We're finally here!
But first, let us tell you what Python is. Python is a very popular programming language that can be used for creating websites, games, scientific software, graphics and much, much more.
Python originated in the late 1980s and its main goal is to be readable by human beings (not only machines!), which is why it looks much simpler than other programming languages. This makes it easy to learn, but don't worry, Python is also really powerful!
This subchapter is based on a tutorial by Geek Girls Carrots (http://django.carrots.pl/)
Django is written in Python. We need Python to do anything in Django. Let's start with installing it! We want you to install Python 3.4, so if you have any earlier version, you will need to upgrade it.
You can download Python for Windows from the website https://www.python.org/downloads/release/python-343/. After downloading the *.msi file, you should run it (double-click on it) and follow the instructions there. It is important to remember the path (the directory) where you installed Python. It will be needed later!
It is very likely that you already have Python installed out of the box. To check if you have it installed (and which version it is), open a console and type the following command:
$ python3 --version
Python 3.4.2
If you don't have Python installed or if you want a different version, you can install it as follows:
Type this command into your console:
sudo apt-get install python3.4
Use this command in your console:
sudo yum install python3.4
You need to go to the website https://www.python.org/downloads/release/python-342/ and download the Python installer:
- download the Mac OS X 64-bit/32-bit installer DMG file,
- double click to open it,
- double click Python.mpkg to run the installer.
Verify the installation was successful by opening the Terminal application and running the python3
command:
$ python3 --version
Python 3.4.2
If you have any doubts or if something went wrong and you have no idea what to do next - please ask your coach! Sometimes things are not going smoothly and it's better to ask for help from someone with more experience.