Mailman 3 November 2010 - Edu-sig

xturtle online via processing.js !?
by Jurgis Pralgauskis 27 Sep '12

27 Sep '12

Hi, I am struggling around with interactive online py tutorials with https://launchpad.net/projects/intro-to-code (ith might become securely sandboxed soon, as pypy made it possible http://blog.sandbox.lt/en/WSGI%20and%20PyPy%20sandbox :) but one more thing is I'd like to let access xturtle functionality online - one possible way could be triggering tkinter to save its canvas to ps, and then convert them with imagemagic and show via web (animated gif or static) - but if pyjamas can render GUI for js (http://www.google.lt/search?&q=pyjamas+python ), mayby there is a way to **translate turtle commands to processing.js analogues** http://ejohn.org/blog/processingjs/ would it be difficult -- how do you think? -- Jurgis Pralgauskis tel: 8-616 77613; jabber: jurgis(a)akl.lt; skype: dz0rdzas; Don't worry, be happy and make things better ;) http://sagemath.visiems.lt

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Eclipse as Python3 IDE
by kirby urner 12 Mar '11

12 Mar '11

Just wanted to share experiences using PyDev plugin within Eclipse, with Python 3... I've not been unable to get pickle to work properly, with the error confirmed by others. Sometimes (in at least one case) an error marker will indicate a module name cannot be resolved, and yet it imports and works anyway. Getting proper syntax-coloring around triple-quotes seems problematic, especially when the first line is empty e.g. """ comments go here """ However, I'm able to get the coloring situation to resolve by moving text around later... On the whole, Eclipse is pretty capable in supplying an interactive shell, lots of different windows. There's even a terminal window option if you want to do ssh into a server right from within Eclipse. As the above difficulties get ironed out, I think Eclipse will continue to serve as a development platform for Pythonistas. It's not the only option, given Visual Studio, Wing IDE etc., but it's one of the better free ones (eMacs, vim -- these do everything too, in the hands of experienced users, Notepad not so much). [ I remember how Jason Cunliffe used to post a lot about Leo to this archive. There's a school of thought that's more into "literary programming" as I'd call it, where comments might be relatively copious, with more hypertext relationships. You get these fancy markups... ] Some of you may be familiar with the O'Reilly School of Technology (OST) and its use of Eclipse as a front end to accredited courses in the many languages, databases and so on. Rather than use the free-standing Eclipse, which is an option, you get a customized student version called Ellipse that runs of their servers in a remote desktop session. This seems a creative approach and gets a next generation of developer prepared with one of the state of the art environments, using some of the best industry standard tools (e.g. Python and MySQL). Kirby PS: in other news, I've continued to focus on the plight of the lone FoxPro coder (which was me for many years, but not just me) and possible migration paths for legacy applications. FoxPro is a dialect of xBase nutured by Microsoft over the decades. It competes with their other products and too many people use it for free (not the original business model, unlike Java's) so the plan is to discontinue support for it by 2015 I think it is. This decision is having lots of boat rocking-ripple effects, It's not automatic that the .NET platform is where to go next, certainly not with VB necessarily. New developers don't want to waste time learning a proprietary dead language that might be hard to come by down the road, so there's increasing pressure to migrate those legacy FoxPro apps that still do valuable work. I haven't been tracking closely and don't know if MSFT is taking IronPython that seriously, in terms of marketing and outreach. Server side apps still seem to be gaining over thick clients in many institutional settings, but again, I'm not posing as having a lot of overview here. Gotta read all those IT mags I guess, but who has the time? Pointers to true story use cases welcome.

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gnu news from pdx / 97214
by kirby urner 30 Nov '10

30 Nov '10

Some of you may recall how a few months ago I was angsting about the little feud that seems to go on twixt computer language families, a flavor of religious war, or maybe more "hillbilly" in some dimensions.[0] I'm speaking in particular of the functional vs. imperative rift. Python gets along famously with the Java community be comparison, but then these are both OO.[1] Anyway I'm revisiting that issue, having a diplomatic exchanges on math-thinking-l with some of the good people there (also off-list).[2] Also, thanks to Aahz, I've been in touch with an OpenStudy guy named Jon and invited him to join us. Lets see if he does. http://openstudy.com/ Perhaps old hat to some of you, I've been clued about xlrd and xlwt, FOSS modules that let you write Excel files even if you don't have Excel. I'll append some example code I've been working on.[3] Kirby "97214 -- the zip code of geniuses" [0] http://studiohourglass.blogspot.com/2010/10/yall-come-back-now-hillbilly.ht… slow to load, subcultural iconography -- seems to take forever actually, might be my Chrome buffer? [1] http://danielkaes.wordpress.com/2010/01/26/what-is-the-most-popular-program… [2] http://mybizmo.blogspot.com/2010/11/olive-branch.html If you follow links, you might get to some of my multiple choice examples, like: Mulitple choice: Which are special names for operations in Python (mark all that apply): (a) __add__ (b) subtract (c) __special__ (d) __mul__ [3] """ prototype: reads DBF format, outputs XLS format """ from xlwt import Workbook, easyxf import dbfpy.dbf from time import time def test1(): dbf = dbfpy.dbf.Dbf("C:\\ktraks6\\feecode.dbf", readOnly = True) header_style = easyxf('font: name Arial, bold True, height 200;') book = Workbook() sheet1 = book.add_sheet('Sheet 1') for (i, name) in enumerate(dbf.fieldNames): sheet1.write(0, i, name, header_style) for (i, thecol) in enumerate(dbf.fieldDefs): name, thetype, thelen, thedec = str(thecol).split() colwidth = max(len(name), int(thelen)) # print colwidth sheet1.col(i).width = colwidth * 310 for row in range(1,len(dbf)): for col in range(len(dbf.fieldNames)): sheet1.row(row).write(col, dbf[row][col]) book.save("C:\\Documents and Settings\\HP_Administrator\\My Documents\\Visual FoxPro Projects\\feecode.xls") if __name__ == "__main__": start = time() test1() end = time() print end - start

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tutoring in Python again...
by kirby urner 21 Nov '10

21 Nov '10

Greetings all -- Two weeks have passed since my last tutoring gig. This 12 year old is ahead of the pack in terms of learning object oriented programming. He's studied Java already and today wanted to learn more about public vs. private variables. The last paragraph in this blog post about has links to the source code we used (some wrinkles on the usual Snake class). He wrote his own class as well, but that's on a different computer. http://worldgame.blogspot.com/2010/11/visit-with-architect.html Lotsa links go everywhichway if you're looking for eclectic readings. Kirby 4dsolutions.net

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Re: [Edu-sig] drawing with the mouse with turtle...solved?
by Brian Blais 13 Nov '10

13 Nov '10

On Nov 12, 2010, at 8:48 PM, Brian Blais wrote: > > On Nov 12, 2010, at 8:05 PM, Steven D'Aprano wrote: > >> On Fri, 12 Nov 2010 19:24:50 -0500, Brian Blais wrote: >> >>> I'd like to draw on a turtle canvas, but use the mouse to direct the >>> turtle. I don't see a good way of getting the mouse coordinates and the >>> button state. >> >> I think the right way to do that is by creating an event handler to the >> turtle. These docs are for Python 2.7 turtle, but they may be applicable >> to older versions as well: >> >> http://docs.python.org/library/turtle.html#turtle.ondrag >> >> I quote: >> >>>>> turtle.ondrag(turtle.goto) >> >> Subsequently, clicking and dragging the Turtle will move it >> across the screen thereby producing handdrawings (if pen is down). >> >> >> That's probably all you need to do. > > > that's what I tried first, with no luck. I am on 2.6 on Mac OSX (Enthought distribution). The following code: > > > import turtle > > turtle.reset() > turtle.speed(0) > turtle.ondrag(turtle.goto) > turtle.pendown() > > running it in ipython brings up a window, but clicking, dragging, or anything like that doesn't move the turtle or draw anything. running it in just plain python brings up the window, but it instantly closes. I added: turtle.mainloop() > > which keeps the window open, but the clicking or dragging still doesn't move the turtle or update the window in any way. > Here is code that "works", with at least one small oddity: import turtle def gothere(event): turtle.penup() turtle.goto(event.x-360,340-event.y) turtle.pendown() def movearound(event): turtle.goto(event.x-360,340-event.y) def release(event): turtle.penup() def reset(event): turtle.clear() turtle.reset() turtle.speed(0) c=turtle.getcanvas() c.bind("<Button-1>", gothere) c.bind("<B1-Motion>", movearound) c.bind("<ButtonRelease-1>", release) c.bind("<Escape>",reset) s=turtle.Screen() s.listen() the oddity is that the coordinate transformations, x-360 and 340-y, are done by eye and do not seem to be related to any of the coordinate values I could find. my screen size is 300x400, the x and y canvas scales are 1 and 1, but if I try to transform with those numbers the mouse is clearly off. any ideas? bb -- Brian Blais bblais(a)bryant.edu http://web.bryant.edu/~bblais http://bblais.blogspot.com/

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ondrag with turtle module
by Brian Blais 13 Nov '10

13 Nov '10

Hello, I posted this on the main python list, but some of you have used turtle extensively and may know what my problem is. I am trying to get the turtle to respond to the mouse. I am on 2.6 on Mac OSX (Enthought distribution). The following code: import turtle turtle.reset() turtle.speed(0) turtle.ondrag(turtle.goto) turtle.pendown() running it in ipython brings up a window, but clicking, dragging, or anything like that doesn't move the turtle or draw anything. running it in just plain python brings up the window, but it instantly closes. I added: turtle.mainloop() which keeps the window open, but the clicking or dragging still doesn't move the turtle or update the window in any way. am I doing something wrong? thanks, bb -- Brian Blais bblais(a)bryant.edu http://web.bryant.edu/~bblais http://bblais.blogspot.com/

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presenting python at math conference
by michel paul 11 Nov '10

11 Nov '10

Last Friday I got a chance to present Python and Sage at the California Math Council annual conference in Palm Springs. I discussed 3 things - what 'computational thinking' is and why it should be in the math curriculum, Python, and Sage. Here's a link: http://standalone.sagenb.org/home/pub/20/ It's a Sage file. To be able to interact with it, create a notebook account at standalone.sagenb.org. Just choose a username and password. Once you've opened the file in your account, you can evaluate the cells, change them, do whatever you want. It went really well - although the network was a bit sluggish. However, people were really amazed. They had heard of Python and so were a little curious, but they had never seen Sage before. The theme of the conference was 'Equity in Mathematics', and we had to address 'Access, Achievement, Identity, and Power'. So, I said "All of this stuff is FREE. OK? Free and cross platform. Anyone with internet connection has access to it. And, this stuff is really powerful. You'll see. And once you learn your way around it, you'll have a great sense of achievement!" : ) - Michel -- "Computer science is the new mathematics." -- Dr. Christos Papadimitriou

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noticing a citation to MFTDA...
by kirby urner 07 Nov '10

07 Nov '10

I visit this blog from time to time, often because of a link from math-teach (as was the case time, where Benezet is again being discussed). Kirby >From the comments section: http://rationalmathed.blogspot.com/2009/04/learning-math-by-thinking-hassle… PS: I just overheard my daughter talking about a debate in which a team took the position that ending corporate personhood would amount to a violation of human rights, because it would be a form of genocide under current law. Pretty funny. === MPG writes: Teachers are key, but for them to be effective, they need to be free to teach real mathematics from a broad range of perspectives. Our attempts here to limit K-12 mathematics to the same boring nonsense we've been trying, mostly unsuccessfully, to shove down kids' throats for over a century is just utterly inadequate for the needs of a 21st century democracy. There is SO much wrong with how restricted and narrow our vision is that it would take years of blogging by me and many others to touch on it all. For a look at just a few of the possibilities, look at the Computer Science Unplugged Web Site, the This Is MegaMathematics! site, and google a book called DIGITAL MATHEMATICS FOR THE DIGITAL AGE and PROGRAMMING IN PYTHON. These aren't all that's out there, but they begin to touch on alternatives few teachers in regular K-12 are looking at or exploring. Some would, if they could, but almost no one is in a position to do so. etc.

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AP Computer Science
by Zac Miller 07 Nov '10

07 Nov '10

Today I attended a meeting of the Georgia chapter of the Computer Science Teachers Association. Most of the focus was on how to better teach the AP Computer Science exam and Java but I did learn a few things at the meeting. Are any of the K12 educators here that are using Python also teaching AP Computer Science? >From speaking with the people at the meeting I got the idea that the AP Computer Science test would eventually transition to Python. Does anyone know more about this? Also, from their descriptions of teaching the AP class it seemed like the is focus is mainly on preparing for the test...do you think that the AP course using Python would be a good thing or a bad thing for educators using Python? I think I prefer keeping my focus on producing great Python programmers instead of on an exam. Interested in any opinions out there. -Zac Miller

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python tutoring
by kirby urner 07 Nov '10

07 Nov '10

I experimented with doing another one-on-one tutoring in Python, of a 12 year old boy, right here at the Blue House (what we call it). The mom came along too (she knows me already). Noah is clearly a fast learner. At 12, he's acing 10th grade algebra. He told me he's already studied Java some and was eager to dive into recursion immediately. Speaking of recursion, search on that in Google. It'll ask you: did you mean recursion? Hah hah. Also search on "anagram" and "ascii art" (actually, that latter only seems to work using the search box in the top right on my browser, hmmm. The main innovation here was how I set up the class room. My laptop was projected to the wall, duplicating what I had on my screen. His laptop (property of Holden Web) powered a VGA flatscreen on the table, duplicating what was on his laptop screen. This way I could see what he was seeing and he could see what I was seeing, even though we sat facing each other (mom did some knitting on the couch). I also had speakers hooked up to the projecting laptop, which turned out to] be important. The mom, a knitter, wanted to start things off right with a funny cartoon she'd found.[1] I followed up with one of my own cartoons made with the same framework.[2] I think it's a good idea to take breaks now and then and look at short video clips. On the topic of recursion he wanted to talk about the Tower of Hanoi. We watched a stack of 10 being moved, with a move counter. Noah predicted exactly how many moves it would take. It took a few more than the 1023 he predicted, but then a blurb came up saying a few extra moves had been made.[3] He felt very vindicated. We also talked about that fable about the king wanting a favor, which some guy said he'd do if only he could get paid in rice, 1 grain on the 1st square of a chess board, 2 grains on the next, then 4, 8, 16... doubling each time up to all 64 squares. The king thought that sounded quite reasonable, but it was something of a trick wasn't it? Anyway, you've probably heard this all before. What Noah somehow already knew, is that 2**0 + 2**1 + 2**2 + ... + 2**63 == 2**64 - 1. i.e. SIGMA (i == 0..j) 2**i == 2**(j+1) - 1. Here's some Python to check that: >>> 2**64 - 1 == sum([2**n for n in range(64)]) True I'm guessing his answer for the Tower of Hanoi (10 disks) was right too. Yep.[4] Kirby [1] actually, hers was pretty tame, involved knitting. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edIlyY5_6EU Now I see this is a whole genre, some of them rather off color. [2] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p698mXuHmTs Yeah, a little creepy. I offer some analysis here: http://worldgame.blogspot.com/2009/02/regarding-objectifying.html [3] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-bE-wmZy0w (we skipped to near the end after awhile -- somewhat repetitive) [4] http://mathforum.org/dr.math/faq/faq.tower.hanoi.html >>> 2**10 - 1 1023 See also: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_of_two http://www.sosmath.com/CBB/viewtopic.php?t=48174&sid=2ad1972ed1e8fc4efbf8aa…

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