beginner⏱25 minutesLesson 2 of 10

Installation and Setup

Install Python, set up your development environment, and write your first program using VS Code

Installation and Setup

Before writing Python code, you need to install Python and choose a code editor. This lesson walks through each step.

Installing Python

Windows

  1. Go to python.org/downloads
  2. Download Python 3.x for Windows
  3. Check "Add Python to PATH" during installation
  4. Click Install

Verify the installation:

bash
python --version

macOS

bash
# Using Homebrew brew install python3 # Verify python3 --version

Linux

bash
# Ubuntu/Debian sudo apt update && sudo apt install python3 python3-pip # Verify python3 --version
ℹ️Note

On macOS and Linux, type python3 instead of python. On Windows, just python works.

Choosing a Code Editor

VS Code (Recommended)

  1. Download from code.visualstudio.com
  2. Install the Python extension by Microsoft
  3. Install the Pylance language server

PyCharm

An IDE built specifically for Python, available in free (Community) and paid (Professional) editions.

Your First Python File

Create a file called hello.py:

python
# This is a comment print("Hello, World!") name = input("What is your name? ") print(f"Nice to meet you, {name}!")

Run it:

bash
python hello.py

Using the Python REPL

The REPL (Read-Eval-Print Loop) lets you test code interactively:

bash
python
python
>>> 5 * 7 35 >>> for i in range(3): ... print(i) ... 0 1 2 >>> exit()

Working with pip

pip is Python's package manager:

bash
# Install a package pip install requests # List installed packages pip list # Install from a requirements file pip install -r requirements.txt

Virtual Environments (Basic)

Isolate project dependencies:

bash
# Create a virtual environment python -m venv myenv # Activate it (Windows) myenv\Scripts\activate # Activate it (macOS/Linux) source myenv/bin/activate
⚠️Warning

Always use virtual environments for projects to avoid dependency conflicts!

Project Structure Conventions

my-project/ ├── main.py ├── requirements.txt ├── README.md └── myenv/ # Virtual environment (don't commit)
✅Success

A good editor with the Python extension gives you: syntax highlighting, auto-completion, error checking, and debugging — all essential for productive coding.

Practice Questions

  1. What command checks your Python installation?
  2. What is the Python REPL used for?
  3. What does pip install requests do?
  4. Why should you use virtual environments?
  5. How do you activate a virtual environment on Linux?
  6. What extension should you install in VS Code for Python?
  7. What's the difference between an IDE and a text editor?
  8. How do you exit the Python REPL?
  9. What does pip list show?
  10. Create a command that installs all packages from a requirements file.
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What is Python?
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Variables and Data Types

Course Content

1. What is Python?2. Installation and Setup3. Variables and Data Types4. Operators and Expressions5. Conditionals (if/elif/else)6. Loops (for and while)7. Lists and Tuples8. Dictionaries and Sets9. Functions and Scope10. Modules, Packages, and Standard Library