2.1 "The os.path to Knowledge"

This chapter begins our look at ways to apply Python to real programming tasks. In this and the following chapters, we'll see how to use Python to write system tools, graphical user interfaces, database applications, Internet scripts, web sites, and more. Along the way we'll also study larger Python programming concepts in action: code reuse, maintainability, object-oriented programming, and so on.

In this first part of the book, we begin our Python programming tour by exploring the systems application domain -- scripts that deal with files, programs, and the environment surrounding a program in general. Although the examples in this domain focus on particular kinds of tasks, the techniques they employ will prove to be useful in later parts of the book as well. In other words, you should begin your journey here, unless you already are a Python systems programming wizard.