IPython workflow (edit, run)
Question:
Is there a GUI for IPython that allows me to open/run/edit Python files? My way of working in IDLE is to have two windows open: the shell and a .py file. I edit the .py file, run it, and interact with the results in the shell.
Is it possible to use IPython like this? Or is there an alternative way of working?
Answers:
When I’m working with python, I usually have two terminal windows open – one with IPython, and the other with a fairly customized Vim.
Two good resources:
- http://blog.dispatched.ch/2009/05/24/vim-as-python-ide/
- http://dancingpenguinsoflight.com/2009/02/python-and-vim-make-your-own-ide/
Though it sounds like what you want is IPython’s magic function %ed/%edit:
An example of what you can do:
In [72]: %ed
IPython will make a temporary file named: c:docume~1wjwe312locals~1tempipython_edit_ar8veu.py
In the file I put:
x = "Hello World"
print 3
After saving and quitting the file:
Editing... done. Executing edited code...
3
Out[72]: "x = 'Hello world'nprint 3n"
In [73]: x
Out[73]: 'Hello world'
You can define functions or anything else – just remember that the contents of the file will be executed when you close it.
Another similar workflow is to cd to the directory containing your Python script that you’re editing with your favorite editor. Then you can %run the script from within IPython and you’ll have access to everything defined in the file. For instance, if you have the following in the file test.py in your /home/myself directory:
class Tester(object):
def __init__(self):
print "hi"
def knightme(name):
print "Hello, Sir ", name
Then you can do the following:
In [42]: cd /home/myself
/home/myself
In [43]: %run test.py # <Tab> autocomplete also works
In [44]: knightme('John')
Hello, Sir John
In [45]: t = Tester()
Hi
Either a mix or one of those workflows should give you something very similar to the way you’re used to working in IDLE.
Personally, I use what @Wayne suggested, a combination of vim and ipython…
However, if you’d prefer a different approach, take a look at spyder.
As of the latest version (1.1) ipython should be fully integrated. If you download an earlier version, things will work fine with ipython as an external shell, but you won’t get a few of spyder’s nifty features (like viewing all of the currently defined variables in the workspace window).
Spyder is definitely a bit heavyweight, but it’s an interesting project.
Another (very, very, new) similar project to take a look at is iep. It will (sort-of) work with ipython as shell, and I’d be willing to be bet that nicer ipython integration will be along before too long. At any rate, iep is essentially a more lightweight alternative to spyder.
Both of these are oriented towards scientific computing, and so have nice integration with things like matplotlib (and thus can automatically run gui main loops in a seperate thread). They’re not quite like “normal” IDE’s but they may fill the niche you’re looking for quite nicely.
Take a look at DreamPie. Might be what you are looking for.
If you like the work-flow under Matlab, then you probably should try the following two:
1, Try the combination of Spyder and Vim.
-
Edit python files in Vim (Spyder can reload the file automatically)
-
Run the code in Spyder (in the same interpreter, which is important for me):
-
Use F9 to run the current file
-
Ctrl+F9 to run the selected block
2, Use Vim + conque-shell. (on google code)
-
Open your preferred Python interpreter in Vim,
e.g., just :ConqueTermSplit python.
-
then visual select some Python code
-
press F9 to paste and run it in the Python interpreter buffer.
Note: a few more:
-
:ConqueTermVSplit python,
-
:ConqueTerm python
-
:ConqueTermVSplit rlwrap python
If your interpretor misses readline, you can use rlwrap.
Personally, I like PyScripter. Unfortunately, it only works on Windows, but also runs perfectly in Wine.
You might like PySlices…
It’s kind of a shell/editor hybrid that lets you save your session as special (barely) modified python files called .pyslice files.
It’s now part of wxPython, so just install that (v2.8.11 or later) and run “python -m wx.py.PySlices” on the command line to launch it.
That said, I still end up using an external editor for scripts (geany).
sudo apt-get install ipython
Once you are done with installing ipython.
Start ipython from terminal (just hit ipython in the ternminal)
To run ravi.py file all you need to do is
%run ravi.py
The latest version of IdleX supports IPython within IDLE, as well as the %edit magic. You can run your files from the IDLE editor within the IPython shell many ways, either by F5 (run everything), F9 (run a selection), or Ctrl+Enter (run a subcode).
Try Spyder, I have spent all day trying to find an IDE which has the functionality of ipython and Spyder just kicks it out of the park..
Autocomplete is top notch right from install, no config files and all that crap, and it has an Ipython terminal in the corner for you to instantly run your code.
big thumbs up
I want to suggest excellent plugin for vim that makes two-way integration between Vim and IPython: vim-ipython.
From project page on http://github.com/ivanov/vim-ipython:
Using this plugin, you can send lines or whole files for IPython to execute, and also get back object introspection and word completions in Vim, like what you get with: object? and object. in IPython.
This plugin has one big limitation: it doesn’t support python 3 (it’s planned).
You can use the autoreload module in IPython to automatically reload code.
Open jupyter qtconsole or jupyter console and type:
%load_ext autoreload
%autoreload 2
from your_work_file import *
Now every time you save your_work_file.py, it will be automatically reloaded.
Hint: if you want this to happen automatically, put the followinglines in your ipython_config.py file:
c.InteractiveShellApp.extensions = ['autoreload']
c.InteractiveShellApp.exec_lines = ['%autoreload 2']
Try Ptpython. It has much better integration with VIM. You can directly edit in VIM by just pressing V. It also allows browsing your history.. so you can pretty much code in the shell, and incrementally build up your code.
If you are already familiar with ipython, you can check the advantages of ptpython here:
I just use the exclamation mark (!) to run vi as a shell command
In [1]: !vi myScript.py
and when done with editing I just quit vi to get back to the Ipython shell.
To run the script one can then use
In [2]: %run myScript.py
as suggested in another answer and not !python ... because the Python version in ipython might be different from the one in the underlying shell.
If you want to dump some code in a file use the magic %%writefile
In [3]:%%writefile myScript.py
...: print("hello")
...:
...:
Be careful because this will overwrite myScript.py. To append use %%writefile -a.
Is there a GUI for IPython that allows me to open/run/edit Python files? My way of working in IDLE is to have two windows open: the shell and a .py file. I edit the .py file, run it, and interact with the results in the shell.
Is it possible to use IPython like this? Or is there an alternative way of working?
When I’m working with python, I usually have two terminal windows open – one with IPython, and the other with a fairly customized Vim.
Two good resources:
- http://blog.dispatched.ch/2009/05/24/vim-as-python-ide/
- http://dancingpenguinsoflight.com/2009/02/python-and-vim-make-your-own-ide/
Though it sounds like what you want is IPython’s magic function %ed/%edit:
An example of what you can do:
In [72]: %ed
IPython will make a temporary file named: c:docume~1wjwe312locals~1tempipython_edit_ar8veu.py
In the file I put:
x = "Hello World"
print 3
After saving and quitting the file:
Editing... done. Executing edited code...
3
Out[72]: "x = 'Hello world'nprint 3n"
In [73]: x
Out[73]: 'Hello world'
You can define functions or anything else – just remember that the contents of the file will be executed when you close it.
Another similar workflow is to cd to the directory containing your Python script that you’re editing with your favorite editor. Then you can %run the script from within IPython and you’ll have access to everything defined in the file. For instance, if you have the following in the file test.py in your /home/myself directory:
class Tester(object):
def __init__(self):
print "hi"
def knightme(name):
print "Hello, Sir ", name
Then you can do the following:
In [42]: cd /home/myself
/home/myself
In [43]: %run test.py # <Tab> autocomplete also works
In [44]: knightme('John')
Hello, Sir John
In [45]: t = Tester()
Hi
Either a mix or one of those workflows should give you something very similar to the way you’re used to working in IDLE.
Personally, I use what @Wayne suggested, a combination of vim and ipython…
However, if you’d prefer a different approach, take a look at spyder.
As of the latest version (1.1) ipython should be fully integrated. If you download an earlier version, things will work fine with ipython as an external shell, but you won’t get a few of spyder’s nifty features (like viewing all of the currently defined variables in the workspace window).
Spyder is definitely a bit heavyweight, but it’s an interesting project.
Another (very, very, new) similar project to take a look at is iep. It will (sort-of) work with ipython as shell, and I’d be willing to be bet that nicer ipython integration will be along before too long. At any rate, iep is essentially a more lightweight alternative to spyder.
Both of these are oriented towards scientific computing, and so have nice integration with things like matplotlib (and thus can automatically run gui main loops in a seperate thread). They’re not quite like “normal” IDE’s but they may fill the niche you’re looking for quite nicely.
Take a look at DreamPie. Might be what you are looking for.
If you like the work-flow under Matlab, then you probably should try the following two:
1, Try the combination of Spyder and Vim.
-
Edit python files in
Vim(Spydercan reload the file automatically) -
Run the code in
Spyder(in the same interpreter, which is important for me): -
Use
F9to run the current file -
Ctrl+F9to run the selected block
2, Use Vim + conque-shell. (on google code)
-
Open your preferred
Python interpreterinVim,e.g., just
:ConqueTermSplit python. -
then visual select some
Pythoncode -
press
F9to paste and run it in thePython interpreter buffer.
Note: a few more:
-
:ConqueTermVSplit python, -
:ConqueTerm python -
:ConqueTermVSplit rlwrap pythonIf your interpretor misses
readline, you can userlwrap.
Personally, I like PyScripter. Unfortunately, it only works on Windows, but also runs perfectly in Wine.
You might like PySlices…
It’s kind of a shell/editor hybrid that lets you save your session as special (barely) modified python files called .pyslice files.
It’s now part of wxPython, so just install that (v2.8.11 or later) and run “python -m wx.py.PySlices” on the command line to launch it.
That said, I still end up using an external editor for scripts (geany).
sudo apt-get install ipython
Once you are done with installing ipython.
Start ipython from terminal (just hit ipython in the ternminal)
To run ravi.py file all you need to do is
%run ravi.py
The latest version of IdleX supports IPython within IDLE, as well as the %edit magic. You can run your files from the IDLE editor within the IPython shell many ways, either by F5 (run everything), F9 (run a selection), or Ctrl+Enter (run a subcode).
Try Spyder, I have spent all day trying to find an IDE which has the functionality of ipython and Spyder just kicks it out of the park..
Autocomplete is top notch right from install, no config files and all that crap, and it has an Ipython terminal in the corner for you to instantly run your code.
big thumbs up
I want to suggest excellent plugin for vim that makes two-way integration between Vim and IPython: vim-ipython.
From project page on http://github.com/ivanov/vim-ipython:
Using this plugin, you can send lines or whole files for IPython to execute, and also get back object introspection and word completions in Vim, like what you get with: object? and object. in IPython.
This plugin has one big limitation: it doesn’t support python 3 (it’s planned).
You can use the autoreload module in IPython to automatically reload code.
Open jupyter qtconsole or jupyter console and type:
%load_ext autoreload
%autoreload 2
from your_work_file import *
Now every time you save your_work_file.py, it will be automatically reloaded.
Hint: if you want this to happen automatically, put the followinglines in your ipython_config.py file:
c.InteractiveShellApp.extensions = ['autoreload']
c.InteractiveShellApp.exec_lines = ['%autoreload 2']
Try Ptpython. It has much better integration with VIM. You can directly edit in VIM by just pressing V. It also allows browsing your history.. so you can pretty much code in the shell, and incrementally build up your code.
If you are already familiar with ipython, you can check the advantages of ptpython here:
I just use the exclamation mark (!) to run vi as a shell command
In [1]: !vi myScript.py
and when done with editing I just quit vi to get back to the Ipython shell.
To run the script one can then use
In [2]: %run myScript.py
as suggested in another answer and not !python ... because the Python version in ipython might be different from the one in the underlying shell.
If you want to dump some code in a file use the magic %%writefile
In [3]:%%writefile myScript.py
...: print("hello")
...:
...:
Be careful because this will overwrite myScript.py. To append use %%writefile -a.