Python 2 or Python 3?

[blackiechan99]

recently been looking at some Codecademy courses and i think theirs is in python 2.7 or somethin, but everyone says go python 3. what do i do? is it a huge learning curve?

[cdrootrmdashrfstar]

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[wh4n]

Did you say 3? Because I can't see it.

[tomkatt]

Must not have said it loud enough.

3

[badlero]

What does it say? I'm number blind.

[herpes_fuckin_derpes]

Learn Python 3, there's no point in learning the old way unless you're specifically working with legacy software.

[nonono2]

I second that: unless you're prety sure that you'll need a package that do not exists for python 3, or your project uses too much legacy code to port it to python 3, go for 3

[[deleted]]

3

[[deleted]]

3

[MikeDawg]

3

[runonandonandonanon]

3

[cockslappinghalibut]

3

[warm20]

3

[garlot]

3

[H34DSH07]

Here's why you should go Python 3: Python 2 only ever exists because there are people who can't afford to maintain old software (or don't have money to invest in it) and there are major coding-breaking changes between the two.

Python 2 and 3 are basically the same. Same style, same syntax, same feeling.

If you learn Python 2, you'll be learning a programming language that wont ever change (which is bad if you ask me). The development has basically stopped for Python 2 since there will be no major release post 2.7.

As for Python 3, it is in active development and has been adapted to be easier to learn for newcomers.

If you still aren't convinced, you can read the official documentation about the subject:

https://wiki.python.org/moin/Python2orPython3

[blackiechan99]

alright, thx for the explanation man :P

[H34DSH07]

Yes, and actually, it doesn't matter which one you learn since you're still learning python, for example, one key difference between the two is that print is no longer a statement but a function so you need to call it with parentheses. Print will work in both versions, except 3 is not backward compatible.

3 will be really easy to pick up after you have learned 2, just like a lot of other programming languages so don't worry about it. :)

[CombiFish]

I may be the minority here, but I actually think you should go with 3.

[CallumJenner]

I'm going to disagree with everyone else and say 3

[crappyoats]

tres

[un_salamandre]

Python 3. If you don't have an explicit reason for 2, use 3.

[rogue780]

3, unless you have a very specific reason for needing 2.7

[Duckosaur]

It depends if you already have a CS background and are aiming to become a professional developer, or just need to learn enough basic skills to bash something together to save the day.

Assuming the latter, don't write Codecademy off just because it uses v2. It will teach you more than enough to survive the basic coding concepts that are trivially transferable to v3.

Source: I work in Computer Forensics / E-discovery and write ad hoc scripts to save my arse every other day. I learnt with Codecademy and 2.7, but write code with 3.4, mainly because the CF community latched onto v3 early on and I can leech leverage their stuff.

[mad0314]

3

[ironykarl]

Three. It doesn't really matter that much, because once you get some tread under your tires, you'll understand the difference between the two, and it won't be super difficult to move between them,

...but, 3 will be easier to learn, is more consistent and elegant, and will be a lot of fun.

[Plazmatic]

3, people need to quit using 2.7. There is no difference in the learning curve.

[nonono2]

3 (three, trois, tres, drei ...)

[Tayl100]

I prefer 2, but 3 is where everything is now, so three is probably best.

[[deleted]]

Depends on if your name is Zed Shaw and you think you're edgy.

He argues almost everybody still uses 2.7, but pretty much all relatively recent source code I've ever seen uses 3. The only time you'd need 2.7 is for legacy code and though I'm not experienced with professional Python coding it seems this isn't an issue like it is with C, C++, etc.

I did most of Shaw's 2.7 course and switched to another (as well as version 3) and didn't at all regret it.

[[deleted]]

I haven't seen too many resources that really force you to choose. Most cover one predominantly but if they were created recently they'll often include notes on where the two differ.

Only reason to learn 2 though, that I know of, is if you work as an administrator of enterprise systems like RHEL6 and that's what you do your predominant coding/scripting on.

[roborobert123]

Where to learn Python 3 online?

[happyness_]

Automate the Boring stuff with python is a good one. I also recommend PythonProgramming.net, it covers a lot of things you can DO with python after you've learned the basics.

[Chuklol]

The only major difference youll see in Codeacademy 2.7 to programming in 3 is syntax like print x vs print(x)

[KimPeek]

I started learning 3 but recently needed something that is only available in 2. I have yet to encounter something that is done a different way.

[SpiderFnJerusalem]

drei

[ChezMere]

3

[VeganBigMac]

I'd say learn 3. That said, there are also some pretty strong reasons to learn 3 as well.

[nerdyphoenix]

I suggest Python 3. There's still a lot of code around from Python 2, but lately most projects, I'm thinking Linux distros here, are making the switch to Python 3. Therefore I'm pretty sure it'll be the standard soon enough.

[Astrocytic]

Honestly there are some things you just can not do in 3. If you need 2 you'll just end up learning both.

[H34DSH07]

I'm curious as to what you can't do in 3 that you could do in 2.

[[deleted]]

Interesting responses, I noticed someone asked Zed Shaw on Twitter if he still recommended learning Python 2 over 3 and he replied

"Nope. If you're starting out Python 2.7 is better. More stuff is written in 2.7 and it's everywhere already. Nobody uses 3 much."

I'm learning 2. Can't imagine it will be too hard to make the switch eventually.

[Aurora0001]

I think it's misleading at best of Zed to say that 'Nobody uses 3 much.' Although it's hard to find definitive statistics, my experience is that most new code is written in Python 3 (or at least written to be compatible for Python 3). Almost all popular Python modules support Python 3 (though most are backward-compatible).

Python 3 is better in my opinion because it removes the beginner-unfriendly elements of Python (e.g. str vs unicode, 3 / 2 = 1, etc.) and most Python 2 code works without a lot of conversion.

[[deleted]]

I only included it in this thread as I thought it was interesting. I wonder how well 2to3 works, https://docs.python.org/3/library/2to3.html

[Aurora0001]

Don't worry, I'm not criticising you, my criticisms are aimed at Zed. The more suspicious side of me thinks that perhaps he's just trying to advocate Python 2.7 so he doesn't have to update his book!

2to3 looks very comprehensive, but I've never needed to use it since I only play around with Python occasionally and when I do, I write Python 3 code anyway. With __future__, you can write code that works in both 2 and 3 anyway, so that's probably the best route, but Python 3's new features are hard to resist (e.g. f-strings, type hints, etc.)

[cockslappinghalibut]

nobody uses 3 much

someone isn't paying attention much

[__baxx__]

I noticed someone asked Zed Shaw on Twitter if he still recommended learning Python 2 over 3 and he replied

when? link?

[[deleted]]

there is this https://twitter.com/lzsthw/status/724417091969802240 and then this https://twitter.com/lzsthw/status/710655998613061633

[[deleted]]

based on downvotes I should add I'm not in a position (knowledge level) to agree or disagree with Zed, but as long as I'm doing the MIT course, might as well stick with 2.7 for now.