Complete Guide to Removing Elements From Lists in Python

Dec 09, 2021 by Lane Wagner

While lists aren’t the most efficient data structure if you’ll be doing lots of deleting from the middle, there are definitely good ways to accomplish the task. The built-in [remove()](https://python-reference.readthedocs.io/en/latest/docs/list/remove.html) method should be your first option. Let’s go over some examples. Remove element in Python list by value primes = [2, 3, 5, 5, 7, 11] primes.remove(5) print(primes) # [2, 3, 5, 7, 11] primes.remove(5) # [2, 3, 7, 11] primes.

How to Use the Ternary Operator in Python

Dec 09, 2021 by Lane Wagner

Developers love concise code that’s easy to read. A ternary operator in Python is a piece of syntax that lets you perform a small if/else statement in a single line. Let’s take a look at a few examples. Selecting the larger number with a ternary bob_height = 6 jill_height = 7 larger_height = bob_height if bob_height > jill_height else jill_height You’ll notice that a ternary in Python actually looks a lot like a normal if/else statement, just jammed into one line.

Removing Duplicates From a List in Python

Dec 09, 2021 by Lane Wagner

Let’s go over a few idiomatic ways to remove duplicates from lists in Python. Method #1 - Create a new list (simplest) This is the easiest algorithm to code, but because it requires creating a new list, also requires more memory and is a bit slower. def remove_duplicates(original): deduped = [] for item in original: if item not in deduped: deduped.append(item) return deduped We take advantage of Python’s in keyword here, only adding each item to the final list if it isn’t already present.

How to Check if a File Exists in Python

Dec 08, 2021 by Lane Wagner

When working with files in Python, you’ll often need to check if a file exists before you do anything else with it, such as reading from or writing to it. Luckily, the Python standard library makes this a piece of cake. Use pathlib.Path.exists(path) to check for files and directories from pathlib import Path path_exists = Path.exists("home/dir/file.txt") if path_exists: print("found it!") else: print("not found :(") Notice that path_exists will be True whether this is a file or a directory, it’s only checking if the path exists.

How to Use Golang’s Generics [Updated since 1.18]

Dec 06, 2021 by Lane Wagner

Generics in Go have been released with Go 1.18! This is one of the most eagerly-awaited features since the release of the language. Many devs have gone so far as to say Go’s previous lack of generic types made the language too painful to use at all. Let’s dive into what generics are, why you might use them in your own projects, and how they work in Go. What is a generic type?

We’re super excited to bring you our next learning track: Gopher Gang. We released our Python Track and Data Structures & Algorithms Track last month, and after such a positive response, we felt we had to do the same with our Golang course content. But after hearing some feedback from Reddit, Discord (join ours here), and a couple of other places, we felt we could further improve your CS learning experience by developing projects that you can create in VS Code or any other preferred code editor off-site, and display in your portfolio to land a Go programming job.

Your Code isn’t Correct

Nov 29, 2021 by Lane Wagner

There is a common trap that we fall into as developers, and it is believing that because some code “worked” that the code was written “correctly”. In reality, for most technical problems, a good developer can likely point out several different solutions. Any of those solutions might be perfectly reasonable, while none of them is the single “correct way”. Different solutions optimize for for different things You can only optimize for a few things at once, and there are always tradeoffs.

Coding Interviews - Why you shouldn’t give homework

Nov 18, 2021 by Lane Wagner

A while back I went through the interview process at a company I won’t name here. The first interview was basically just a phone screen, where I was able to chat with my would-be manager about things like compensation range, tech stack, work duties, etc. It went well! The guy was delightful. I moved on to a second interview, which was a live coding session that lasted 1 hour where I completed two technical problems.

Python vs C++: The Best Language To Learn For You

Nov 17, 2021 by Meghan Reichenbach

It’s either a blessing or a curse when choosing to learn Python or C++ because there couldn’t be two more opposing languages to compare. On the one side, we have Python, a high-level, multiparadigm, general-purpose language most known for its strength and security, and on the other, C++, a high-level, object-oriented, general-purpose language, which is popular for its fast, lightweight capabilities. Python supports procedural, object-oriented, and functional programming and is often described as “batteries included” because of its comprehensive standard library.

PHP vs JavaScript: Choosing the Best Language for Beginners, Web Development, and More!

Nov 10, 2021 by Meghan Reichenbach

When comparing programming languages, it’s not often that you come across two that actually work well together, but that happens to be the case when it comes to PHP and JavaScript. Now I should mention these aren’t just programming languages, but more specifically they are scripting languages. Scripting languages are a subset of all programming languages, and they don’t compile to machine code, but instead are interpreted at runtime. In the case of PHP and JavaScript, they are often used to quickly build user interfaces and graphic designs – because they don’t need to compile, they’re convenient for web-based use cases.