Main image of article Python 3.10.0 Offers Basket of New Features for Developers

Python has just hit version 3.10.0, with a variety of new features for developers. Whether you’re new to Python or just interested in what this latest version has to offer, Python.org offers tons of documentation on the new stuff, including a tutorial.

For those who don’t want to click away to another site, here’s the latest and greatest:

  • PEP 623: Deprecate and prepare for the removal of the wstr member in PyUnicodeObject.
  • PEP 604: Allow writing union types as X | Y.
  • PEP 612: Parameter Specification Variables.
  • PEP 626: Precise line numbers for debugging and other tools.
  • PEP 618: Add Optional Length-Checking To zip.
  • bpo-12782: Parenthesized context managers are now officially allowed.
  • PEP 632:  Deprecate distutils module.
  • PEP 613: Explicit Type Aliases
  • PEP 634: Structural Pattern Matching: Specification
  • PEP 635: Structural Pattern Matching: Motivation and Rationale
  • PEP 636: Structural Pattern Matching: Tutorial
  • PEP 644: Require OpenSSL 1.1.1 or newer
  • PEP 624: Remove Py_UNICODE encoder APIs
  • PEP 597: Add optional EncodingWarning

If you’re an experienced Python developer, these features may come in useful. If you’re totally new to Python and want to learn, swing by Python.org for its handy beginner’s guide to programming and Python. If you’re the kind of developer who learns best by watching videos, Microsoft’s video series, “Python for Beginners,” features dozens of short lessons (most under five minutes in length; none longer than 13 minutes) in the various aspects of Python.

Should you be the type who likes to pick up knowledge of new tools and languages via online learning portals, there are many Python tutorials out there, as well, including Datacamp (whose Introduction to Python course includes 11 videos and 57 exercises), Udemy (which offers a variety of free introduction courses, including one for “absolute beginners”), and Codecademy. As you build knowledge, don’t be afraid to head over to Stack Overflow to ask questions about things that might stump you.

And learning Python could prove vital to your career, as the language seems poised to continue its swift ascent. Earlier this year, SlashData’s State of the Developer Nation suggested that Python had the world’s second-largest programming-language community, at 10.1 million people. How long until it becomes the biggest?