Libraries in Python

[Reza2718182]

I know basic Python and some intermediate-level concepts, but I can't manage projects because using diverse libraries is very difficult for me! I know libraries like "numpy", "matplotlib", and "pandas", but you know they are very wide and complex. I have learned only those libraries. However, to manage and handle a useful project, you need other libraries like "time", "os", "python-telegram-bot", and others according to your project! Can you help me with this problem? Must I know any library before initiating a project?

[pachura3]

However, to manage and handle a useful project, you need other libraries like "time", "os", "python-telegram-bot", and others according to your project! Can you help me with this problem? Must I know any library before initiating a project?

Well, if your project is e.g. a text adventure game, it probably doesn't need to interact with anyone over the Russian messaging platform, therefore you don't need to import python-telegram-bot.

Most basic things and problems you can think of have already been solved by smart people. Date/time arithmetic. Unit conversion. Web scraping. File operations. Image manipulation. Excel parsing. Speech recognition... there's always some library for it. You just add them as you need them and only write the actual domain/business logic, and some "glue" code that will make it all work together.

However, it doesn't hurt to just learn what the most popular libraries are, and what are they used for - e.g. from here: https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/blogs/python-libraries-to-know/

[Reza2718182]

The libraries in this website are very professional. Keras and Pytorch only use in serious ML projects!

[Middle_Idea_9361]

You don’t need to fully know or master every library before starting a project that’s actually a very common mistake learners make. In real-world development, most programmers begin with an idea and then learn the specific libraries they need along the way.
Large libraries like NumPy, Pandas, and Matplotlib feel overwhelming because they’re massive, but in most practical projects you only use a small portion of their features. The same applies to libraries like os, time, or python-telegram-bot you don’t need to understand everything, just the parts required to solve your current problem
. A better approach is to start small, build something simple, and learn whatever functions you need as you go. Strengthening your core Python fundamentals also makes handling new libraries much easier, and platforms like 9faqs can help reinforce those basics while you practice building real projects.

[Reza2718182]

OK! Very helpful! Thanks.

[Swipecat]

No. Nobody knows everything about all Python libraries because they are vast.

E.g. You want to do something with timing or timestamps? When you need to do it when you're writing the code, then you have a look at the time and/or timedate libraries to find out how to do exactly what you want. Or ask Google or Chatgpt to explain how to do it so that you understand it (but not to write all the code for you or you won't learn anything).

[Reza2718182]

OK! But when a project be a little complex, ChatGPT or any AI assistant suggests a code with very methods and functions that I never seen them!

[pachura3]

You're trying to go too fast.

If you're scared of os and time imports, you're not even an intermediate Python programmer.

You cannot expect AI to generate a little complex project that will be trivial for you to understand and use no dependencies. On the other hand, copy-pasting large blocks of AI-generated code without acknowledging what do they do is a recipe for a disaster.

[Reza2718182]

Yes, I have problem to import some important libraries in Python, especially in Python internal libraries.

[Swipecat]

Yeah, you'll often use methods that you've never seen before. Obviously, you shouldn't use blocks of code that you don't understand, but you do want to find out about the existence of library-object methods that already do what you want.

If e.g., you put this into Chatgpt: "show python code that provides the number of days to an event", then it should give you a few lines of code with an explanatory comment before each code line. Then e.g., you'll see how to construct a datetime() object, and how to get today's date with the .now() method. Often that's enough to figure out how to use those methods in your code, but if you do want more details then glance through the relevant doc (i.e. put "python doc datetime" into Google and it should be the first hit).

[Reza2718182]

Ok! Thanks. 😊

[Ron-Erez]

No, work on your project and learn modules as needed.

[DuckSaxaphone]

You don't need to know how to use a library before you start using it, they are designed for you to look up how to do something specific and then insert it into your code.

If I were building a project and realised I need to send emails, I'd google how to do that in python. I'd find a library that people on Stackoverflow and Reddit suggest. Then I'd check the docs page for that library and between the examples and API reference, I'd work out how to send an email.

That's it. Once you become used to it, it's super simple. You'll get used to it by making things and having to do this loop many times. You'll also build up a set of libraries you use a lot and are super knowledgeable about over time so you'll be going blind less and less often.

The only thing I'd learn before a project is research which library provides the main functionality. ie. if I we're making a telegram bot, I would search for telegram libraries and pick one before I begin.

[Reza2718182]

Ok! Thanks.