Dive into Python

If you use an account hosted on a server, your ISP May have already installed Python. The most popular Linux distributions come with Python in the default installation.

Mac OS X 10.2 and later includes a command line version of Python, though you probably need to install a version that includes a more Mac-like graphical interface. Windows does not come with any version of Python, but do not despair! There are several ways to point and click on your way to Python on Windows.

As you can see already, Python runs on many operating systems. The full list includes Windows, Mac OS, Mac OS X, and all varieties of free Unix-compatible systems such as Linux. There are also versions that run on Sun Solaris, AS/400, Amiga, OS / 2, BeOS, and a plethora of other platforms that you've probably never heard of. What's more, programs written in Python on a platform, with a little care, running on any supported platform. For example, I regularly Python develop programs under Windows, then deploy them on Linux. Returning to the question that began this section, "What Python is good for you?" The answer is one that operates on the computer you already own.

ActiveState is an installer for Windows called ActivePython Python, which includes a full version of Python, an IDE with a Python-aware code editor, and some extensions for Windows Python which allow full access to Windows on services, API, and the Windows registry. ActivePython be downloaded for free, but it is not open source. He is the IDE I used to learn Python, and I recommend you try, unless you have a specific reason not to. One of those reasons might be that ActiveState is usually several months late in updating their installation when ActivePython new version of Python are released. If you absolutely need the latest version of Python and ActivePython is still behind a version you read this, you'll need to use the second option for the installation of Python on Windows.

The second option is the "official" Python installation, distributed by the people who develop Python itself. It is freely downloadable open source, and is still underway with the latest version of Python.

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