The Real Python Podcast

Building a Python Debugger & Preparing for NumPy 2.0

26 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

How does a debugger work? What can you learn about Python by building one from scratch? Christopher Trudeau is back on the show this week, bringing an...

Measuring Bias, Toxicity, and Truthfulness in LLMs With Python

19 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

How can you measure the quality of a large language model? What tools can measure bias, toxicity, and truthfulness levels in a model using Python? Thi...

Serializing Data With Python & Underscore Naming Conventions

12 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Do you need to transfer an extensive data collection for a science project? What's the best way to send executable code over the wire for distributed ...

Exploring Python in Excel

05 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Are you interested in using your Python skills within Excel? Would you like to share a data science project or visualization as a single Office file? ...

2023 Real Python Tutorial & Video Course Wrap-Up

29 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Three members of the Real Python team are joining us this week: Kate Finegan, Tappan Moore, and Philipp Acsany. We wanted to share a year-end wrap-up ...

PyCoder's Weekly 2023 Wrap Up

22 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It's been a fascinating year for the Python language and community. PyCoder's Weekly included over 1,500 links to articles, blog posts, tutorials, and...

Exploring Code Reviews in Python and Automating the Process

08 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What goes into a code review in Python? Is there a difference in how a large organization practices code review compared to a smaller one? What do you...

Building a Python JSON Parser & Discussing Ideas for PEPs

01 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Have you thought of a way to improve the Python language? How do you share your idea with core developers and start a discussion in the Python communi...

Computational Thinking & Learning Python During an AI Revolution

17 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Has the current growth of artificial intelligence (AI) systems made you wonder what the future holds for Python developers? What are the hidden benefi...

Studying Python Software Architecture & Creating Lambda Expressions

10 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Have you moved through the fundamentals of Python, and are you now considering building a more extensive project or complete application? Where can yo...

Improving Your Git Developer Experience in Python

03 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Are you getting by with a few fundamental commands for Git when building your Python projects? Would you like to improve your version control techniqu...

Guiding Scientific Python Library Development

27 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

How do you prepare a scientific Python project for sharing with others? Could you use some best practices and guidance for packaging, documentation, a...

Welcoming PyPI's Safety & Security Engineer Mike Fiedler

20 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

You may remember a recent Python Package Index (PyPI) announcement about hiring a full-time security engineer. We've also mentioned several current se...

Building Python Best Practices and Fundamental Skills

13 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What fundamental developer skills are new Python users missing? What best practices might developers without a computer science background be lacking?...

Exploring the New Features of Python 3.12

06 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Python 3.12 is here! Our regular guests, Geir Arne Hjelle and Christopher Trudeau, return to discuss the new version. Geir Arne coordinated a series o...

Considering ChatGPT's Technical Review of a Programming Book

29 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What can you learn from feeding an entire book on Python programming into ChatGPT-4 and asking it to provide a technical review? What are the potentia...

Getting Involved in Open Source & Generating QR Codes With Python

22 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Have you thought about contributing to an open-source Python project? What are possible entry points for intermediate developers? Christopher Trudeau ...

Measuring Multiple Facets of Python Performance With Scalene

15 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

When choosing a tool for profiling Python code performance, should it focus on the CPU, GPU, memory, or individual lines of code? What if it looked at...

Making Each Line of Code Efficient & Python In Excel

08 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Are you writing efficient Python with as few lines of code as possible? Are you familiar with the many built-in language features that will simplify y...

Finding the Right Coding Font for Programming in Python

01 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What should you consider when picking a font for coding in Python? What characters and their respective glyphs should you check before making your dec...

Improving Classification Models With XGBoost

25 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

How can you improve a classification model while avoiding overfitting? Once you have a model, what tools can you use to explain it to others? This wee...

Common Python Stumbling Blocks & Quirky Behaviors

11 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Have you ever encountered strange behavior when trying something new in Python? What are common quirks hiding within the language? This week on the sh...

Exploring pandas 2.0 & Targets for Apache Arrow

04 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What are the new ways to describe your data in pandas 2.0? Will the addition of Apache Arrow to the data back end foster the growth of data interopera...

Differentiating the Versions of Python & Unlocking IPython's Magic

28 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What are all the different versions of Python? You may have heard of Cython, Brython, PyPy, or others and wondered where they fit into the Python land...

Leveraging the Features of Your Database With Postgres and Python

21 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Are you getting the most out of your Postgres database? What features could you leverage to improve your Python project? This week on the show, Craig ...

Constructing Python Library APIs & Tackling Jinja Templating

14 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What principles should you consider when designing a Python library? How do you construct a library API that's understandable and easy to use? This we...

Python Crash Course & Learning Enough to Start Creating

07 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

How much Python do you need to learn to start creating projects? What's a good balance of information and hands-on practice? This week on the show, Er...

Exploring the Zen of Python & pandas Features for Finance

30 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What advice can you extract from the Zen of Python? How can these nineteen guiding principles help you write more idiomatic Python? This week on the s...

Resources and Advice for Building CircuitPython Projects

23 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Are you looking to advance your CircuitPython projects? Would you like a collection of resources and tools to help you along your path? This week on t...

Inheriting a Large Python Code Base & Building a GUI With Kivy

16 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What are the unique challenges of a large Python code base? What techniques can you implement to simplify the management of a big project? This week o...

Volunteering, Organizing, and Finding a Python Community

09 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Have you thought about getting more involved in the Python community? Are you interested in volunteering for an event or becoming an organizer? This w...

Building Python CI With Docker & Applying for a Hacker Initiative Grant

02 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Do you need a refresher on using Docker with Python? Would you like to learn how to configure a continuous integration pipeline with modern tools and ...

Discussing Mojo & Improving Python Object-Oriented Programming

26 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Would you like to speed up your Python machine-learning code dramatically? What if you only had to change a few keywords and add a couple of type hint...

Virtual Environment Structure & Surveying the Packaging Ecosystem

12 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

How do Python virtual environments work under the hood? How does understanding these concepts help you with managing them for your projects? This week...

Checking Project Dependencies & Python Dev Resource Collections

05 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

How can you ensure that you've appropriately declared your project's required dependencies? How do you determine what dependencies are missing from a ...

Targeting WebAssembly Platforms & Distilling a Minimum Viable Python

28 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Are you familiar with the different versions of WebAssembly? Could WASM be the "write once, run everywhere" solution that developers have searched for...

Seeking Faster Text Processing & Python's .__repr__() vs .__str__()

14 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What can you do if your text manipulation in Python is slowing you down? Are there faster alternatives using a compiled extension? This week on the sh...

Automate Processes and Distribute Python Tools With RPA and RCC

07 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Are you exploring automation of your repetitive business tasks with Python? How are you going to share your helpful tools with co-workers? This week o...

Evaluating Python Packages & Celebrating 20 Years of PyCon US

31 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Have you ever installed a Python package without knowing anything about it? What best practices should you employ to ensure the quality of your next p...

Lessons Learned From Four Years Programming With Python

24 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What are the core lessons you've learned along your Python development journey? What are key takeaways you would share with new users of the language?...

Coding With namedtuple & Python's Dynamic Superpowers

17 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Have you explored Python's collections module? Within it, you'll find a powerful factory function called namedtuple(), which provides multiple enhance...

Sharing Your Python App Across Platforms With BeeWare

10 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Are you interested in deploying your Python project everywhere? This week on the show, Russell Keith-Magee, founder and maintainer of the BeeWare proj...

Django Deployment Strategies & Preparing for PyCascades 2023

03 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Have you decided how you're going to deploy your Django project? Should you use a VPS or a PaaS? Christopher Trudeau is back this week, bringing anoth...

Using NumPy and Linear Algebra for Faster Python Code

24 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Are you still using loops and lists to process your data in Python? Have you heard of a Python library with optimized data structures and built-in ope...

Creating a Python Wordle Clone & Testing Environments With Nox

17 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Would you like to practice your Python skills while building a challenging word game? Have you been wanting to learn more about creating command-line ...

Wrangling Business Process Models With Python and SpiffWorkflow

10 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Can you describe your business processes with flowcharts? What if you could define the steps in a standard notation and implement the workflows in pur...

Create Interactive Maps & Geospatial Data Visualizations With Python

03 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Would you like to quickly add data to a map with Python? Have you wanted to create beautiful interactive maps and export them as a stand-alone static ...

Orchestrating Large and Small Projects With Apache Airflow

27 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Have you worked on a project that needed an orchestration tool? How do you define the workflow of an entire data pipeline or a messaging system with P...

Exploring Python With bpython & Formalizing f-String Grammar

20 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Have you used the Python Read-Eval-Print Loop (REPL) to explore the language and learn about how it operates? Would it help if it provided syntax high...

Speeding Up Your DataFrames With Polars

13 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

How can you get more performance from your existing data science infrastructure? What if a DataFrame library could take advantage of your machine's av...

Surveying Comprehension Constructs & Python Parallelism Infighting

06 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Have you embraced the use of comprehensions in your Python journey? Are you familiar with all the varieties of comprehension constructs? This week on ...

2022 Real Python Tutorial & Video Course Wrap Up

23 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

It's been another year of changes at Real Python! The Real Python team has written, edited, curated, illustrated, and produced a mountain of Python ma...

Start Using a Build System & Continuous Integration in Python

16 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What advantages can a build system provide for a Python developer? What new skills are required when working with a team of developers? This week on t...

Package Python Code With pyproject.toml & Listing Files With pathlib

09 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How do you start packaging your code with pyproject.toml? Would you like to join a conversation that gently walks you through setting up your Python p...

Preparing Data to Measure True Machine Learning Model Performance

02 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How do you prepare a dataset for machine learning (ML)? How do you go beyond cleaning the data and move toward measuring how the model performs? This ...

Building Python REST APIs With Flask & Structuring Pull Requests

25 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How do you build a REST API using the Flask web framework? How can you quickly add endpoints while automatically generating documentation? This week o...

Moving Projects Away From Passwords With WebAuthn and Python

18 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What if you didn't have to worry about managing user passwords as a Python developer? That's where the WebAuthn protocol and new hardware standards ar...

Creating Tic-Tac-Toe With an AI Player & Shortcuts for Python Decorators

11 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How do you create a computer opponent for a simple game within Python? Would you also like to learn how to adapt the game to run in a web browser or g...

Exploring the New Features of Python 3.11

04 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Python 3.11 is here! Our regular guests, Geir Arne Hjelle and Christopher Trudeau, return to talk about the new version. Geir Arne wrote a series of p...

Fostering an Internal Python Community & Managing the 3.11 Release

21 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Does your company have a plan for growing an internal Python community? What are the attributes to look for when bringing someone into your department...

Using an Ellipsis in Python & Goals for CPython 3.12

14 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Where should you use an ellipsis in Python? How does it behave as a placeholder in a script, project, or stub file? What are the next goals for the Fa...

Using a Memory Profiler in Python & What It Can Teach You

07 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Have you used a memory profiler to gauge the performance of your Python application? Maybe you're using it to troubleshoot memory issues when loading ...

Explaining Access Control Using Python & Cautiously Handling Pickles

30 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Have you ever used code to help explain a topic? How can Python scripts be used to understand the intricacies of access control? This week on the show...

Python as an Efficiency Tool for Non-Developers

23 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Are you interested in using Python in an industry outside of software development? Would adding a few custom software tools increase efficiency and ma...

Improve Matplotlib With Style Sheets & Python Async for the Web

16 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Have you thought the standard output from Matplotlib is a bit generic looking? Would you like a quick way to add style and consistency to your data vi...

Exploring Recursion in Python With Al Sweigart

09 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Have you wanted to understand recursion and how to use it in Python? Are you familiar with the call stack and how it relates to tracebacks? This week ...

Creating a Python Code Completer & More Abstract Syntax Tree Projects

02 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How does a code completion tool work? What is an Abstract Syntax Tree, and how is it created in Python? How does an AST help you write programs and pr...

Configuring a Coding Environment on Windows & Using TOML With Python

19 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Have you attempted to set up a Python development environment on Windows before? Would it be helpful to have an easy-to-follow guide to get you starte...

Moving NLP Forward With Transformer Models and Attention

12 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What's the big breakthrough for Natural Language Processing (NLP) that has dramatically advanced machine learning into deep learning? What makes these...

Inspiring Young People to Learn Python With Mission Encodeable

05 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Is there someone in your life you'd like to inspire to learn Python? Mission Encodeable is a website designed to teach people to code, built by two hi...

Natural Language Processing and How ML Models Understand Text

29 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How do you process and classify text documents in Python? What are the fundamental techniques and building blocks for Natural Language Processing (NLP...

Creating Documentation With MkDocs & When to Use a Python dict

22 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How do you start building your project documentation? What if you had a tool that could do the heavy lifting and automatically write large portions di...

Measuring Python Code Quality, Simplicity, and Maintainability

15 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How maintainable is your Python code? Is it possible to hold the code for your functions in your head? When is it appropriate to use measurements in a...

Exploring Functional Programming in Python With Bruce Eckel

01 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Would you like to explore the functional programming side of Python? What are the advantages of this approach, and what tools are built into the langu...

Digging Into PyScript & Preventing or Handling Python Errors

24 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Have you heard about PyScript? The brand-new framework has the community excited about building interactive Python applications that run entirely with...

Getting Started in Python Cybersecurity and Forensics

17 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Are you interested in a career in security using Python? Would you like to stay ahead of potential vulnerabilities in your Python applications? This w...

Build Streamlit Data Science Dashboards & Verbose Regex f-Strings

10 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Would you like a fast way to share your data science project results as an interactive dashboard instead of a Jupyter notebook? Streamlit is a library...

Managing Large Python Data Science Projects With Dask

03 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What do you do when your data science project doesn't fit within your computer's memory? One solution is to distribute it across multiple worker machi...

Questions for New Dependencies & Comparing Python Game Libraries

27 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What are the differences between the various Python game frameworks? Would it help to see a couple of game examples across several libraries to unders...

Advantages of Protobuf for Serialization in Python

20 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Would you like a way to send structured serialized data between different platforms and languages? What if the data was self-documenting, could automa...

Start Testing Your Python with doctest & Pagination in Django

13 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Did you know you can add testing to your Python code while simultaneously documenting it? Using docstrings, you can create examples of how your functi...

Run Python in a Browser With Pyodide & The Power of f-Strings

06 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Have you heard about the projects working toward getting Python to run in the browser? Maybe you would like to try it out for yourself, by building an...

Type-Safe ORM With Prisma Client & Real Python at PyCon US 2022

22 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Are you using an Object-Relational Mapper (ORM) for your Python projects? What if it could work with SQL or No-SQL databases and be fully type-safe? T...

Class Constructors & Pythonic Image Processing

15 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Do you know the difference between creating a class instance and initializing it? Would you like an interactive tour of the Python Pillow library? Thi...

Creating Better Error Messages for Python 3.10 & 3.11

08 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What goes into creating those enhanced error messages in the latest versions of Python? How does the new PEG parser help to pinpoint where errors have...

Building a Hash Table in Python and Thoughtful REST API Design

01 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Do you understand how a hash table works? What if you could learn about building one while practicing test-driven development? What are best practices...

Becoming More Effective at Manipulating Data With Pandas

25 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Do you wonder if you're taking the right approach when shaping data in pandas? Is your Jupyter workflow getting out of hand? This week on the show, Ma...

Making Your Notebook Interactive and Using Python's Assert

18 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Would you like to build visualizations that allow your audience to play with data? How do you effectively use Python's assert statement during develop...

Tools for Setting Up Python on a New Machine

11 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

There are many ways to get Python installed on your computer. If you were going to start fresh, what tools would you use? What if you need to manage m...

Defining Optional Arguments and Moving Beyond "Beginner" Python

04 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How do you define Python functions that accept optional arguments or default values? Are you wondering how to go beyond being a beginner with Python? ...

OAuth 2 and Authentication Choices for Your Python Project

25 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Have you thought about what authentication system you want to use for your Python project? Should you use an existing Python library or a third-party ...

Drawing Fractals With Python and Working With a Weather API

18 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Have you been wanting to explore fractals and complex numbers in Python? Would you like to practice working with APIs in Python through a new project?...

Improving Your Django and Python Developer Experience

11 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How often have you thought about your Developer Experience (DX)? How do you improve your workflow, find documentation, and simplify code formatting? T...

Manipulating and Analyzing Audio in Python

04 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Would you like to experiment with analyzing or manipulating audio with Python? This week on the show, we have Braden Riggs from DolbyIO to discuss ext...

What Is a JIT and How Can Pyjion Speed Up Your Python?

28 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How can you can speed up Python? Have you thought of using a JIT (Just-In-Time Compiler)? This week on the show, we have Real Python author and previo...

Designing for Users and Building a Social Network With Django

21 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Are you looking for a project to practice your Django skills? Designing the fundamental interactions of a social network is an instructive way to expl...

Launching Python, Virtual Environments, and Locking Dependencies With Brett Cannon

14 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Would you like a simple command to launch your Python programs using the newest version of the language installed on your machine? This week on the sh...

Continuing to Unravel Python's Syntactic Sugar With Brett Cannon

07 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

A year ago, we had Brett Cannon on the show to discuss his blog series about unravelling Python's syntactic sugar. Brett has written 15 more entries i...

2021 Real Python Articles Wrap Up

24 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

It's been a year of change at Real Python! The Real Python team has written, edited, curated, illustrated, and produced a mountain of Python articles ...

A Python Journey: Cyber Security, Automating AWS, and TDD

17 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The Python community continually grows, with many users coming from different languages and backgrounds. This week on the show, we talk with developer...