[Tutor] Strange issue w/ Python shell 3.0.0.

[Steven D'Aprano]

On Sun, Nov 24, 2013 at 08:51:41AM +0100, Rafael Knuth wrote:
> > So, what to do about it? While the Python interactive interpreter is
> > mighty powerful, it does have some limitations, and this is one of them.
> > You just have to get used to the fact that it is not well-suited for
> > editing large blocks of code. It is excellent for trying out small
> > snippets, or for running blocks of code that don't have to change, but
> > not for editing and running at the same time (at least not until you're
> > experienced enough to deal with errors like this one).
> 
> Understood. Should I use a Python IDE like Pycharm or so? Would that help?
> If so, which ones would you recommend?

I have never found an IDE I really like. 

Actually, that's not quite true. Back in the late 1980s and early 1990s 
I had two IDEs I loved, although they weren't called IDEs back then 
because the TLA hadn't been invented. One was Apple's Hypercard, which 
was not just an IDE but a runtime GUI environment as well, and the other 
was Think's Pascal compiler.

These days, my IDE of choice is called Linux. I have a web browser open 
for looking up code and help files on the internet, and a text editor 
open with at least two files (the program I'm working on, and a second 
program to test it). I prefer KDE 3's "kate" editor, like nearly 
everything about KDE version 4 is worse, but at a pinch Gnome's gedit 
will do.

I also run a terminal that supports 
multiple tabs. I have at least three tabs open in the terminal:

- one for running Linux commands and managing source control;

- one for testing or running my program, which I normally do with a 
couple of commands:

    python myfile.py
    python myfile_tests.py

- one open to a Python interactive interpreter, for testing code 
snippets.


So that's three windows, and at least half a dozen tabs between them. I 
say at least, because the number of tabs in the terminal tends to rise 
and fall, or in the case of the browser, rise and rise and rise and 
rise. (Currently I have 110 browser tabs split over two browsers and 
four windows. Curse you Internet, why do you have so much interesting 
stuff?!)


More here:

http://blog.sanctum.geek.nz/series/unix-as-ide/

http://michaelochurch.wordpress.com/2013/01/09/ide-culture-vs-unix-philosophy/ 

And now I have 112 browser tabs open...


-- 
Steven