Episode 71: Start Using a Debugger With Your Python Code

The Real Python Podcast

Jul 30, 2021 1h 5m

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Are you still sprinkling print statements throughout your code while writing it? Print statements are often clunky and offer only a limited view of the state of your code. Have you thought there must be a better way? This week on the show, we have Nina Zakharenko to discuss her conference talk titled “Goodbye Print, Hello Debugger.”

Episode Sponsor:

We talk about how to get started debugging your code by adding a single keyword. Nina discusses the differences between debugging on the command line vs using the tools included with an Integrated Development Environment(IDE). She also shares tricks and best practices. If you haven’t seen Nina’s conference talk, it’s a great starting point.

We also talk about working through the last 18 months and how to recharge your creative batteries. We briefly discuss two other presentations Nina gave about CircuitPython and getting started with electronics and Python.

Course Spotlight: Python Debugging With pdb

In this hands-on course, you’ll learn the basics of using pdb, Python’s interactive source code debugger. pdb is a great tool for tracking down hard-to-find bugs, and it allows you to fix faulty code more quickly.

Topics:

00:00:00 – Introduction
00:01:46 – Follow up on PyCascades 2021 and 2022
00:02:45 – Election to the PSF Board
00:05:06 – Current levels of burnout
00:09:09 – Possible ways to recharge
00:12:18 – Goodbye Print, Hello Debugger
00:14:46 – What are the types of things you can examine the state of?
00:18:01 – Where to start?
00:22:37 – Sponsor: Sentry
00:23:39 – Why is debugging not shown as often in Python?
00:26:49 – Debugging in VSCode
00:29:37 – Adding breakpoints in Flask or Django Templates
00:31:32 – What is pdb and how does it compare to ipdb?
00:39:40 – What are common debugging mistakes?
00:43:50 – Video Course Spotlight
00:44:48 – Why include a disclaimer about the talk?
00:46:13 – Where did you learn about debugging?
00:49:23 – Nina’s conference talks about CircuitPython
00:58:33 – What are you excited about in the world of Python?
00:59:51 – What do you want to learn next?
01:04:02 – Social info
01:04:27 – Thanks and goodbye

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Level Up Your Python Skills With These Courses:

Python Debugging With pdb

The Pandas DataFrame: Make Working With Data Delightful

The pandas DataFrame: Working With Data Efficiently

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