The movie ‘Arrival’ didn’t just make a star of Amy Adams – It also gave Python a new boost in popularity. Take a look at this graph from Google Trends:

As you can see, the search volume for “Python” has never been higher since 2009, thanks to the film which opened on 16 November 2016 and is still going strong.

It’s not just Google though: Python’s got love from all areas. Stack Overflow called it “the fastest growing major programming language”, and TIOBE Software even thinks that it could be “one of the next few general purpose programming languages that will stay with us for the next decade or so”.

All of this attention is great news if you’ve recently watched Arrival, or you’re curious about what this Python programming language is all about.

But where do you start? And, should you write your next app in it?

Let’s find out! I’ll take you through the basics of what Python is and how it works, show off some examples to get your teeth into, and even reveal which famous websites are written in Python. You can either read this article first or simply follow the links to different sections if you already know something about Python.

Python has been around since 1989 – That makes it one of the oldest programming languages still popular today. It was created by Guido van Rossum over 15 years before that though – So there are actually people who have been using it for longer than you’ve been alive.

Its name is a tribute to Monty Python’s Flying Circus – A British sketch show that ran from 1969 to 1974. It doesn’t really have anything to do with the snake, though. In fact, it was originally called “Python” before being changed for legal reasons… But as Guido van Rossum says, “calling it programming in C makes it sound as exciting as using a pocket calculator”.

Monty Python references aside, let’s find out why this language has recently been attracting so much attention – And if you should start writing your next app in it!

The biggest reason for its rise in popularity is because of what Python excels at: Web development. This means websites and APIs – Not desktop apps.

In the beginning, Python was seen as a language for scientists and researchers. That’s because of its strong focus on readability and ease of use: It lets you write more in less code than most other languages, and it has some great built-in features that help with complex tasks.

Over time though, we’ve seen more and more web developers using Python to develop web apps – And making their own websites run faster with it too thanks to its speed and efficiency.

The Django framework is one example of this:

Written in Python, it makes writing even complex websites fast and simple.

Some big names also use Python for web development:

Both Pinterest and Instagram started out using the language before replacing parts with C++ when they needed to scale up.

Python is also great for data analysis and machine learning, thanks to its built-in libraries such as Pyplot for plotting graphs, Pandas for handling arrays of data, and NumPy for working with large datasets in efficient ways. That means it’s a very useful language if you want to use lots of information and crunch the numbers your website or app generates!

Speaking of which:

Python can be used on almost any system… Even the Raspberry Pi! If you’re interested in getting started with programming but don’t have much money to spend on hardware, then it could be worth experimenting with small Python projects using that device (or even your Android phone!).

And when we say “almost any system”, we really mean it:

You can write and run Python programs on everything from Windows to Linux. It’s even been ported to work on iOS!

Because of these different uses, we’re seeing people across the internet learning Python: Some for web development, some for data analysis, and some even just because they want an easy way to learn about programming before moving onto other languages (like C++).

And while there are many resources like books and online tutorials available, one of my favorites is a YouTube channel called Talk Python To Me – Its host Michael Kennedy runs through exactly what you need to know about Python with plenty of examples that will help you get started quickly.

Conclusion:

If you’re looking for a great programming language that can be used for everything from websites to machine learning, Python is definitely an option to consider. It’s often the easiest way to get started with programming too – Especially if you’re trying to learn about it without spending much money!