Introduction
Python is one of
the most popular programming languages today, known for its simplicity and
versatility. Whether you’re aiming to automate tasks, build web applications,
or dive into data science, Python is a great starting point. In this tutorial,
we’ll cover the absolute basics: writing your first program,
understanding variables, and working with simple data types.
Step 1: Writing your first Python program
Every programmer’s journey begins with the
classic Hello, World! program.
In Python, it’s incredibly simple:
- print()
is a built-in function that outputs text to the screen.
- The text inside quotes " "
is called a string.
Try running this in your Python interpreter or IDE. You
should see the message appear instantly.
Step 2:
Variables and Data Types
Variables are like
containers that store information. In Python, you don’t need to declare the
type explicitly — the interpreter figures it out.
# Assigning values
to variables
name = "Deepak"
age = 42
height = 5.9
- name is a string
("Deepak")
- age is an integer (42)
- height is a float (5.9)
You can print them
as below:
print(name)
print(age)
print(height)
Python is
dynamically typed, meaning you can reassign variables to different types:
age = "Forty Two"
print(age) # Now age is a
string
Step 3: Basic
Operations
Python can handle
arithmetic easily:
x = 10
y = 3
print(x + y) # Addition → 13
print(x - y) # Subtraction → 7
print(x * y) # Multiplication → 30
print(x / y) # Division → 3.333...
print(x // y) # Floor
division → 3
print(x % y) # Modulus → 1
print(x ** y) #
Exponentiation →
1000
Notice how / gives
a float result, while // gives an integer.
Step 4: Strings
in Action
Strings are
powerful in Python. You can join them, slice them, and manipulate them easily.
greeting = "Hello"
name = "Deepak"
message = greeting + " " + name
print(message) # Output:
Hello Deepak
String slicing
print(message[0:5]) #
Output: Hello
Mini Exercise
Try this yourself:
- Create a variable city with
the name of your city.
- Create a variable year with
the current year.
- Print a sentence like:
I
live in Gurugram and the year is 2025.
Hint:
Use the + operator or f-strings:
city = "Gurugram"
year = 2025
print(f"I live in {city} and the year is {year}.")
Conclusion
In this first
tutorial, you learned how to:
- Write your first Python program
- Use variables and data types
- Perform basic arithmetic
- Work with strings
These are the
building blocks of Python. In the next tutorial, we’ll explore control flow
— how to make decisions with if statements and repeat actions with loops.