The First Programmer’s Book

Programming explained from scratch using Python

Symbols and conventions

This book uses emojis to help you navigate the code examples and explanations more easily. You do not need to memorize these symbols or their meanings. They are simply visual cues that make different types of content easier to recognize, and their meaning should also be clear from the surrounding context:

🐍 — Python code examples

$ — terminal commands

🖥️ — program output (results)

⚠️ — warnings or important notes

👉 — pay attention

💡 — tips or useful ideas

📁 — links to directories with files

0. About the book

What inspired me to write this book?

First of all, my own journey in programming. I am a developer with many years of experience, and I still remember how difficult the very first steps can be.

At school, during computer science classes, we spent months drawing flowcharts without writing a single line of real code. The only real motivation to attend those lessons was the chance to play games over the local network at the end of class.

University gave me a formal education in computer science, but it did not spark a real desire to become a programmer. One of the reasons was the way programming was taught: we started with C++, wrote code on paper, and solved tedious mathematical problems. All of this felt disconnected from real life and therefore failed to generate genuine interest.

Since then, programming education has changed a lot. Unfortunately, some approaches still remain—approaches that discourage people from programming, even those who genuinely want to learn.

Who this book is for

Although this book is written for a broad audience, I see four main types of readers. Depending on which group you belong to, you may approach the book differently.

1. People who have never written a single line of code but want to try.
   These may be people who work alongside programmers—product owners, scrum masters, product managers, business analysts, account managers—or simply those with a general interest who want to understand what programming is. For this group, the goal is not to become a professional programmer, but to explore the world of programming and see what it is like.
   How to read: Look through the illustrations and read the main text. You can simply copy and run the code examples without going deep into them. The book explains how to do this in a very simple way, even without installing any special software—it is enough to use online services and the examples from my GitHub repository (https://github.com/dude007dev/the_first_programmers_book). A repository is essentially an online folder with code, where you can find all the examples from this book.

2. People who truly want to learn programming, or who already have some basic experience but do not know how to move forward.
   This is the main target audience of the book. For you, it is important to read it from beginning to end, without skipping explanations or notes. It is worth trying every code example yourself, even those that intentionally contain mistakes. This will help you understand how programming works in real situations. I also recommend avoiding long breaks: even experienced programmers notice their skills fading after a month without coding.

3. Those who already use AI to write code but want to better understand what it creates.
   Even if artificial intelligence helps you write programs, a basic understanding of programming is still essential. It allows you to evaluate suggested solutions, spot mistakes, and guide AI more effectively.
   Read the main text, work through the code examples, and try to understand why a particular approach is used in each case. This will help you go beyond simply getting ready-made code from AI and learn to evaluate and improve it with a clear understanding of what you are doing.

4. People who already have experience with Python but want to fill gaps in the basics or organize their knowledge.
   For you, it will be useful to focus on specific chapters that feel like weak points. Read them carefully, with all notes and examples—this will help strengthen your foundation and move forward with more confidence.

My goal is to show that programming can be both interesting and understandable. I aim to explain things simply, using real-life examples. Many of the examples take a playful approach. This helps with memorization and creates a feeling of “playing with code.”

The book is filled with pop-art style illustrations—bright, lively, and designed to enhance understanding and imagination.

Why you can trust this book

I have many years of experience as a developer and software engineer, having worked for several companies across Eastern and Western Europe. I have also gone through numerous job interviews, including with well-known international companies.

This experience allows me to present the material with a clear understanding of what knowledge is truly needed—both in real-world development and during technical interviews for Junior and Middle Python developers. This book also touches on these topics.

Learning a programming language can be compared to learning a spoken language. First, you get familiar with the alphabet. Then you learn how to form words and phrases from letters. Next, you build simple sentences, learn punctuation, and gradually learn how to express your thoughts clearly and accurately.

In this comparison, The First Programmer’s Book is about the alphabet, letters, words, phrases, and first simple sentences. In The Second Programmer’s Book, we will move on to complex sentences, full texts, punctuation—and, most importantly, to the ability to express ideas clearly and precisely.

How to read this book

This book is not meant to be simply skimmed. Programming is a practical skill, so it is very important to write code together with me. Even the simplest examples are not a formality—they are the key to learning. By typing them yourself, you begin to understand how the code works.

We start with basic concepts, sometimes seemingly obvious ones, that form the foundation for understanding more complex and practical topics.

Today, artificial intelligence can already write code, explain errors, and help build entire programs. This may raise a question: why learn the fundamentals of programming if AI can handle some of the work?

Precisely so you can understand and evaluate what it creates. Code may work, but that does not necessarily mean the best approach has been chosen. AI might use an inappropriate data type, make a solution unnecessarily complicated, or overlook a specific requirement of the task. To recognize these issues, you need to understand the fundamentals.

That is why fundamental knowledge remains essential. In the age of AI, it also serves as a quality control tool, helping you evaluate suggested solutions and understand whether you are moving in the right direction.

It is best to read the book sequentially, from beginning to end. Each chapter flows naturally into the next, and this order matters. If you already have some experience, you can focus selectively on the chapters where you want to strengthen your knowledge.

Another piece of advice: read the text and immediately try the code. This does not require complex setup—the book explains how to quickly run programs even without installing additional software on your computer.

If you are reading this book in electronic form, I recommend choosing a light theme, since the code examples are shown on a dark background. Also keep in mind that the appearance of the book in digital format may depend on the application you use to open it.

Technical books are often published only in PDF format, as it handles images, graphics, and code best. I put a lot of effort into making sure this book displays correctly and consistently in EPUB format across different devices and applications. However, if you notice any visual issues, try another reading app first or open the PDF version.

And best of all—read this book in print. In printed form, it comes closest to the author’s original vision and is best suited for the learning process.

What you will gain after reading

After finishing this book, you will:

• learn how to write your own programs in Python;

• understand what a variable, data type, condition, loop, and function are—and how they work in practice;

• be able to read simple code and feel confident changing it;

• gain a solid foundation on which you can confidently build professional skills.

This is the first part of the journey. It provides the foundation you need to continue learning and move forward with confidence. After reading this book, you will be able to understand whether you truly enjoy programming, whether you want to grow in this field, and whether Python is the right language for you.

If you enjoy this book, I sincerely recommend continuing with its sequel, The Second Programmer’s Book. There, we will go deeper: we will study classes, program structure, modules, working with files, testing, and other topics that allow you to build complete projects following best practices.

After completing The Second Programmer’s Book, you will have the knowledge needed to start building more advanced projects and prepare for technical interviews for Junior Python Developer positions.

👉Programming is not about complexity. It is about a way of thinking. This book is your first step into the world of Python. And I am glad to walk this path together with you.

A bit of history

At first, all the material was planned as one large book: each chapter flowed logically into the next, and everything was part of a single whole. But when the volume exceeded 600 pages, I decided to split it into two parts.

The First Programmer’s Book and The Second Programmer’s Book are two parts of the same learning journey, each building on the knowledge gained in the previous one. So if you enjoy this book, be sure to look for The Second Programmer’s Book in stores or online.

That is where we will discover the Zen of Python.