11.What Now?

Reading this tutorial has probably reinforced your interest in using
Python -- you should be eager to apply Python to solve your
real-world problems. Now what should you do?

You should read, or at least page through, the
Python Library Reference,
which gives complete (though terse) reference material about types,
functions, and modules that can save you a lot of time when writing
Python programs. The standard Python distribution includes a
lot of code in both C and Python; there are modules to read
Unix mailboxes, retrieve documents via HTTP, generate random
numbers, parse command-line options, write CGI programs, compress
data, and a lot more; skimming through the Library Reference will give
you an idea of what's available.

The major Python Web site is http://www.python.org/; it contains
code, documentation, and pointers to Python-related pages around the
Web. This Web site is mirrored in various places around the
world, such as Europe, Japan, and Australia; a mirror may be faster
than the main site, depending on your geographical location. A more
informal site is http://starship.python.net/, which contains a
bunch of Python-related personal home pages; many people have
downloadable software there. Many more user-created Python modules
can be found in the Python Package
Index (PyPI).

For Python-related questions and problem reports, you can post to the
newsgroup comp.lang.python, or send them to the mailing
list at python-list@python.org. The newsgroup and mailing list
are gatewayed, so messages posted to one will automatically be
forwarded to the other. There are around 120 postings a day (with peaks
up to several hundred),
asking (and answering) questions, suggesting new features, and
announcing new modules. Before posting, be sure to check the list of
Frequently Asked Questions (also called the FAQ), or look for it in the
Misc/ directory of the Python source distribution. Mailing
list archives are available at http://www.python.org/pipermail/.
The FAQ answers many of the questions that come up again and again,
and may already contain the solution for your problem.