More than a mere collection of advanced syntax and masterful tips for writing clean code, you'll learn how to advance your Python programming skills by using the command line and other professional tools like code formatters, type checkers, linters, and version control. Sweigart takes you through best practices for setting up your development environment, naming variables, and improving readability, then tackles documentation, organization and performance measurement, as well as object-oriented design and the Big-O algorithm analysis commonly used in coding interviews. The skills you learn will boost your ability to program--not just in Python but in any language.

    You'll learn:

  • Coding style, and how to use Python's Black auto-formatting tool for cleaner code
  • Common sources of bugs, and how to detect them with static analyzers
  • How to structure the files in your code projects with the Cookiecutter template tool
  • Functional programming techniques like lambda and higher-order functions
  • How to profile the speed of your code with Python's built-in timeit and cProfile modules
  • The computer science behind Big-O algorithm analysis
  • How to make your comments and docstrings informative, and how often to write them
  • How to create classes in object-oriented programming, and why they're used to organize code

    • Toward the end of the book you'll read a detailed source-code breakdown of two classic command-line games, the Tower of Hanoi (a logic puzzle) and Four-in-a-Row (a two-player tile-dropping game), and a breakdown of how their code follows the book's best practices. You'll test your skills by implementing the program yourself.

    Of course, no single book can make you a professional software developer. But Beyond the Basic Stuff with Python will get you further down that path and make you a better programmer, as you learn to write readable code that's easy to debug and perfectly Pythonic

    Requirements: Covers Python 3.6 and higher

    What core themes, tropes, or subjects are explored in Beyond the Basic Stuff with Python?

    Computing and Information Technology > Computer programming / software engineering > Programming and scripting languages: general

    Where can I read a sample of Beyond the Basic Stuff with Python?

    You can read an official preview of the few pages here https://www.book2look.com/book/9781593279660

    Who is/are the Author/s of the book Beyond the Basic Stuff with Python?

    Al Sweigart

    Who is the Publisher of the book Beyond the Basic Stuff with Python?

    No Starch Press

    What are the ISBN numbers for the physical and digital editions?

    Beyond the Basic Stuff with Python is available as paperback(ISBN 9781593279660) and ebook(ISBN 9781593279677)

    Where can I buy Beyond the Basic Stuff with Python online or support local independent bookshops?

    You can buy Beyond the Basic Stuff with Python from below

    Where can I buy Beyond the Basic Stuff with Python?