Installation of the Python 3 Programming Environment
Where, how, what?
It's simple... we access the official
Python page, the
Downloads section, which has the following URL:
https://www.python.org/downloads/
I chose the latest version available at the moment,
Python 3.8.1, but upon downloading we are informed that any version above 3.5 cannot run on the
Windows XP operating system (so, I recommend 3.4.10 in this case).
Press the appropriate button, save the file and then open it:
After the file is launched, a panel will appear where I recommend checking the option below first to automatically add the necessary system variables:
Start the installation process by pressing the button:
(by pressing the
Install Now button, Python will be installed only for the current user, and the working mode will be somewhat cumbersome)
Leave everything checked in the first window:
However, in the second window, check the option
Install for all users:
Thus, the installation location will be "
C:\Program Files\Python38-32", accessible to all users (in my case, version 3.8, 32-bit operating system).
Press the
Install button. If everything went well, then press
Close.
Okay, done! Now what? Where is Python 3?
The environment is successfully installed on your system, but by default, you don't have any shortcut to
Python on the
Desktop, as you might expect.
The operating system presented is
Microsoft Windows, so press the
Start button,
then in the search bar type "
IDLE", and then select (in my case):
Note.
IDLE stands for
Integrated
Development and
Learning
Environment.
The following window will open:
Great! Now we can write Python code!
Above you have the command line, the console (
Interactive Python Shell),
and the current position is indicated by the three characters "
>>>" and the cursor.
Type "
3 + 5" and press the
Enter key,
and Python will immediately display the result.
Quick access to Python IDLE
I recommend opening the folder where you installed Python, in my case:
C:\Program Files\Python38-32
then the "
Lib" folder and inside, "
idlelib", where you will find the location of the
"
idle.bat" file, associated with
IDLE. Create a shortcut on the
Desktop to this program:
I named the shortcut "
Python IDLE".
This way, we can easily open the Python programming environment directly from our computer's
Desktop.
Done! We're finished!
From now on, you can work peacefully in Python 3!
NOTE. The installation process for Python 3.8 is quite similar to that of other
Python versions, including the latest releases, ensuring consistency and ease of use across different versions.
The latest version of Python is 3.12.2, which was released on February 6, 2024. This version includes over 350 bug fixes,
build improvements, and documentation changes since the previous release. Python 3.12.2 offers enhanced performance
with an estimated overall improvement of 5% thanks to new features and optimizations. This version supports more flexible
f-string parsing, allowing many previously disallowed expressions, improving code readability and flexibility.
Official download link:
https://www.python.org/downloads/