Weekly posts about all things Python, and occasional other topics as well.

Anatomy of a Python Function

MP 160: When we're discussing functions in Python, what do we call the different parts? I've been reflecting on typing in Python recently. I haven't used type hints much, because all my programs have worked fine without them. But typing in Python has matured

Debugging in Python, part 15: Final takeaways

MP 159: What did we learn about debugging from this series? What can you do to continue this work? Note: This post is part of an ongoing series about debugging in Python. The posts in this series will only be available to paid subscribers for the first 6 weeks. After

Debugging in Python, part 14: Resolving recursion issues

MP 158: Fixing a recursion bug that only shows up after many consecutive games. Note: This post is part of an ongoing series about debugging in Python. The posts in this series will only be available to paid subscribers for the first 6 weeks. After that they will be available

Updating Python, revisited

MP 157: It's so much easier now! Back in August, I wrote a post about using uv to manage my overall Python environment, after years of using pyenv. One of the claims in that post was that it should be much easier to keep my environment updated over

Debugging part 13: Finishing Go Fish

MP 156: Implementing the computer's turn, and recognizing the end of the game. Note: This post is part of an ongoing series about debugging in Python. The posts in this series will only be available to paid subscribers for the first 6 weeks. After that they will be

Debugging in Python, part 12: Using an IDE's debugger

MP 155: Using an IDE debugger to understand a program's internal behavior. Note: This post is part of an ongoing series about debugging in Python. The posts in this series will only be available to paid subscribers for the first 6 weeks. After that they will be available

Debugging in Python, part 11: Another logical error

MP 154: They just keep coming. :) Note: This post is part of an ongoing series about debugging in Python. The posts in this series will only be available to paid subscribers for the first 6 weeks. After that they will be available to everyone. Thank you to everyone who supports

grep is your friend

MP 153: If it's not already, it should be. :) Note: I will get back to the debugging series as soon as I can. Work has been busy lately, and it's much easier to write about things that are coming up in my regular work at the

Time deltas are not intuitive

MP 152: But the timedelta implementation in Python is correct. In many projects, timestamps are just a bit of metadata you might look at once in a while when troubleshooting. But sometimes, timestamps are a critical piece of information. If you handle them right, your project works. If you don&

Debugging in Python, part 10: A logical error

MP 151: How do you debug a program that doesn't crash? Note: This post is part of an ongoing series about debugging in Python. The posts in this series will only be available to paid subscribers for the first 6 weeks. After that they will be available to

Debugging in Python, part 9: Hands and Decks

MP 150: Modeling a hand of playing cards, and a deck as well. Note: This post is part of an ongoing series about debugging in Python. The posts in this series will only be available to paid subscribers for the first 6 weeks. After that they will be available to

Debugging in Python, part 8: Modeling playing cards

MP 149: In pursuit of logical errors. Note: This post is part of an ongoing series about debugging in Python. The posts in this series will only be available to paid subscribers for the first 6 weeks. After that they will be available to everyone. Thank you to everyone who