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What is the most effective way to master Python?

reddit.com › r › learnpython › comments › 179zbzq › what_is_the_most_effective_way_to_master_python

Here's the advice I give to a lot of people once they've got some basics done (perhaps by following the learning paths suggested in the wiki for this subreddit). Practice! Practice! Practice! That is the only way. Programming (whatever the language) is a practical problem-solving skill. You have to make, and learn from, a lot of mistakes (much like learning another human language). I know it can be frustrating at times, especially when faced with code you want to reuse but cannot understand. Only you can find the motivation. Why are you learning to programme in the first place? Is your learning objective SMART - specific, measurable, achievable, (sometimes agreed), realistic (or relevant) and time-bound, (or timely)? If it is something soft, like "upskilling" then it will probably not help you much. It is hard to learn anything in the abstract, not least because it is difficult to feel passion for what one is doing. I strongly suggest you look to your interests, hobbies, obligations (family business, charity activities, work) to look for opportunities to apply Python. You will learn far more about Python and programming when you work on something that resonates for you and that you have some domain knowledge of (or incentive to gain such knowledge in). When you are copying tutorials/examples, don't just copy. Experiment. Break the code and understand why it has broken. The interactive python shell is your friend, I found it the best learning aid because you can quickly try snippets of code and get immediate feedback. (Consider installing ipython which wraps the standard shell for more convenience.) Start very simply and regularly refactor the code as you learn new things. Enhance as you see opportunities. If you haven't already, take a look at Automate the boring stuff with Python (free to read online). At first, the tasks you automate will be trivial and hardly worth the effort BUT because it is about the problem and not Python, it will be more rewarding for you. Many beginners are mixing up coding (writing instructions in a programming language) with problem-solving (creating an algorithm) and their lack of knowledge of the programming language and how to use it is a distraction from the problem-solving. For most programmers, the coding part is the final and easy bit. Order: Actually making sure the problem is properly understood. Often we start with only a vague understanding of the problem. Ensuring we know what outcome is required. What does good look like? How will the information be presented, will it be on-screen or in a file, or a database. Determining the data representation. Exactly what data is required, in what forms, where from. It is a one-off or lots of cycles or combining lots of information. Work out how to do things manually in the simplest possible way, explaining every little step (assume you are giving instructions to someone with learning difficulties), Computers are really dumb, and humans make lots of intuitive leaps and take short-cuts This is one of the hardest things to grasp when first learning to programme Computers don't mind repeating very boring things, so the simplest but repetitive manual approach is often a good approach to start with for a computer Later, you will learn different ways of selecting / developing an algorithm which doesn't depend on a manual approach learning from others In general, when learning and working on something new, where you are following some kind of tutorial, where others have provided an answer, follow the steps I laid out above looking for a solution (so make sure you understand the problem first, figure out what the outcome should be, etc) try to solve the problem yourself before looking at someone else's solution look briefly at someone else's solution and try to understand what they've done at a high level and see if you can solve it that way fully review someone else's solution, try it out, play with it (break it, improve it) - be super critical (watch ArjanCodes YT videos on code reviews) update your algorithm and implement a new solution (including testing, if you can) write some notes, not on low level detail but on principles, approaches, key algorithms, and summarise what you learned (I keep my notes in markdown format in Obsidian, synced between devices). Answer from Deleted User on reddit.com

reddit.com › r/learnpython › what is the most effective way to master python?

r/learnpython on Reddit: What is the most effective way to master Python?

October 17, 2023 -

I have realised that all my life I have just sat through hundreds of Python courses without actually gaining anything of value. How did you become proficient in Python where you reached a stage where you were able to accomplish something outside of what is taught in a course?

I see people always automating stuff using Python, writing scripts, bots etc to perform functions they want. How do I reach that level? How do I come out of the loop of just going through courses?

Top answer

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126

Here's the advice I give to a lot of people once they've got some basics done (perhaps by following the learning paths suggested in the wiki for this subreddit). Practice! Practice! Practice! That is the only way. Programming (whatever the language) is a practical problem-solving skill. You have to make, and learn from, a lot of mistakes (much like learning another human language). I know it can be frustrating at times, especially when faced with code you want to reuse but cannot understand. Only you can find the motivation. Why are you learning to programme in the first place? Is your learning objective SMART - specific, measurable, achievable, (sometimes agreed), realistic (or relevant) and time-bound, (or timely)? If it is something soft, like "upskilling" then it will probably not help you much. It is hard to learn anything in the abstract, not least because it is difficult to feel passion for what one is doing. I strongly suggest you look to your interests, hobbies, obligations (family business, charity activities, work) to look for opportunities to apply Python. You will learn far more about Python and programming when you work on something that resonates for you and that you have some domain knowledge of (or incentive to gain such knowledge in). When you are copying tutorials/examples, don't just copy. Experiment. Break the code and understand why it has broken. The interactive python shell is your friend, I found it the best learning aid because you can quickly try snippets of code and get immediate feedback. (Consider installing ipython which wraps the standard shell for more convenience.) Start very simply and regularly refactor the code as you learn new things. Enhance as you see opportunities. If you haven't already, take a look at Automate the boring stuff with Python (free to read online). At first, the tasks you automate will be trivial and hardly worth the effort BUT because it is about the problem and not Python, it will be more rewarding for you. Many beginners are mixing up coding (writing instructions in a programming language) with problem-solving (creating an algorithm) and their lack of knowledge of the programming language and how to use it is a distraction from the problem-solving. For most programmers, the coding part is the final and easy bit. Order: Actually making sure the problem is properly understood. Often we start with only a vague understanding of the problem. Ensuring we know what outcome is required. What does good look like? How will the information be presented, will it be on-screen or in a file, or a database. Determining the data representation. Exactly what data is required, in what forms, where from. It is a one-off or lots of cycles or combining lots of information. Work out how to do things manually in the simplest possible way, explaining every little step (assume you are giving instructions to someone with learning difficulties), Computers are really dumb, and humans make lots of intuitive leaps and take short-cuts This is one of the hardest things to grasp when first learning to programme Computers don't mind repeating very boring things, so the simplest but repetitive manual approach is often a good approach to start with for a computer Later, you will learn different ways of selecting / developing an algorithm which doesn't depend on a manual approach learning from others In general, when learning and working on something new, where you are following some kind of tutorial, where others have provided an answer, follow the steps I laid out above looking for a solution (so make sure you understand the problem first, figure out what the outcome should be, etc) try to solve the problem yourself before looking at someone else's solution look briefly at someone else's solution and try to understand what they've done at a high level and see if you can solve it that way fully review someone else's solution, try it out, play with it (break it, improve it) - be super critical (watch ArjanCodes YT videos on code reviews) update your algorithm and implement a new solution (including testing, if you can) write some notes, not on low level detail but on principles, approaches, key algorithms, and summarise what you learned (I keep my notes in markdown format in Obsidian, synced between devices).

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projects. like meaningful ones, not busywork stuff. you only needed one python course, max. have ide in one window and google in another and struggle to build something that didn't exist yet but should.

reddit.com › r/learnpython › python mastery

r/learnpython on Reddit: Python Mastery

March 29, 2024 -

Hello everyone, I'm an undergraduate physics major doing a minor in computer science. I'm interested in getting into the AI sphere but have almost no knowledge right now. From what I can see mastering the ability to write code and problem solve is extremely important for AI development. So for someone like me who's main focus is physics and not CS is it possible to "master" coding on python or other sources? Or is coding a skill without a ceiling that people keep improving at? Also if you had to go back to the start of ur journey with python or coding in general where would you go to learn? Which youtubers, books or courses would you use?

Top answer

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1

I can see mastering the ability to write code and problem solve is extremely important for AI development.

Well, they are core skills for anyone in software development no matter what area.

is coding a skill without a ceiling that people keep improving at

Pretty much. A python programmer who is proficient in one area will have to learn new things when moving to an unrelated area.

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I had written a good answer, but my cell phone battery ended :S Here's a summarized version from what I remember (all of this is my opinion, Tthere are no "right" answers here):

There's no theoretical ceiling in how good of a programmer you can be
There's a point where you become "fluent" and can write in a language with ease (much like learning a spoken language)
There's a skill that involves "developing" programs. Think fluency like being able to express your ideas, think "development" as being able to create larger or more complex ideas "on paper".
I believe that using AI can benefit from fluency, but it's not required.
I believe that developing AI programs (for example, writing tensorflow) needs fluency and at least a bit of the "development" skill (the need for such may be offset by the people that you work with)
Remember that AI, data, machine learning are separate from programming (maybe a Math/Physics or Physics/Engineering comparison is apt)
An important thing is that you don't need to gain fluency and then go do stuff. I gained fluency while doing stuff (and I believe most people are like that too). Of course, a structured course might help to pin down the basics (I recommend the book Python Crash Course, about youtubers/courses, I don't know).

All the best!

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