The Community¶
BDFL¶
Guido van Rossum, the creator of Python, is often referred to as the BDFL — theBenevolent Dictator For Life.
Python Software Foundation¶
The mission of the Python Software Foundation is to promote, protect, andadvance the Python programming language, and to support and facilitate thegrowth of a diverse and international community of Python programmers.
PEPs¶
PEPs arePython Enhancement Proposals. They describe changes to Python itself,or the standards around it.
There are three different types of PEPs (as defined byPEP 1):
- Standards
- Describes a new feature or implementation.
- Informational
- Describes a design issue, general guidelines, or information to thecommunity.
- Process
- Describes a process related to Python.
Notable PEPs¶
There are a few PEPs that could be considered required reading:
- PEP 8: The Python Style Guide.
Read this. All of it. Follow it.
- PEP 20: The Zen of Python.
A list of 19 statements that briefly explain the philosophy behind Python.
- PEP 257: Docstring Conventions.
Gives guidelines for semantics and conventions associated with Pythondocstrings.
You can read more atThe PEP Index.
Submitting a PEP¶
PEPs are peer-reviewed and accepted/rejected after much discussion. Anyonecan write and submit a PEP for review.
Here’s an overview of the PEP acceptance workflow:
Python Conferences¶
The major events for the Python community are developer conferences. The twomost notable conferences are PyCon, which is held in the US, and its Europeansibling, EuroPython.
A comprehensive list of conferences is maintained atpycon.org.
Python User Groups¶
User Groups are where a bunch of Python developers meet to present or talkabout Python topics of interest. A list of local user groups is maintained atthePython Software Foundation Wiki.
