Python 3.7 Features, Tools, and Best Practices

Exploring Python Development Tools

This episode delves into various tools and language features designed to simplify the development experience for both beginners and professionals.

Mu Editor: A Specialized IDE

An excellent entry point for new programmers, the Mu editor is a cross-platform tool featuring:
• Built-in targeting for Python 3, Adafruit, and micro:bit.
• Minimalist UI with integrated REPL, debugging, and a plotter.
• Real-time linter and parameter documentation.

"I think this would actually be great for teaching people how to code."

Managing Collections with IterTools and Sets

Efficient data manipulation is a cornerstone of clean Python code. The hosts discussed how to leverage built-in modules to optimize performance:

• IterTools: A powerful module for memory-efficient iteration and combinatorial tasks (permutations, cycles, and iSlicing generators).
• Sets: Essential for handling distinct items and high-performance membership testing. The discussion highlighted how using set operations (like intersection) is often more performant than nested loops.

Python 3.7: Performance and New Syntax

The episode highlights the upcoming release of Python 3.7, which is noted for being the fastest version of the language to date.

Key Improvements

• Performance: Significant speed improvements in method calls and overall execution.
• Data Classes: A streamlined way to manage objects with built-in hashing and representation, similar to attrs.
• Type Hinting: Enhanced syntax that avoids circular dependency issues by treating annotations as strings.
• AsyncIO: The new asyncio.run() function simplifies executing coroutines from synchronous code.
• Time Precision: Introduction of time_ns() for nanosecond resolution, avoiding floating-point drift.