Using a Source File

Now let's get back to programming. There is a tradition that whenever you learn a new programming language, the first program that you write and run is the 'Hello World' program - all it does is just say 'Hello World' when you run it. As Simon Cozens 1 puts it, it is the 'traditional incantation to the programming gods to help you learn the language better' :) .

Example 3.2. Using a Source File

#!/usr/bin/python
# Filename : helloworld.py print 'Hello World'

Run this program by opening a shell (Linux terminal or DOS prompt) and entering the command pythonhelloworld.py. If you are using IDLE, use the menu Edit -> Run Script or the keyboard shortcut Ctrl-F5. The output is as shown below.