Getting started with Python

`Python`_ is a modern general-purpose object-oriented high-level programming language. There are many general introductions to Python online; here are a few:

• The official Python tutorial
• W3Schools Python tutorial
• Software Carpentry's Python lesson

Additionally, here are a couple tutorials focused on scientific programming in Python:

• the SciPy Lecture Notes
• NumPy for MATLAB users

There are also many video tutorials online, including videos from the annual SciPy conferences. One of those is a Python introduction for complete beginners, but there are many more lectures on advanced topics available as well.