Many beginning-to-intermediate Python programmers are unaware of tools and techniques that more experienced developers use daily. In this tutorial we'll cover essential Python idioms and techniques in depth, adding immediately useful tools to your belt. Rationale will be provided--the "why" in addition to the "what and how." We'll run through lots of small, practical, hands-on examples.

Outline:

• Introduction: Zen of Python
• Coding style
• Idiom potpourri: tuples, Strings, dictionaries, booleans, lists
• Variables vs. Python names, default parameter values
• Advanced string formatting with "%"
• List comprehensions and generator expressions
• Sorting, decorate-sort-undecorate
• Generators, iterators, and "for" loops
• EAFP vs. LBYL
• Importing, scripts, modules, packages

Attendees should bring a laptop if possible, to try out the techniques they learn. The tutorial will be interactive, with lots of short examples that attendees can try out on the fly. Questions will be taken throughout the tutorial.