Preface
Part I. Getting Started
Chapter 1. A Python Q&A Session
Chapter 2. How Python Runs Programs
Chapter 3. How You Run Program
Part II. Objects and Operations
Chapter 4. Introducing Python Objects
Chapter 5. Numbers and Expressions
Chapter 6. The Dynamic Typing Interlude
Chapter 7. String Fundamentals
Chapter 8. Lists and Dictionaries
Chapter 9. Tuples, Files, and Everything Else
Part III. Statements and Syntax
Chapter 10. Introducing Python Statements
Chapter 11. Assignments, Expressions, and Prints
Chapter 12. if and match Selections
Chapter 13. while and for Loops
Chapter 14. Iterations and Comprehensions
Chapter 15. The Documentation Interlude
Part IV. Functions and Generators
Chapter 16. Function Basics
Chapter 17. Scopes
Chapter 18. Arguments
Chapter 19. Function Odds and Ends
Chapter 20. Comprehensions and Generations
Chapter 21. The Benchmarking Interlude
Part V. Modules and Packages
Chapter 22. Modules: The Big Picture
Chapter 23. Module Coding Basics
Chapter 24. Module Packages
Chapter 25. Module Odds and Ends
Part VI. Classes and OOP
Chapter 26. OOP: The Big Picture
Chapter 27. Class Coding Basics
Chapter 28. A More Realistic Example
Chapter 29. Class Coding Details
Chapter 30. Operator Overloading
Chapter 31. Designing with Classes
Chapter 32. Class Odds and Ends
Part VII. Exceptions
Chapter 33. Exception Basics
Chapter 34. Exception Coding Details
Chapter 35. Exception Objects
Chapter 36. Exception Odds and Ends
Part VIII. Advanced Topics
Chapter 37. Unicode and Byte Strings
Chapter 38. Managed Attributes
Chapter 39. Decorators
Chapter 40. Metaclasses and Inheritance
Chapter 41. All Good Things
Part IX. Appendixes
Appendix A. Platform Usage Tips
Appendix B. Solutions to End-of-Part Exercises
Index

 Get a comprehensive, in-depth introduction to the core Python language with this hands-on book. Based on author Mark Lutz's popular training course, this updated sixth edition will help you quickly write efficient, high-quality code with Python. It's an ideal way to begin, whether you're new to programming or a professional developer versed in other languages.

 Complete with quizzes, exercises, and helpful illustrations, this easy-to-follow self-paced tutorial gets you started with Python 3.12 and all other releases in use today. With a pragmatic focus on what you need to know, it also introduces some advanced language features that have become increasingly common in Python code.

This book helps you:

• Explore Python's built-in object types such as strings, lists, dictionaries, and files

• Create and process objects with Python statements, and learn Python's syntax model

• Use functions and functional programming to avoid redundancy and maximize reuse

• Organize code into larger components with modules and packages

• Code robust programs with Python's exception handling and development tools

• Apply object-oriented programming and classes to make code customizable

• Survey advanced Python tools including decorators, descriptors, and metaclasses

• Write idiomatic Python code that runs portably across a wide variety of platforms