Develop Reference

Beginner question about finding Python script in IDLE shell

I'm a beginner in Python with no prior programming experience, so bear with me here.
I installed Python, started playing with it (typing variables, playing with math operations) in the Shell window and everything is fine. I open a New Window and started writing a simple script. Something like this:
print (1+1)
I press Run Module, and I am asked to name and save the script first. I do so by calling it firstscript.py, and save it to my desktop.
Now I press Run Module, and in the shell window 2 is printed on the screen. Everything is fine. I close Python, and open it up again. Now in the shell window, I type firstscript.py and I get the red message NameError: name 'firstscript' is not defined.
I can run my program only if I open the script file on my desktop and press Run Module from there, but if I try to start it up directly in IDLE Shell by typing its name, I get the error message.
What did I do wrong? Thank you.

Good to see that you are starting with python.
Firstly, you can run the file directly using 'Run Module' only when you have the file open. Once you save the file and quit, you are out of the file editor and back to the terminal.
Simply typing in firstscripty.py will not work as it does not recognize the command.
To run the file from the terminal, use the below code:
python [locationOfFile\]firstscript.py
You can check out this detailed explanation: https://realpython.com/python-idle/#how-to-work-with-python-files

The problem here is the Shell doesnt know that your firstscript.py is sitting on the desktop
The simplest way i suggest using cmd with:
python C:\Users\{your user}\Desktop\firstscript.py

Unable to set up vscode to practice python

Today just for practice I have downloaded and installed vscode.
I saw a tutorial on the installation of vscode for python and followed the procedure exactly.
But upon completion, whenever any python code is running, it is throwing an exception.
Eg:- A simple code I was trying to run like
def greet():
print 'Hello world'
But the terminal is throwing an exception saying "Invalid Syntax"
I really don't know where I am going wrong
If anyone of you has experience working on vscode and is willing to help then please tell me what I can do
The extensions I have enabled:-
Code Runner,
Python
Earlier the python extension was not enabled, but even after enabling it, the error is still there
Please have a look at the problem I am facing in setting things up with vscode

You should not type in python in the terminal.
Because the Python Extension only sends some commands to the terminal and then executes them.
If you type python in the terminal you will enter into the interactive mode, and the commands which intended to be executed in the terminal will be executed in the python interactive mode, and lead to SyntaxError.
So, you can get out of the python interactive mode through Ctrl+Z shortcut or kill the terminal and then execute the commands in a new terminal.

How to use VS Code - Python Shell

So I am relatively new to programming and used to use Python's own "IDLE". After I run a ".py" file with IDLE, I am used to getting a python shell or a command window, I don't really know the terminological name for it, where I could play around with the objects inside the script.
For example, if I had a list A=[1,2,3] inside the program, after I run it I get a command console that says ">>" and I can say ">>A" which gives me "[1,2,3]" and I can add elements to A etc.
Now, I want to start using VS Code but I can't seem to find that particular thing. I have a terminal where I can run python code if I give the command "python" first, but It doesn't seem to effect anything inside the script.
I want to use that to see if some objects are working fine and to check their types etc. I add more lines to code after I try from there first, if that makes sense.
Sorry for really bad terminology, I really don't know the names but I can try even more if it's not clear.
Thanks a lot in advance.

Are you looking for the Integrated Terminal of VS Code?
Here are some ways to open the terminal:
Use the ⌃` keyboard shortcut with the backtick character.
Use the View > Terminal menu command.
From the Command Palette (⇧⌘P), use the View: Toggle Integrated Terminal command.
In the window that shows up, enter python and you'll get the Python shell you're looking for.

Try using the integrated terminal inside vs code and make sure that python and pip are properly configured. Type python in the command line and make sure the terminal points to the same folder where your program file is located.

Problem running a R script from Python (Windows)

I've recently started programming in python for my job, so I'm quite new to it. My goal is to create a graphic interface so that the user can run a program that I have been developing in R. The interface is done using the Tkinter module from python (version 3.3).
The problem comes when I have to call the R interpreter from python to run an R file that is generated (run.R file). The curious thing is that this only happens when I try to run my script in Windows, not in Linux. In both cases, I am trying to use the os module from python.
​
This is the code that is not working for Windows:
os.chdir(outRW) #first I change the working directory to the one where the run.R file is
os.system("C:\R-3.6.1\bin\Rscript run.R")
When I execute this, it changes the directory successfully, but when it comes to calling the R interpreter, it shows me this error:
The filename, directory name, or volume label syntax is incorrect.
However, I have tried running the "C:\R-3.6.1\bin\Rscript run.R" command in the Windows Command Prompt and it works perfectly.
I have also tried adding the path to R to the environmental variables, but again I could only make it work in the Command Prompt, not with python.
I guess there is something very obvious that I am missing here, but I cannot see it.
Any help or comments are very much appreciated!
Thank you!

Use double backslashes.
In R you need to use double backslashes \\, otherwise it'll try to interpret it as an Escape Character.
Use this and it will work:
os.system("C:\\R-3.6.1\\bin\\Rscript run.R")
Hope this helps.

A python 3.5 script not printing results in windows command shell or powershell, only in the interpreter

I'm trying out some data science tutorials with python and can't get print to, well, print! when I run a .py in windows command shell or powershell. Print does work when I use the interpreter, but I have to type it in line by line (I'm not seeing how to run a .py as a file in the interpreter). I'm attaching snips of the file, and a snip of me running in the interpreter. I tried to attach snips of what happens when I run in command shell and powershell, but apparently I need at least 10 reputation points before I can post more than 2 links. Admittedly, those snips weren't interesting; there is no error and nothing printed. It just runs and returns to the prompt.
Also, as a test, I saved a .py file that simply does print ("Hello") and it does print correctly in windows command prompt and powershell.
Thanks in advance for any help!
Casie
PY script
Snip From Python Shell

Is that image from the IDLE console? To run the script you are editing, use menu Run > Run Module, or F5. Every python GUIs has an equivalent feature.
To run an arbitrary script from inside the commandline interpreter, say mywork.py: As long as it's in the working directory that you were in when you started the interpreter, you run it (once) by typing import mywork. (As you can see, its name must be a python identifier.)
Edit: You'd get to the bottom of this a lot quicker if you'd put print("Hello, world") in a script by itself and run it. From over here it looks like it would print just fine, proving there's nothing wrong with your python interpreter.
Your script has a bug, though: As soon as you enter the function random_kid(), you leave it again since you return a value on the first line. All those print statements are never executed. Why you think it works differently with %run I can't say, but for sure this function cannot print any output.