In article <chx1m.1602$nf6.1...@nwrddc02.gnilink.net>, Randy Foiles <ab...@127.0.0.1> wrote: >OdarR wrote: >> >> "Learning Python" >> http://oreilly.com/catalog/9780596513986/ >> >> new issue soon, covering 2.6 and 3 >> http://oreilly.com/catalog/9780596158064/?CMP=AFC-ak_book&ATT=Learning+Python%2c+Fourth+Edition%2c > >I was thinking of that book and a few others. I am not sure at this >point what the difference is in 2.6 and 3?
There are lots of differences between 2.6 and the just-released 3.1, but opinions are split about which is better for learning: some people say that you should learn 3.x first because it's the future of Python and it's simpler/cleaner; others (including me) say you should learn 2.x first because that's where the bulk of current code is and many 3rd-party libraries have not yet been ported to 3.x. In the end, it doesn't make a lot of difference, as long as you stick with only 2.x or 3.x during your initial learning: the core Python syntax changes very little between the 2.x and 3.x, and there are only two critical differences that will hit you up-front: * Python 2.x has ``print`` as a statement; 3.x has ``print()`` as a function * Python 2.x has 8-bit strings by default; 3.x uses Unicode and has no way to access 8-bit strings except as byte arrays You might want to bookmark this, though: http://docs.python.org/3.1/whatsnew/index.html -- Aahz (a...@pythoncraft.com) <*> http://www.pythoncraft.com/ "as long as we like the same operating system, things are cool." --piranha -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
