Core Python Programming (2nd Edition)

Another set of first edition readers remarked how useful the reference tables were throughout the book,
and how they meticulously copied them for reference. Well, instead of flipping through each chapter
looking for the tables, we have summarized the most highly used ones in Appendix B. Thanks for all of
your feedback. I encourage you to keep talking to us and help us make a third edition possible and
better than its predecessors!
Finally, both the "Other References" appendix and the CD-ROM from the first edition are not included
with this edition. You would not believe how quickly Web links can become obsolete in six months much
less six years! The most up-to-date source code and Python interpreters can easily be downloaded for
offline use at the book's Web site, so there really is no reason to include a CD-ROM.
About the Reader
This book is meant for you if you are a programmer completely new to Python or already know some
Python but want to know more and improve your Python skillset. Python is used in many fields,
including engineering, information technology, science, business, entertainment, and so on. This means
that the list of Python users (and readers of this book) includes but is not limited to:
● Software engineers
● Hardware design/CAD engineers
● QA/testing and automation framework developers
● IS/IT/system and network administrators
● Scientists and mathematicians
● Technical or project management staff
● Multimedia or audio/visual engineers
● SCM or release engineers
● Web masters and content management staff
● Customer/technical support engineers
● Database engineers and administrators
● Research and development engineers
● Software integration and professional services staff
● Collegiate and secondary educators
● Web service engineers
● Financial software engineers
● And many others
Some of the most famous companies using Python include Google, Yahoo!, NASA, Lucasfilm/Industrial
Light and Magic, Red Hat, Zope, Disney, Pixar, and Dreamworks.
The Author's Experience with Python
I discovered Python over a decade ago at a company called Four11. At the time, the company had one
major product, the Four11.com White Page directory service. Python was being used to design our next
product: the Rocketmail Web-based e-mail service that would eventually evolve into what today is
Yahoo!Mail.
It was fun learning Python and being on the original Yahoo!Mail engineering team. I helped rearchitect
the address book and spell checker. At the time, Python also made its way as part of a number of other
Yahoo! sites, including People Search, Yellow Pages, and Maps and Driving Directions, just to name a
few. I was the lead engineer for People Search.
Although Python was new to me then, it was fairly easy to pick upmuch simpler than other languages I
had learned in the past. The scarcity of textbooks at the time led me to primarily use the Library