The python Utility
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"Python is a programming language that lets you work quickly and integrate systems more effectively" -
Before you can execute Python programs on your computer, you'll first need to install the Python command-line utility.
Over the past few years there has been a shift in the community from Python Version 2 to Python Version 3. But these days we assume everyone is using Python 3, and this semester we will be using Python 3, exclusively. We might use different minor versions of Python 3 (like 3.7 or 3.8), depending on their compatibility with specific third-party packages we may be using on a given project.
Anaconda provides a command-line utility called conda to help us manage different versions of Python. Before proceeding, please take a moment to .
When you are ready, either use the Anaconda default "base" environment, or create and activate a new Anaconda environment, and within the environment execute the commands below.
To see if Python is already installed, and if so where:
If you see a filepath output, it means Python is installed at the location specified, so you can advance to the version detection instructions below. Otherwise, if you see an empty result or an error message, that usually means Python is not installed.
Let's see which version of Python is installed:
If you see a result here like "Python 3.8.3" (or some other 3.x version), it means the specified version of Python is installed, so you can advance to the usage instructions below. Otherwise, if you see an empty result, error message, or 2.x version, that usually means Python is not installed (properly).
After Python is installed, you should be able to execute Python commands.
If you type python on Mac Terminal (or python -i on Windows Git Bash) and press "enter", you will enter into an interactive Python console where you can evaluate Python statements and expressions. When you are done using the Python console, you can shut it down by typing exit() and pressing "enter".
You can alternatively use the python utility to execute a pre-written Python program, by specifying its filepath. To test this out yourself, follow the instructions in the .
