Chapter 1. Background and History
History of Python and Comparison with Other Languages
Python is a relatively simple programming language that includes a
rich set of supporting libraries. This approach keeps the language simple
and reliable, while providing specialized feature sets as separate
Python has an easy-to-use syntax, focused on the programmer who must
type in the program, read what was typed, and provide formal documentation
for the program. Many languages have syntax focused on developing a
simple, fast compiler; but those languages may sacrifice readability and
writability. Python strikes a good balance between fast compilation,
readability and writability.
Python is implemented in C, and relies on the extensive, well
understood, portable C libraries. It fits seamlessly with Unix, Linux and
POSIX environments. Since these standard C libraries are widely available
for the various MS-Windows variants, and other non-POSIX operating
systems, Python runs similarly in all environments.
The Python programming language was created in 1991 by Guido van
Rossum based on lessons learned doing language and operating system
support. Python is built from concepts in the ABC language and Modula-3.
For information ABC, see The ABC Programmer's
Handbook [Geurts91], as well as www.cwi.nl/~steven/abc/. For
information on Modula-3, see Modula-3 [Harbison92], as
well as www.research.compaq.com/SRC/modula-3/html/home.html.
The current Python development is centralized in SourceForge. See
www.python.org and python.sourceforge.net for the