The following are all Python operations:
+, -, *, /%, **, //, ==, !=, <>, >, <, >=, <=, =, +=, -=, *=, /=, %=, **=, //=, is, is not, for, while
And the following are all programming concepts:
Program Structure, Variable Declaration, Boolean Logic and Boolean Algebra, The Boolean Operators, Comparison Operators, Combining Boolean and Comparison Operators, Conditional Statements (IF..THEN..ELSE), Iterative Constructs (Loops), Graph Theory Basics, Tree Structures, The Binary Number System, The Modulus Operator and Hashing Functions.
If you are fortunate enough to learn Python in a class room you will first receive a lecture for a given topic, maybe conditional logic. Once the lecture is finished you will then receive a small exercise to complete using the techniques that were taught in the lecture. The problem with learning on your own is that self-study doesn’t work that way.
In traditional self-study environments you are given a book and then you read a chapter. Once you finish the chapter there is typically a chapter overview, and then some questions that you can answer on your own. If your text book has sample problems they are typically very limited, like; print “Hello World”. You get the idea. If it works at all, it does not work well.
The better way to learn is to begin with a specific problem. For example:
- Prompt the user to enter their first and last name in lowercase.
- Take the first letter of both names and convert them to uppercase (capital letters).
- Replace the first letter in each name with the new capitalized versions of those letters.
- Combine the first and last name into one name called full name and print the full name.
In this problem there are specific steps. Step one is to prompt the user. So the natural question is to ask, “How do you prompt a user to do something in Python?” You could probably type that question directly into Google and get your answer. In fact, I know you can. The point is that to solve the problem you also learn Python concepts and operations as a byproduct of doing the problem.
Our 10 minute Python Problem course does this exact thing. We begin with a problem and we break it down into small manageable steps. By completing each step you learn concepts and structure as you go. It is not only the most comprehensive way to learn, it is also the fastest. We encourage you to give it a try.