Python: Smallest Jump from Idea to Code

In Make Your Own Mandelbrot we chose Python as the computer language to learn, and then use to calculate and plot the fractals.

There are many reasons Python is good for you to learn.

Python is easy to learn, and you can get quite far with it before you start hitting advanced or difficult concepts. But most people don't get to that point, and don't need to. Becuase the big chunk of Python that most people learn is more than enough to do useful things with.

Python has a huge following. And it is very popular. You'll find it in games, application servers, and powering huge global infrastructures. It's particularly popular in the science and data fields.

The new wave of children learning computing using the Raspberry Pi are programming in Python.

But for me, there is one special reason I love Python. And I hope you'll love it too for the same reason.

For people who are lucky enough to be able to program in several languages, Python is often the first one used to try out an idea or make an early prototype.

Why is this? It's because the leap from human idea to computer code is often smallest with Python.

The leap from human idea to computer code is often smallest with Python.

 Too many other languages have barriers between your idea and code, stuff that gets in the way, distracts you from just trying your idea. Fragile syntax, special rules that trip you up, lots of boilerplate code that you seem to have to type agan and again. Python mostly stays out of the way.

Just for fun, here's a family free of languages from O'Reilley. It's a little old but still interesting. You can see Python's parents and cousins!