How to install and use PyCharm on Windows / Mac OS
To code you’ll need a coding notebook. The one I recommend is Pycharm. So here is a guide on how to install and use it.
First you need to download the Pycharm comnunity version through the link down below.
https://www.jetbrains.com/de-de/pycharm/download/#section=windows
After the application is downloaded you can launch it the usual way.
You should see something like this.
To start your first project you can press “New Project”.
After launching your project, which creates a new folder. You can decide where to save it by clicking on the Folder-icon next to the Location. After that you can press “Create”.
Now you should see the Pycharm interface. To write your first code you can press on File and choose “New” (or press Alt + Enter). All you need to do now is to press “Python File” and give it a name.
To be able to run or execute the code you need a Python interpreter. So let me show you can add one.
To add an interpreter, you need to click on “File”, then on “Options” and choose the project “Project:(the name you gave the project)”. After that, click on Python Interpreter to add a new Interpreter.
By clicking on the drop-down menu, you should be able to choose the Python Interpreter.
If you cannot choose an Interpreter, please follow the next step on how to add one.
only follow this step if you could not choose a Python Interpreter in the previous step
Press the gearwheel next to the drop-down menu and click on “Add…”. Go to “System Interpreter” on the left side of the window. Now click on the drop-down menu and choose the basic interpreter. You can now press “OK”.
If still no Python Interpreter popped up you need to find a file on your PC which is called python.exe and copy the path. Now you can press the three points next to the Interpreter drop-down menu and fill in the path. Now you can press “OK”.
Now you have a working Python file in Pycharm. If you write your first code and want to run/execute it for the first time, you have to press right click and press “Run (File name)”. Every time after that you can just press the “play” button on the top right or press Shift + F10.
That’s it, now you know how to use the basics of Pycharm. If you want to know more about Pycharm, check out my “Tips & Tricks in Pycharm”. If you want to learn Python, check out my Python for beginner series.
Thank you so much for reading my story, I really apreciate it!
