What is Python? Python is a powerful programming language that is easy to learn and with which you can create anything. Also for starting developers. More and more often you hear or read about the language, and for good reason. Python is widely used, for example, in the development of web applications and for data science.
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About the origin and history of Python
The first version of Python was launched in 1991 by Guido van Rossem. He developed the programming language with the following goals: (1) to be as readable as possible, (2) free and available to everyone: open source, and (3) to be able to make everything with it. The meaning of the name Python can be traced back to a comedy series called “Monty Python’s Flying Circus”. Van Rossem read about this series during his search for a name. Looking for a name that was short, unique, and a little mysterious, he chose Python. The logo contains two yellow and blue colored snakes. After the initial release, various versions have been launched so far, of which version 3 is the most recent. Python 2.7 is also still popular.
The popularity of Python
Python is a relatively simple programming language because it is intuitive to understand, making it easy to learn as well. It is much easier to read and understand than other programming languages such as Java or C. A script in Python is on average 3 times as compact as a script in Java, for example. This makes it easier for developers to work together and an application can be developed in a shorter time.
Lots of possibilities!
Python is a general-purpose programming language, which means that it can be used for almost anything. For example, you can process text, adjust images and numbers, but you can also solve mathematical equations with it. It is therefore not for nothing that almost all well-known tech companies use the language. For example, Instagram, Uber, and Spotify strengthen their services through the possibilities of Python:
- Instagram: One of the largest social media companies with more than 400 million users per day, available on almost every smartphone. Instagram has chosen Python for its simplicity and practicality. The entire backend in which all requests from the application are processed is made in Python.
- Uber: Uber has the challenge of performing a huge amount of calculations such as predicting expected arrival times and matching customers and drivers. Uber does this with Python because the language can handle these calculations well. Python’s simplicity is also important to Uber. This makes it easier to find new software developers and allows them to get started earlier.
- Spotify: The largest music streaming provider in the world chooses Python because of the favorable development speed and the extensive possibilities for data analysis. In addition to data analysis, Spotify also uses Python for the backend of its application.
Python is also used at NASA to program equipment and space vehicles. Furthermore, it is used by many other companies to make better medical diagnoses with Machine Learning algorithms, to apply image recognition to security systems, to use speech recognition for better user interaction, and to provide insight by predicting stock prices.