This course is really well done. My only critique is that at one point, one of the teacher seems to suggest that you will be turning in a programmed game for an actual grade in the course, but this never happened - it was just an exercise, and that left me feeling like I missed something. As for the final project that was turned in for a grade, all of those steps were clear.

The best Python course to learn Python rudiments which are very much essential in order to become a Python programmer. The most interesting feature of the course is the Owl Test and Code Skulptor, which are fun to use.

I highly recommend this course to all, who are in the pursuit of learning to program in Python, in turn being able to make complex programs in Data Analysis.

Helpful course for learning the basics. Instructors challenge you to think beyond instilling you with coding knowledge. The instructors complement each other's contributions, and both have good (if nerdy, but what do you expect?!) senses of humor. The assessments are challenging and require you to apply what you have learned. If I could give this six stars, I surely would!

Lectures are clear and concise, with lots of examples. Help is readily available on the discussion board, if you're really stuck. I'm looking forward to the remaining three courses in this specialization.

I took several computer programming courses 25 years ago. I didn't enjoy them because they were poorly taught. THIS is how they should be taught.

I found this course very useful as I was able to follow from the very basics. This was important for me as I didn't have much background in Python or coding prior to this course. With this course, now I'm starting to think a bit in the right way and I've learnt some useful basic tools to help me with it through this course.

A very simple and non-intimidating intro to python. I definitely got the gears going in some of the example problems and it was fun to feel like I was back in college again. Would recommend this one.

This course is such a wonder!! In spite of being an unenthusiastic Computer Science undergraduate, it was this course that cultivated the interest in me. Both the instructors were too good. Thanks :0

A wee bit challenging as a beginner but very good learning. The course imposes a disciplined structure in writing up the program is a good feature. The videos are excellent . Recommend the course

This was my first course on coursera and I am happy to have started with such a wonderful one.

The class is good...up until the last couple of lessons. In having tried to take the Introduction to Interactive Programming in Python class (also offered by Rice University) in addition to this one, I've noticed that the instructors seem to have a bad habit of walking you through with baby steps all the way up until the end - where they throw a bunch of new concepts/information at you or combine a bunch of concepts in a way that has not been explained, and expect you to fare well. As someone with no experience in programming, I felt it was misleading to have 3.5 weeks of nicely explained introductory level material, only to be thrown more advanced material with little explanation the last 0.5 weeks of study. If the instructors could just keep the pace consistent throughout the course, this can be a winner.

For a first course in programming, I would have appreciated more hints on how to correct my errors on the project. It was very frustrating and it took me a couple of weeks at 2-3 hours per day to correct enough of the errors to submit for grading. Perhaps I do not have sufficient aptitude for programming, but for any kind of beginning learning, I think that there should be some extra effort made to reduce the frustration level. There will be time enough for frustration in later courses.

It was a pretty good course, I think I learnt well.. but I don't think the OwlTest on the final assignment didn't need to be so strict.

There are lack of explanations on how to do the exercises, and there is no mentor to ask for guidance.

Did learn about python programming. Being someone who knows a bit of programming, i expected loops, arrays, etc. to be included. Not bad but felt very small

This course was the first course for me about Python. Actually, at first I wanted to learn the data analysis by python but got stuck and then enrolled to this course. Frankly speaking, this course is so well organized and it was well a very interesting learning experience for me. Throughout the course, I enjoyed the lectures and reading materials of Dr. Rixner and Dr. Warren. The assignment was not so simple but owl test helped me a lot. I am looking forward to enroll some courses in this streamline. Thanks to coursera, , faculties, and all members of who have contributed for this program.

Course is interesting. If you are a kind of a person that does all stuff right before the deadline, because you do not know where to start and how to do, this course is probably for you.

Very Good guiding. Provided templates were helpful for me to keep track of information and visualie what should be written and how. Also when you see that everything is clearly explained step by step you just start doing it. For my self, I have gained much knowledge not only in Pyhton, but overall how to learn coding.

I was impressed by the course. First of all, the structure was neat and clear and divided into weeks. I didn't have any problems regarding the course site. Second of all, the teaching was excellent and all made sense to me. No complaints. Third of all, the project was really well organized. Finally, the mentor who replies to your questions in the discussion forums is really quick.

All in all, there should be no worries about doing this course. I can't find any course better than this.

This is a great course for a layman to enter the Python world. Professor Scott is a funny and energetic guy. I did enjoy his class so much. Professor Joe is also of great help to me. He once quoted what Mark Twain said " Continuous improvement is better than delayed perfection." This is so correct when you code you need do it step by step, keep testing and thus improving to reach your goal. I will keep it in mind for ever. Life is also the same, isn't it?!

I had taken up a python course elsewhere where i was taught fancy functions and OOPs. I still had a hardtime writing code and i hated it. When i took this course up, i was curious as to what i would learn. This course was so simple in content but had a ton of exercises to get comfortable with writing programs. The project was of a simple concept but was so tricky that it made got my brain racing . I loved it! Cant wait to complete the specialization.

Thank you Rice University and our top-notch Professors for this great introductory course about Python Essentials. The course takes you step-by-step, holds your hand firmly thru the world of programming using Python language. The practice exercises and mini-projects are priceless in enforcing all the information you learned during this course, you see no surprises as everything is covered in the videos or notes.

If you are new to Python and wants a flying start, this course (and specialization) is for you! Comprise lectures, good material and fun exercises. Sure, there are plenty of other providers for introductory courses in Python but here you will get it all in one place. Even as a semi-seasoned programmer in Python, I found this course to answer some questions that have popped up over the years. Highly recommended!

It was awesome learning in python from coursera. As a beginner, I have learned a lot from this course. Teachings are very good and explanatory. And of course the forums are very useful while doing the final project submission. I am more satisfied with the course and looking forward to learn more in Python. Hope i would become an expertise in this wonderful platform through coursera. Thanks

I took this course as a review of scripting in Python. I thought it provided an excellent review. It offered good practice coding exercises. I believe that it would also provide a good basic introduction to Python as well for people without any background. I thought the automated scoring system for the final project was a bit frustrating, but I muddled through it.

This course is brilliant! I have gone through many python online courses, and have done a few of them. Some are pretty basic, and as a result, I lost my interest in them. On the other hand, some courses are too tough to complete. In that sense, this course is moderate in difficulty level. The exercises are challenging, yet doable.

This was a lovely introduction to the world of Python. I highly recommend it for anyone who is interested in learning the language. The fact that you can work at your own pace is great for people of all levels of expertise in programming - you can either work fast or slow, and the experience will be rewarding no matter what!