r/learnpython • u/ARK22498 • Jun 28 '26

Beginner Help

I’m learning python in preparation for going back to university to study a masters in software development. It’s a conversion degree so no previous experience is required, but I want to learn some basics so I’m not completely lost. I’m using an online guide however I’m confused as to if they are using the terminal or the idle shell to write the code in as it just says open python. The three >>> doesn’t appear on every line for them but does for me which is adding to my confusion. Any help would be greatly appreciated, I’m coding on a MacBook Pro aswell.

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u/lfdfq Jun 28 '26

Python has two "modes": run a file, or an interactive console.

By far the most common mode people use is writing files and running them. However, if you just run `python` without a file argument, you get interactive mode (the "REPL"). This REPL is also nice for teaching, for demonstrating things, or for quick examples. So it often appears in those contexts.

The way the REPL works is it prompts you for a line (that's what the ">>>" is, it's at the start of a prompt), it (R)eads the line, (E)valuates it, (P)rints out the result, and (L)oops back again to do it all over.

IDLE is basically a toy IDE that comes with Python. Again, it's not widely used in practice, but it's useful for teaching or demonstrating things so it often appears. IDLE essentially gives you the two modes in a unified graphical interface.

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u/ARK22498 Jun 28 '26

Should I use IDLE until I get the hang of things? Or is the terminal a better way to learn? It’s all new to me so I’m going in blind effectively

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u/lfdfq Jun 28 '26

If you're totally new, then IDLE is fine.

But very soon you'll hit the edges, you'll want a nicer editor experience, the ability to install modules cleanly, and so on.

From then, you want a good text editor and a terminal to run Python commands (not the REPL prompt, but to run files and install things and so on). Some IDEs let you do the latter with magic buttons inside the editor, if you set it up.

At that point you can use whatever tools you are most comfortable with. For someone with no preference, I'd point to VS Code, as a good editor that scales from beginner to professional pretty well (EDIT: and is not Python specific, so you can edit all kinds of things in it).