I leave the installation location as the default (install for all users). The simplicity of Thonny starts with their website,, which always points to the latest stable release:Ĭlicking “Continue” will bring you to the license page, and you’ll be asked to agree to the license terms. Let’s walk through how simple it is to install Thonny, first on the Mac and then on Windows. Depending on the IDE you choose, this can either be somewhat straightforward or a mini-project in itself. The simplicity of Thonny is much better than the alternative: you install a Python release, then install an IDE, and configure the IDE to work with the release. Because of this, all you have to do is install it and go! The beauty of the Thonny installer is that they’ve combined the Integrated Development Environment (or IDE) and the Python program and runtime libraries on which it depends into a single installer. In addition, the Thonny debugger goes beyond the step-into function of most debuggers to show beginners in detail how each expression in Python is interpreted. This is because it has a simple, one step installation that provides both the Python interpreter and runtime and an IDE configured to use it. In general, Thonny is the best Python IDE for beginners. It just came on one floppy that came with the book. When I work with the Thonny IDE for Python, Thonny reminds me of the simplicity of that first C compiler, which came not on twenty-two 3.5″ floppies like the one I purchased a couple of years later (sheesh!). There was no configuration involved it just worked.It was easy to install and run without getting stuck. Was it everything I’d eventually need as a beginner? Not really. I also think back to one of the first programming books I ever owned, which came complete with an in-memory C compiler that did almost everything but would not build executable files. I tend to pick my favorite tool based on the task at hand: P圜harm for professional work that may involve other languages, Jupyter Lab for exercise for this blog, and VS Code for quick scripts and terminal work.Įvery time I use one of these tools, I think about things that might slow down or hang up a beginner. It's a tool designed mostly for students from schools and universities, hence, it shouldn't come as a surprise that it was first developed in the University of Tartu, Estonia.As a Python developer and blogger, I have worked with and reviewed many different Python development tools. Thonny may not be the most stylish Python IDE out there, or the most powerful one, but it's a very nice tool for beginners. You can access and manage packages via a dedicated section, and many other nice touches. You also get a nice auto-completion feature (useful for coding faster, once your get the hang of things), a syntax error highlighter, and the ability to access the system shell (from the Tools menu, the place from where you can also install a new Python package). Just hit CTRL+F5 and you can run the program step-by-step (use F6 for leaping bigger steps, and F7 for smallers steps). Since beginners are naturally prone to making mistakes, you'll appreciate Thonny's simple debugger. You get an editor, a typical top toolbar, and an output panel at the bottom.Īnother great feature is the fact that Thonny comes with Python 3.7 built-in (of course, you can use other separate Python installations if you want). That's on purpose, as it's stripped of all unecessary features that beginners might find distracting or intimidating. The first thing that might catch your eye is just how simple Thonny's UI is. Doesn't look the part, but works like a charm In short, it's a beginner-friendly Python IDE. It's a free, cross-platform and open-source app designed specifically for those who want to get started with Python. However, a proper Python code editor or IDE can smooth out the process of learning. Considering that most Linux distributions already have Python built-in, you could pretty much pop open the Terminal and run/execute the file there. Starting with Python coding can be easy for some, and a bit more difficult for others.
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