I’d like to post a sticky, growing list of useful Python-related links. If you’re new to Python or looking to dig deeper, these should point you in the right direction.
I’ll archive the most useful links on the TAO Wiki, but this thread can remain an informal starting point.
Python Extensions Python Package Index - AKA the Cheese Shop. Large list of extension packages available for Python Python Win32 - Definitive extensions for working with Windows wxPython - Popular choice for developing GUIs. Python Imaging Library (PIL) - For working with images, texture files SQLAlchemy - Excellent SQL database toolkit PyExcelerator - Great for working with MS Excel documents Pygame - Game framework for Python Py2exe - Compile Python scripts into EXEs Twisted - Event-driven networking engine
Books Learning Python, 3rd Ed., Mark Lutz Python Programming for the Absolute Beginner, Michael Dawson Python Programming in Win32, Mark Hammond, Andy Robinson Programming Python, 3rd Ed., Mark Lutz Beginning Python: From Novice to Professional, Magnus Lie Hetland
Python Tools Wing IDE - Excellent Python IDE with full debugger and remote debugging ability SWIG - “Glue code” generator for binding Python to C and C++ Boost.Python - Another glue code option.
Seriously though, it was super helpful for me to see how someone else was using python in a production environment. After looking at your sample files, I was able to whip up some python tools that have already saved us hours and hours. Thanks a lot for sharing.
I think it would also be cool to start a thread for Python success stories - for people to share cool things that they’ve done in Python to save time, make work-flows more smooth, etc.
I think it would also be cool to start a thread for Python success stories - for people to share cool things that they’ve done in Python to save time, make work-flows more smooth, etc.
-Ben[/QUOTE]
This is a great idea Ben. Not only would this show the capabilities of Python but also encourage new and existing Python users to experiment.
Thanks Adam! This is a great baseline for picking up Python. I remember reading your lecture on Python for Technical Artists from GDC 08 that Ben linked and it really got my brain workin. Hopefully I’ll be able to pick up a good starting point from all these resources as I haven’t really touched Python much.
[QUOTE=Kovac;184]Thanks Adam! This is a great baseline for picking up Python. I remember reading your lecture on Python for Technical Artists from GDC 08 that Ben linked and it really got my brain workin. Hopefully I’ll be able to pick up a good starting point from all these resources as I haven’t really touched Python much.[/QUOTE]
I highly recommend Mark Lutz’s books. He’s pretty much the definitive python teacher, short of going to Guido himself!
It’s great for a detailed overview of the language for those familiar with other languages such as C, and it’s in video format. It’s about 2 hours in length I think, so strap in.
Killer Erilaz, I’ll be sure to pick those up. Thanks for the heads up :).
Edit:
Actually I’ll chime in with a question here. Being that I’m a rather novice in the scripting/programming field, do you believe Lutz’s book is a good place to start? Does it cater towards those who have already had experiences with C# or various OOP languages? Python has always struck my fancy, but again, I’m rather new to the whole scene still.
I’m currently plowing through the MAXScript Essentials book without having any trouble understanding what’s going on (and if I don’t, I’ve been able to get further breakdowns by asking one of our programmers and figure it out shortly after). Would you say the learning curve and ramp in assumed knowledge of OOP based languages is at all equivalent to the pace of that book (assuming you’ve read or browsed through it)? If not a bit, hopefully not extremely more advanced? Thanks guys.
Python is actually probably the best language i’ve seen for learning programming from the ground up, so even if you’ve never touched stuff like this before, it’s gold. Although i’ve coded in various languages, I could see this as a really great starting place for beginners or advanced. He doesn’t dumb it down, but you’re not left behind either.
I actually learned a lot more about how C++ works just by reading Mark’s Python books. Python is essentially a lot simpler, a lot cleaner to read (one of the main reasons for python’s existence), and a lot quicker to write.
Since OOP is a fundamental feature of Python it’s not only easy to pick up, it’s easy to make a decision as to whether you need to use it.
The advanced stuff at the end of the “Learning Python” book is a little hard to stomach, but it’s worth plowing through as “Programming Python” becomes a lot easier to work with.
More to the point, Mark writes with a sense of humour and flair that’s missing from a lot of dry programing books.
Keep in mind, i’m fairly new to Python too (I’m only halfway through “Programming Python” - It’s a huge book!). All I can say is it’s renewed my joy of programming. :):
Well I’m sold. Thanks a bunch for the summary, Erilaz. Hopefully it’ll be a smooth transition (if not, I’ll be sure to bug you with questions :laugh:).
10 Free Python Programming Books has a listing of free e-books for python. They range from python 2.3 -2.5. They might be a little out of date but they’re still pretty good. Well some of them, not all.
The lack of Eclipse and PyQT links in this thread is surprising! I think of them both as the gold standards…
ECLIPSE IDE - not only useful for Python, here at Trion it’s also used extensively for Javascript, Java/Processing, ActionScript, and it interfaces well wth Maya (both Python and Mel) and other text editors, especially (for me) Vim.
PyQT - most of our GUI-driven in-house tools for level design and so forth are written in some flavor of Qt, adding PyQt to Maya (and Eclipse) is widely done (it’s right here in the Autodesk Maya docs) and adds a lot of fast functionality. I love being able to write tools that can run inside Maya or be standalone.
PyCharm IDE - A recent Python IDE that Rob recommended. Has some compelling features, I’d put it almost on par with Wing or Eclipse in some respects, and surpassing in others. It’s a little obtuse and takes some digging to really get into, but the devs are super helpful and responsive. This is what we’ll be using at Riot.
PyCon Videos on blip.tv - if you’re ready to really dig in and see what the rest of the world does with Python (and even some game studios), check these out. Warning: you WILL learn something.
