Page 131 - Computer Science V2.0 Class 11

Python is a programming language developed by Guido van Rossum in 1991 at the National Research Institute
for Mathematics and Computer Science, the Netherlands. Over the years, it has become one of the most popular
programming languages. In this book, we will study Python programming to solve problems. To begin with, in this
chapter, we will learn how to install Python on your desktop.

Guido van Rossum named Python after the British comedy show: Monty Python's Flying Circus. Further, he chose
the name IDLE to pay tribute to one of the founding members of Python—Eric Idle.

5.1 Why Python?
Python is a simple yet powerful programming language that can be used to develop both conventional desktop and
web applications. Indeed, Python has been used to develop various applications, such as text processing, speech
processing, configuring servers and administrative tools, games, animations for movies, scientific modelling, defence,
and web applications. While the simplicity of Python makes it popular amongst amateur developers, the availability of
many tools makes it helpful to scientists, engineers, mathematicians, and social scientists. Renowned companies such
as Google, Dropbox, Spotify, Netflix, and Amazon use Python to develop their applications.

5.2 Features of the Python Programming Language

Python is gaining incredible popularity with every passing year. We will describe below some of the distinctive features
that make it so popular:
1. Free and open-source: Python has been developed under the Open-Source Initiative (OSI). Its license is
administered by the Python Software Foundation, a non-profit corporation. One can download the source code,
modify it, and then re-distribute the modified code. The Python community hosts conferences and workshops that
provide the Python community opportunities for discussion and gathering.
2. Interpreted and interactive: Being an interpreted language, testing and debugging of code is easy as the
programmer does not have to wait for the entire program to be compiled.
3. Easy to understand and use: Python's simple and limited syntax makes it easy to develop and comprehend Python
code.
4. Dynamic Typing: Python obviates the need to declare the types of variables. Thus, a variable interestRate
may refer to an integer and a floating point object in the same program segment.
5. Enables disciplined programming practice: Python's insistence on indentation enforces a discipline on a
programmer.

6. Vast library support: Python provides a large number of built-in functions. In addition, the Python community
has developed several libraries for specialised tasks such as geosciences, life sciences, computational physics,
and finance. In addition, generic libraries for machine learning and deep learning aid the development of several
scientific and business applications. Python also enables the efficient development of web applications.
7. Reusability: As Python libraries are easy to develop and maintain, reusability becomes a key feature of Python
code.
8. Platform independent: An operating system and the underlying hardware define a programming platform.
Python code developed on one platform can be seamlessly executed on another platform. Thus, portability across
platforms becomes an important feature of Python.
9. Case sensitive: Python is a case-sensitive language. For example, the names rollNo and rollno refer to
different objects.

10. Easy integration with other languages: A code written in Python can be easily integrated with other languages
such as Java and C++.

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