Core Python Programming

17.1. Introduction/Motivation

Before the advent of multithreaded (MT) programming, running of computer programs consisted of a single sequence of steps which were executed in synchronous order by the host's central processing unit (CPU). This style of execution was the norm whether the task itself required the sequential ordering of steps or if the entire program was actually an aggregation of multiple subtasks. What if these subtasks were independent, having no causal relationship (meaning that results of subtasks do not affect other subtask outcomes)? Is it not logical, then, to want to run these independent tasks all at the same time? Such parallel processing could significantly improve the performance of the overall task. This is what MT ...