Python: Building Big Apps can currently be ordered from amazon
(ISBN: 9781107666870)
or directly from Cambridge University Press:
Python: Building Big Apps at CUP

This is the Coding Club: Python: Building Big home page. Answers and full source code are on the resources page.

Books at level 3 are intended for young coders that are starting to want to build more involved applications. The first book at this level is Python: Building Big Apps. It introduces Object Oriented Programming (OOP) so that readers become familiar with classes and objects which are extensively used in game programming.

The book does not set out to teach perfect OOP but instead simply aims to introduce some of the concepts and to recommend that building classes allows students to organise their code in big projects in a logical and manageable way.

While learning more theory, readers will build a number of small projects ending with a big project - MyPong. The final chapter will show how building MyPong carefully allows us to quickly and easily build a BreakOut style game, an Invaders game and many more.

Meet Madison!

Madison has come over to London from the States. While in America she was very active in her school programming club. She is loving the Raspberry Pi and wants to use it to build her own 3D printer so she can program it to make stuff for herself and friends! Madison also loves music, plays the clarinet and relaxes by climbing 15m indoor walls and occasionally mountains!

Chapter 1

Ch.1 - Can you guess my password?
In this Chapter you are going to revise:

   >>> variables
   >>> if, elif and else
   >>> functions
   >>> while loops
   >>> modules.

Chapter 2

Ch.2 - Objects, classes and factories
In this Chapter you are going to:

   >>> learn how to design classes
   >>> learn how to make objects from classes
   >>> start to build your own module
   >>> learn how to build larger programs one bit at a time.


PythonBuildingBigApps-Ch2.pdf

The MyPong Project:

Chapter 3

Ch.3 - Creating the Table
In this Chapter you are going to:

   >>> design a table class
   >>> learn a bit more about the tkinter module
   >>> build a simple graphical app.

Chapter 4

Ch.4 - Making the Ball
In this Chapter you are going to:

   >>> design a ball class
   >>> learn how to add the ball to the table
   >>> learn how to animate shapes in tkinter.

Chapter 5

Ch.5 - Building the Bats
In this Chapter you are going to:

   >>> design a bat class
   >>> learn how to add the bats to the table
   >>> learn how objects communicate with each other.

Chapter 6

Ch.6 - The Rules and Scoring
In this Chapter you are going to:

   >>> stop the ball bouncing off the left and right walls
   >>> add a scoring system to your game
   >>> finish MyPong.

Two new Games:

Bonus Chapter

Bonus Chapter - Two more games
In this Chapter you are going to:

   >>> see how useful lists are for storing objects in games
   >>> see how to add many bricks at once using a loop
   >>> see how flexible your ball, bat and table classes are
   >>> produce two new games that can be further customised.