Data 4AC Python Workshop

This repository contains the materials for D-Lab’s Data 4AC Python Workshop. No prior experience with Python is required to attend this workshop.

Workshop Goals

This workshop provides a gentle introduction to data analysis in Python for learners with basic proficiency in Excel. We will compare common data analysis tasks in Excel with their equivalent operations in Python, examine the pros and cons of shifting from Excel to a scripting language environment, and complete a guided, end-to-end data analysis using Python.

Getting Started

To get started, you can click the following link to open this repository in Google Colab, a cloud based python environment:

Alternatively, you can access the repository via DataHub, a cloud based environment hosted by UC Berkeley:

If you would prefer to download python onto your computer and work locally, you can follow the instructions below.

Local Installation Instructions (OPTIONAL)

Due to time constraints, we won't be able to cover how to install Anaconda today, but you can find the instructions on how to do so below.

If you have any issues with the local installation (or with Python, or Data Science related questions) we encourage you to take advantage of the Consulting services at the D-Lab: https://dlab.berkeley.edu/consulting.

Anaconda is a useful package management software that allows you to run Python and Jupyter notebooks easily. Installing Anaconda is the easiest way to make sure you have all the necessary software to run the materials for this workshop. If you would like to run Python on your own computer, complete the following steps prior to the workshop:

1. Download and install Anaconda (Python 3.9 distribution). Click the "Download" button.

2. Download the workshop materials:

   • Click the green "Code" button in the top right of the repository information.
   • Click "Download Zip".
   • Extract this file to a folder on your computer where you can easily access it (we recommend Desktop).

Now that you have all the required software and materials, you need to run the code:

1. Open the Anaconda Navigator application. You should see the green snake logo appear on your screen. Note that this can take a few minutes to load up the first time.

2. Click the "Launch" button under "Jupyter Lab" and navigate through your file system to the Data_4AC-Python-Workshop folder you downloaded above.