#298: "Unstoppable" Python

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Sponsored by Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub.

Brian #1: Uncommon Uses of Python in Commonly Used Libraries

• by Eugene Yan
• Specifically, Using relative imports
• Example from sklearn’s base.py from .utils.validation import check_X_y from .utils.validation import check_array
• “Relative imports ensure we search the current package (and import from it) before searching the rest of the PYTHONPATH. “
• For relative imports, we have to use the from .something import thing form.
• We cannot use import .something since later on in the code .something isn’t valid.
• There’s a good discussion of relative imports in pep 328

Michael #2: Skyplane Cloud Transfers

• Skyplane is a tool for blazingly fast bulk data transfers in the cloud.
• Skyplane manages parallelism, data partitioning, and network paths to optimize data transfers, and can also spin up VM instances to increase transfer throughput.
• You can use Skyplane to transfer data:
  • Between buckets within a cloud provider
  • Between object stores across multiple cloud providers
  • (experimental) Between local storage and cloud object stores
• Skyplane takes several steps to ensure the correctness of transfers: Checksums, verify files exist and match sizes.
• Data transfers in Skyplane are encrypted end-to-end.
• Security: Encrypted while in transit and over TLS + config options

Brian #3: 7 things I've learned building a modern TUI framework

• by Will McGugan
• Specifically, DictViews are amazing. They have set operations.

• Example of using items() to get views, then ^ for symmetric difference (done at the C level):

      # Get widgets which are new or changed
      print(render_map.items() ^ new_render_map.items())
  

• Lots of other great topics in the article

  • lru_cache is fast
  • Unicode art in addition to text in doc strings
  • The fractions module
  • and a cool embedded video demo of some of the new css stuff in Textual
• Python’s object allocator ascii art

Michael #4: ‘Unstoppable’ Python

• Python popularity still soaring: ‘Unstoppable’ Python once again ranked No. 1 in the August updates of both the Tiobe and Pypl indexes of programming language popularity.
• Python first took the top spot in the index last October, becoming the only language besides Java and C to hold the No. 1 position.
• “Python seems to be unstoppable,” said the Tiobe commentary accompanying the August index.
• In the alternative Pypl Popularity of Programming Language index, which assesses language popularity based on Google searches of programming language tutorials, Python is way out front.

Extras

Brian:

• Matplotlib stylesheets can make your chart look awesome with one line of code.
  • But it never occurred to me that I could write my own style sheet.
  • Here’s an article discussing creation of custom matplotlib stylesheets
    • The Magic of Matplotlib Stylesheets
    • XKCD Plots

Michael:

• Back on 295 we talked about Flet. We now have a Talk Python episode on it (live and polished versions).

Joke: Rakes and AWS