Setup guide

Install these before your first live session. Setup problems are much easier to fix now than in the middle of a lesson. Follow the steps for your operating system in order. If a step fails, post the exact error message in the cohort channel.

What you need before week 1

Your computer needs at least 8 GB of RAM (16 GB is better once you start using Docker in week 10), 20 GB of free disk space and permission to install software. A work laptop with locked-down settings may not work. Windows needs to be Windows 10 (version 2004 or later) or Windows 11.

Step 1: Install Python, Git and the GitHub CLI

macOS

1. Open Terminal (press ⌘ Space, type "Terminal" and press Return).

2. Install Homebrew (opens in a new tab), the standard package manager for macOS. Copy the install command from the Homebrew home page, paste it into Terminal and press Return. Enter your Mac password when asked (nothing appears as you type, which is normal). It also installs Apple's command line developer tools, so it can take 5–10 minutes.

3. When it finishes, Homebrew prints Next steps with two or three commands that add it to your PATH. Copy and run them exactly as shown, then close Terminal and open a new window.

4. Install the tools:

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   brew install python git gh
   

Windows

On Windows you'll work inside WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux), which runs Ubuntu Linux alongside Windows. It's Microsoft's recommended way to do Python development on Windows, and it means every command in this course works the same for you as for Mac users. Docker, which you'll use in week 10, also runs on top of it.

1. Right-click the Start button, choose Terminal (Admin) or Windows PowerShell (Admin), and run:

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   wsl --install
   

2. Restart your computer when it finishes.

3. Open Ubuntu from the Start menu. The first time, it asks you to create a Linux username and password. Choose ones you'll remember: you'll need the password whenever a command starts with sudo. Nothing appears as you type the password, which is normal.

4. In the Ubuntu window, install the tools:

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   sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
   sudo apt install -y python3 python3-venv python3-pip git gh
   

From now on, run every command in the course in the Ubuntu terminal, not PowerShell or Command Prompt.

Step 2: Install Visual Studio Code

macOS

1. Download Visual Studio Code (opens in a new tab) for macOS.
2. Open the downloaded file and drag Visual Studio Code into your Applications folder. Open it from there, not from Downloads.
3. Go to the Extensions view (⌘⇧X), search for Python and install the one published by Microsoft.
4. Open the Command Palette (⌘⇧P), type shell command and choose Shell Command: Install 'code' command in PATH. This lets you open a folder from Terminal with code ..

Windows

1. Download Visual Studio Code (opens in a new tab) for Windows and run the installer. Install it on Windows, not inside Ubuntu.
2. In the installer, keep Add to PATH ticked (it's on by default).
3. Open VS Code, go to the Extensions view (Ctrl Shift X) and install WSL and Python, both published by Microsoft.
4. Open a new Ubuntu terminal and run code .. The first time, it installs a small VS Code server inside Ubuntu, then opens VS Code connected to Ubuntu. You'll see WSL: Ubuntu in the bottom-left corner. Always open your projects this way.

Step 3: Set up Git and GitHub

These steps are the same on both systems. On Windows, run them in the Ubuntu terminal.

1. Create a free account at github.com (opens in a new tab) if you don't have one. Use a professional username: employers will see it.

2. Tell Git who you are. Use your real name and the same email as your GitHub account:

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   git config --global user.name "Your Name"
   git config --global user.email "you@example.com"
   git config --global init.defaultBranch main
   

3. Connect your computer to GitHub:

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   gh auth login
   

   Answer the questions like this:

   • Where do you use GitHub? GitHub.com
   • Preferred protocol for Git operations? HTTPS
   • Authenticate Git with your GitHub credentials? Yes
   • How would you like to authenticate? Login with a web browser

   It shows a one-time code. Press Enter, paste the code in the browser page that opens and approve. On Windows, if no browser opens, go to github.com/login/device (opens in a new tab) yourself and enter the code there.

Step 4: Check everything works

Open a new terminal window (Terminal on macOS, Ubuntu on Windows) and run each command. Each one should print a version number or a logged-in message, not an error:

python3 --version     # Python 3.12 or newer
git --version
gh auth status        # "Logged in to github.com"
code --version

Then make sure you can create a virtual environment, which every project in this program uses. You'll learn what this does in week 2:

mkdir -p ~/setup-check && cd ~/setup-check
python3 -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate
python --version
deactivate
cd ~ && rm -rf ~/setup-check

Tools you'll add later

You don't need these yet. Each one is introduced in the week you first use it, with setup steps in that week's overview.