Python is a high-level, multipurpose programming language. It is the Swiss army pocketknife of your programming toolkit! With Python, you can implement projects in:

• Automation
• IoT
• Data Analysis
• Artificial Intelligence & Neural Networks

and in countless other domains!

How to setup Python on your computer?

The latest version of Python (3.7.4 at the time of writing this article) can be downloaded from here. However, the limitation of the official Python installation is that many useful modules(very useful,as beginner you’ll come to know about this later) that are used in programs, don’t come pre-installed, and need to be installed later separately.

One extremely popular third-party Python distribution is Anaconda, which has become the go-to industry standard for data scientists, IT professionals and business leaders. The advantage of using Anaconda is that it comes pre-installed with several useful modules, and also comes bundled with useful tools such as Jupyter Lab and Spyder. For the remainder of this article we will discuss in detail the installation of Anaconda on your computer.

Steps to install Anaconda

• Go to Anaconda’s official website, and download the correct graphical installer for your operating system and processor configuration. For this article we will focus on installation on Windows.
• Open the installer. You may be prompted for your administrator password. You will see the following screen:

• Click on “Next”.
• Agree to the license agreement by clicking on “I Agree”

• Select “Just Me” if you wish to install Anaconda only for your user. Otherwise, select “All Users” if you wish to install Anaconda for all users on your computer. Then click on “Next”.

• Another window will open up, and you can choose the directory where you want to install Anaconda. It is recommended to keep it as the default directory already displayed in the “Destination Folder”. Then, click on “Next”.

• The next screen has two options. Check both the options. The first option is displayed as “Not Recommended”, but it is important to select it. Otherwise the Anaconda installation will be unsuccessful. The second option is to set Anaconda as the default Python version for your computer. Make sure you select this option too. Then simply click on “Install” to start the installation process.

• After the installation is completed, click on “Next”.

• If you wish to install PyCharm, which is a very capable IDE (Integrated Development Environment) for Python, you can do so by following the link on the next screen. PyCharm for Anaconda is available here. Otherwise, click on “Next”.

• If you wish to know more about Anaconda Cloud or Anaconda, you may select the two options available on the next screen. Then click on “Finish” to finish the installation process.

• Congratulations! You have successfully installed Anaconda on your computer! To check whether the installation was successful:
  • Open up a Command Prompt by pressing Windows + R on your keyboard, and then typing “cmd” in the dialog box that opens up. A window like this one will open up. Then type “python --version” and press Enter. If your installation was successful, you should see the version of Python on your computer (3.7.3 in this case).

We hope you were able to successfully install Python on your computer. If you had any problems, please leave them in the comments, and we will try to help you out. Thank you for reading this article!