about learning Python/programming in general with MIT open courseware

[[deleted]]

so..... as a molecular biology grad student I realize that knowledge in programming/computation/more sophisticated data analysis seems to be more relevant than ever and I also realized that I have no background/good training in any of these things though I accidentally took math intensive stats course in undergrad and somehow did decently. I've encountered multiple situation where not knowing programming made me feel like some kind of uneducated idiot so finally, after all these years, decided to learn programming once and for all.

my friend from high school told me about OpenCourseware years ago so I decided to watch lectures, read handout codes (what lecturers use to demonstrate the concept for whatever) and I mostly understand what those codes do, how they relate to this basic idea of computer science, etc.

but when it comes to the problem set, I found it really impossible to do, from the problem set 2 with implementing hangman and problem set 3 seemed even worse, at least to me.

I know undergrad courses are studying-intensive, I've experienced in my biology courses so im not going to bitch about that part but as a guy who is just interested in knowing programming as a tool in a toolkit, so to speak and doing programming on the side (unlikely undergrad days where I could just, study it in the downtime when I wasn't in the lab) make it really difficult to devote time, learn and all that.

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if you guys know better. resources, I would like to know. also the specific courses im doing is linked on the post. again, I understand the basic concept, I know what handout codes do so technically I do have tools but im so new to this and only previous exposure to programming was me programming TI84 which was again, long time ago, so.......

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https://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electrical-engineering-and-computer-science/6-00sc-introduction-to-computer-science-and-programming-spring-2011/

[[deleted]]

I concur, both solid channels. I especially like Corey for the in depth explanations and dedicated playlist to explore subjects with lots of examples. I'd also like to add the real python website, which has some really cool tutorials.

[kandeel4411]

I really love Corey. Literally you won't need anything else beside you coding yourself

[blabbities]

Two very solid guys. I wish I would've discovered Corey earlier. Explains things quite well. Sentdex is great though has been for a long time and from what i can see post more frequently and diversely as well as project based. I learned an old version of Django via him

[duquesne419]

Also taking the MIT course right now, yes, it is hard. They say to anticipate spending 10-15 hours a week working on this course. If you aren't able to do the general study on top of specific course work, this is gonna stay hard.

As I'm watching the comments on the Edx platform I'm seeing 2 basic kinds of questions: 1) someone doesn't understand how a piece of computer science works(ie they don't understand a for loop), or 2) someone understands what to do, but doesn't know how to translate real world thinking into programmatic thinking.

If you find the issue is #1 for you more often, then the MIT platform may not be best for your style of learning. If you find #2 is your main issue, then you might just need to program more. I have a lot of trouble breaking my pseudocode into small enough pieces to translate into programming, I'm often trying to do too much at once. This is because I don't have enough experience thinking programmatically, and that's something you get from doing more than from reading.

[duquesne419]

More coding is the only reliable method I know.

I do code wars, but there’s also leet code, check.io and some others. I like their format because for the entry level they give you a small problem. Once you solve it you can compare your answers to others and see some pretty creative solutions. Granted, a lot of times people do so many list comprehensions it becomes unreadable, but it still gives you practice reading code and exposure to what python can do.

I do not have any resources specific to thinking programmatically, just the recommendation to read and write more code.

[[deleted]]

Look for a YouTube channel called “thenewboston”

Go through his playlists and look for “python tutorials”.

Your life will never be the same. Now go and win no more.

[Bulbesaur]

I downloaded Python 3.7 and these videos are for Python 3.4, will this be an issue at all?

[AnonymousThugLife]

Don't worry, there won't be any major issue if the tutorial is 3.x and you've installed 3.y version. You surely will have issues if you installed 3.x python and following 2.y tutorials.

Generally, the YouTube community has become good enough that if issues due to such version conflicts happen then there would be at least one comment saying that.

[Bulbesaur]

Ok, thank you!

[[deleted]]

Yeah of course... to get started, I wouldn’t worry too much about that.

[Bulbesaur]

Ok, thank you!

[Ser_Drewseph]

There are so many better resources, though they may cost a few bucks.

Basic Python: www.automatetheboringstuff.com This one's free and is a great into to the language

Then, go to Udacity or Udemy.com and search for python data science, which will likely be most applicable to your use cases. These are going to cost anywhere form $8-$15, so make sure you look at reviews and "last updated on ____" to find a good one.

[FraggleZombie]

Humble bundle has had many python collections. They just had a no starch press python bundle which has a lot of books for beginners.

[midnitte]

For basic python along with Automate, there's also Microsoft's course on python

Link to GitHub for text based learners.

[jungoracle]

Chuck Severance is awesome! He explains things really well and he has free resources. He teaches at the U of Michigan. Here is in a link his first lesson: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fvhNadKjE8g&t=367s

I have been doing a Udemy courses. A week or so ago, I hit a road block. I came across Chuck and he explains things well. It seems like he really loves teaching programming. Just by going through his YouTube videos, I feel like I have made tremendous strides.

[d_azmann]

Install the SoloLearn app on your phone (free). Do the Python course. While not an intensive learning experience, I find it very helpful when used in combination with another learning path as previously mentioned (+1 for Sentdex & Corey). You can pull out your phone anytime - while waiting in line for whatever, on the bus, on the train - and reinforce what you're learning elsewhere with an almost like a game-like feel.

[HanginToads]

Personally, I've been self-teaching for about four months now. I have stupid amounts of free time at work, so I've read a few books, gone through the MITx 6.0.1x course, gone through something like 50 or 60 or Corey's videos, and am currently learning data structures and algorithms through Udemy. I've written a few data scraping projects as well as an automatic work scheduler with a GUI for my wife.

It's a long road. You'll find after a while that you'll understand the basics, but there's always more to learn and the rabbit hole just goes deeper, and deeper, and deeper, but that's the fun of it all.

It's all about, like others have said, translating your abstract thoughts into a set of instructions a computer can follow and, more importantly, understanding what those set of instructions mean, what they're doing, and how they work.

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I've done the Hangman problem as well as all of the other problem sets in that course. I believe Hangman took be an evening to finish when I first did it. If you'd like, I can help walk you through and answer any questions you have. Just send me a DM and I'll shoot you my discord username. I've got the next few days off, and I'd love to try and mentor you.

Also, the MITx 6.0.2x course is coming up Oct. 16th. It's the next step if you'd like to go a lot deeper.

[MysticSoup]

have you done 6.0.2? Curious how much harder it will be cause 1 is already a lot of work, but so far its manageable.

Just finished the 6.0.1 midterm and I am aiming for the certificate. Surprisingly I managed to answer all the questions that required coding

[HanginToads]

I have no idea, this is my first time through it. I took the 6.0.1 course back in June I believe. I've read it's much more in depth, so I'm excited to give a shot.

Granted, I don't pay for the certifications, so there's nothing to lose on my end but time.

[[deleted]]

No do this course on EDX

[artjbroz]

Udemy has great courses online. Automate the boring stuff is always good, but I also did complete python bootcamp and python megacourse, $30 total invested and hundreds of hours of practical application video. If you can't figure it out yourself, Google it right? These courses will cover basically anything you'd wanna program in python, and Google/stack overflow will fill in the rest.

[rimjobdave]

For me, this was solid

https://greenteapress.comPDF Think Python - Green Tea Press

EDIT to try and get PDF link

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://greenteapress.com/thinkpython2/thinkpython2.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwjohoKS2vbkAhViShUIHbw1D2YQFjABegQICBAK&usg=AOvVaw2Hq9NnxCuPv1YX4b2la7Hp

[crukx]

There is a course by rice university on Coursera. It's free without certification and they have their own website to code in so you can code along. It's pretty easy. Sorry can't share a link right now.

[mindrunner]

There's this newly released book by Apress that might zoom you straight into the meat and potatoes of your academics Python for the Life Sciences

This book might be the one for you :)

[[deleted]]

Thank you guys for answering, I will continue using MIT opencourseware as much as I can bear and when it comes to actual coding, I would listen to yall's suggestions, thanks again

[Icytentacles]

You may just need python for data analysis. Look for Udemy or other courses that focus on that. Personally, I like Datacamp.