LinuxCBT Python Edition focuses entirely on the popular Python language. Serious Linux IT-professionals are expected to have a command of various scripting environments for administrative purposes.

LinuxCBT Python Edition, is unparalleled in content, depth and expertise. LinuxCBT Python Edition prepares you or your organization for successfully developing and implementing business-critical GNU/Linux-based scripting solutions.

Recommended Prerequisites:

• LinuxCBT Classic and/or Debian GNU/Linux Editions and/or LinuxCBT BASH and/or LinuxCBT Perl Editions
• Open mind & determination to master Linux Scripting Solutions
• Access to a GNU/Linux-based PC to perform exercises in LinuxCBT Python Edition

Python - Object Oriented Linux Scripting Environment - Module III

• Basics
  • Discuss Python's capabilities & features
  • Identify location of pre-installed Python
  • Discuss Python's Interactive interface
  • Use the interactive interface to ouput basic expressions
  • Hello World
  • Identify reserved keywords
  • Escape sequences & escape character exploration
  • Define Python script using Linux SHEBANG header
  • Execute Python scripts using the Python interpreter directly
  • Discuss data types including strings, integers, lists, tuples, dictionaries, etc.
  • Define standard variable types
  • Use the print function to examine ouput of variables and expressions
  • Use the type function to resolve data type
  • Use the id function to expose the memory location of the stored variable
  • Explain and define references and integrate with the id function
  • Comments definition
  • Perform basic arithmetic to illustrate the PEMDAS order of operations and examine how to alter it
• General Python Information I
  • Explain and illustrate STDIN usage
  • Examine the input function
  • Examine the raw_input function
  • Compare and contrast between input and raw_input functions
  • Define small script to make use of input/raw_input and basic math functions
  • Python Function concepts, applications and definition
• String Manipulation
  • Define and ascertain the length of strings
  • String extraction using list elements and list slicing
  • Discuss immutable and mutable data types
  • Loop through string slices using for loops
  • Compare strings using string operators
  • Discuss Python's object-oriented nature of various modules including classes and methods
  • Import strings module
  • Convert strings to upper and lower case using strings module methods
  • Split strings into lists
  • Join lists into strings
• List Manipulation
  • Define lists
  • Discuss and Define tuples
  • Compare and contrast lists and tuples
  • Reverse lists
  • Append lists
  • Extend lists
  • Nest lists
  • Define multi-dimensional lists
  • Stack Lists using Last In First Out (LIFO) using the pop function
  • Define First In First Out (FIFO) lists to emulate queueing using the pop function
  • Insert values into various positions of the list
  • Use ranges to generate integers
  • Lists with Integers
  • Lists with Strings
  • Emulate standard UNIX Syslog logfile format using Lists
  • Parse emulated logfile format using the Split function
  • Recap list manipulation using integers, strings and various list methods
  • Explain and define Dictionaries - key/value pairs similar to Hashes in Perl
• Control Structures
  • IF - Defintion and usage
  • Discuss the importance of indentation
  • Else/Elif - comparisons against integers and strings
  • Comparison negation
  • Write script to perform conditional testing
  • Import sys module to evaluate positional parameters using ARGV
  • Define script which requires minimum number of command-line arguments
  • Nest multiple if/elif statements to match logic
  • Explain how for loops work in Python
  • for loops definition and usage
  • Iterate through lists of strings using for loops
  • Integrate for loops with string manipulation functions and log file parsing
  • Define and use While loops
  • Define and examine the consequences of incorrect logic with an infinite while loop
  • Integrate while loop with raw_input function to obtain data from the end-user
  • Discuss file handle concepts and applications
  • Use control structures to generate output for use in File I/O exercises
  • Use the open function to read a file into a file handle
  • Iterate through the lines within the opened file using readline functions, etc.
  • Open file handles for writing
  • Open multiple file handles
  • Write strings to files using string formatting options and variable substitution
  • Parse source file by extracting columns to be stored in destination file
  • Regular Expressions
  • Discuss Regular Expressions
  • Import Regular Expressions module (re) for usage
  • Implement Regular Expressions (REs)
  • Regular Expressions Matching of strings and variables
  • REGEX Repeaters
  • Integrate Regular Expressions with text file processing
  • Exception Handling
  • Try & Except
  • Modules
  • Identification of default Python modules
  • Import modules (sys, os, etc.) for usage
  • Use the dir function to ascertain the classes and methods available within modules
  • Use the SHUTIL module for advanced, high-level File I/O (Copy, Move, etc.)
  • Python - Syslog integration
  • Define script using the Syslog module to log to syslog
  • Common Gateway Interface
  • CGI Discussion and applications
  • Implement Python CGI with Apache 2.x
  • Evaluate results of CGI integration
  • Globbing
• Dictionaries
  • Further exploration of dictionaries
  • Parse log files into dictionary data structure
  • Organize results
  • Analyse data
• Time
  • Review properties of various time functions
  • Export time with various functions
  • Use time functions to create log entries in process akin to Perl
  • Evaluate results
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