Beginning Programming with Python For Dummies

Chapter 2

Getting Your Own Copy of Python

In This Chapter

Obtaining a copy of Python for your system

Performing the Python installation

Finding and using Python on your system

Ensuring your installation works as planned

Creating applications requires that you have another application, unless you really want to get low level and write applications in machine code — a decidedly difficult experience that even true programmers avoid if at all possible. If you want to write an application using the Python programming language, you need the applications required to do so. These applications help you work with Python by creating Python code, providing help information as you need it, and letting you run the code you write. This chapter helps you obtain a copy of the Python application, install it on your hard drive, locate the installed applications so that you can use them, and test your installation so that you can see how it works.

Downloading the Version You Need

Every platform (combination of computer hardware and operating system software) has special rules that it follows when running ...