Summary#

Tooling, testing, packaging... These are words floating around but they sound like work and we all have enough of that already, so why bother? In the end, you just want code that works and that can be used by people!

And that's exactly where tooling comes in. In this tutorial, we are going to walk you through a set of tools. Each section is straightforward and shouldn't take long to absorb. This is the pyramid scheme of programming: for a small investment you will get high returns.

Here is a list of the main tools we will go over:

• Conda: virtual environments to code in a safe space.
• git: keep track of changes and benefit from all the advantages of Github.
• VSCode: a lightweight IDE to be more effective at writing and debugging code.
• pyproject.toml: a single file with all your Python packaging information.
• pytest: get in the habit of writing tests to make your code bullet-proof.
• ruff: improve code quality using a linter and code formatter.
• mypy: enforce types, and never be surprised by inputs and outputs.
• codecov: find the blind spots of your tests.
• pre-commit: automate formatter, linter, or type checker before every commit.
• Github actions: automate everything everywhere all at once!

Apply these tools and you will see the result rapidly!¹