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Is there a way to shorten command line commands to open Python scripts?

I'd like to know if there is a way to shorten what must be written on the cmd.exe command line to run Python programs. As it is, I have a program called Calculator.py and if I wanted to run that I would have to write:
python.exe C:\Users\user_name\restofdirectory\Calculator.py
Basically I want to know if I could make the 'Python' folder on my computer default so I could just type python.exe Calculator.py or some other similarly short way of doing it so I didn't have to type the whole directory.

Create a cmd.exe shortcut somewhere handy (Desktop or whatever). Right Click, select properties. Under the Shortcut tab you'll have a "Start In" field. It'll be default to wherever your cmd.exe normally opens. But you can change it to any path you want (So set it to your python development folder)-- then opening that shortcut will always start cmd.exe in the python folder.
You don't need to type python.exe file.py --
Just type: python file.py
So in short, you'd click that shortcut and type python file.py and you are done.
If you have specific scripts you want to run frequently, you can create a cmd.exe shortcut for each one. Set the Start In path to their folder. Then update the link to cmd.exe like this:
c:\path\to\cmd.exe /k python file.py
That will open a cmd prompt and automatically run that specific script

Yes, you can cd into the folder first.

If python is in your default path you can create a folder and put all your python scripts in it. Then cd into that folder and type python Calculator.py. To test if python is in your path simply open up a cmd and type cd \ (which in your case should change your working directory to C:\) then type python. If you get an error saying the command python cannot be found then you have to add python to your path. Other wise you should be able to run cd C:\Users\user_name\restofdirectory\ and then execute the script python Calculator.py

create an environment variable, say, PyPath = C:\Users\user_name\restofdirectory
then your line would be:
python.exe %PyPath%\Calculator.py
or you just cd to C:\Users\user_name\restofdirectory, and run
python.exe Calculator.py

Add Python to your path:
SET PATH=%PATH%;C:\Python27\bin
then you can call python like this:
python myapp.py

If you have the Python Launcher for Windows (comes with Python 3.3+) installed, then it gets even easier. You just need to put shebang in your code:
#! python
The first time you run your code, Windows will pop up a dialog and ask you what program to use to run the script. The Python Launcher should be listed. Just choose that and away you go. Here's a fun little script from the page I linked earlier:
#! python
import sys
sys.stdout.write("hello from Python %s\n" % (sys.version,))
Once my Windows 7 box had the launcher installed and I told it what program to run, I could just call my script from cmd.exe like this:
my_script.py
Note: If you have a version of Python older than 3.3, you can download the installer here

Python Beginner: ImportError when run from NP++ but not IDLE

I am using Python 3.3 (2.7 is also installed) and a compatible version of pygame. Recently I have been trying to switch from IDLE to Notepad++
I am using a saved shortcut in Notepad++
C:\Python33\python.bat "$(CURRENT_DIRECTORY)" "$(FILE_NAME)"
which runs the batch file:
#echo off
cd %1
%2
if not errorlevel 1 goto quit
echo.
echo.
pause
:quit
When I run C:\Python33\Foldername\imp_prob.py
import pygame
in IDLE it works fine, in Notepad++ using that shortcut it gives an ImportError: No module named pygame
My questions are:
Why is the NP++ method not producing the same result?
How can I change the shortcut or batch file to make it run stuff that IDLE can run?
What method can I use to ensure that I can import a module regardless of which directory I am running the program from?
edit: a working alternative was in the answers to How do you run a python script from within notepad++?
I had some issues with the code they provided, but replacing "python" with the full path to my python33 install solved that.
I still don't understand why pygame wouldn't import when using my run shortcut. I also don't understand why NppExec works when Run doesn't.

It sounds like you would need to set your systemvariables. Idle does not require these steps. You entered the full path to the python.exe in np++ to execute the python program, but the path to the modules etc. is still unknown.
Add the paths, and try again.
System Properties -> Advanced -> Environment Variables, in the bottom window look for a "Path" variable, Edit and append the following the existing entries (do not delete anything in there!)
;C:\Python33;C:\Python33\DLLs;C:\Python33\Lib
for Python 3.3, if you have installed it into its default directory.
To see if everything worked, open the console anywhere (shift+rightclick -> Open Command Window Here) and just type "python". The python console should open, telling you that you use python 3.3. You then also do not need to tell np++ the full python path, but instead can just use "python" again.

create a python shell environment launcher to use pyQgis

I am trying to modify the shell launcher found at "http://inasafe.linfiniti.com/html/id/developer-docs/platform_windows.html" so that I can use it to directly launch any shell I'd like (in my case, I wanna use the default IDLE gui in Python 27 library folder for windows).
My changes didn't bring me to an acceptable result so far. Here is my version of the launcher, where I should change it?
#echo off
SET PyShell=C:\Programmi\Quantum GIS Lisboa
call "%PyShell%"\apps\Python27\Lib\idlelib\PyShell.pyc
#echo off
SET GDAL_DRIVER_PATH=%PyShell%\bin\gdalplugins\1.9
path %PATH%;%PyShell%\apps\qgis\bin
path %PATH%;%PyShell%\apps\grass\grass-6.4.2\lib
path %PATH%;"%PyShell%\apps\Python27\Scripts\"
set PYTHONPATH=%PYTHONPATH%;%PyShell%\apps\qgis\python;
set PYTHONPATH=%PYTHONPATH%;%PyShell%\apps\Python27\Lib\site-packages
set QGIS_PREFIX_PATH=%PyShell%\apps\qgis
start "Quantum GIS Shell" /B "cmd.exe" %*
My OS is Windows XP, the version of Python is 2.7.3, while Qgis is 1.8 (Lisboa).
I am reeeeally new to Python and stuff, so please forgive my big mistakes if there are some (but I'm pretty sure there are).

Finally the solution was int the line where I specify which program to use as shell. In my case, I found bot "Pyshell.pyc" and "idle.pyw". The second seems to be the right to poit at, as everything works fine now.
So, my personal shell launcher looks like this:
#echo off
SET IDLE=C:\PROGRA~1\QUANTU~1
call "%IDLE%"\apps\Python27\Lib\idlelib\idle.pyw
#echo off
SET GDAL_DRIVER_PATH=%IDLE%\bin\gdalplugins\1.9
path %PATH%;%IDLE%\apps\qgis\bin
path %PATH%;%IDLE%\apps\grass\grass-6.4.2\lib
path %PATH%;"%IDLE%\apps\Python27\Scripts\"
set PYTHONPATH=%PYTHONPATH%;%IDLE%\apps\qgis\python;
set PYTHONPATH=%PYTHONPATH%;%IDLE%\apps\Python27\Lib\site-packages
set QGIS_PREFIX_PATH=%IDLE%\apps\qgis
start "Quantum GIS Shell" /B "cmd.exe" %*
Anyway, this was a workaround to set the environment variables to use PyQGIS, as I had difficulties to set them in the "normal" way.
Unfortuntely, I didn't fix my problem, as I'm still getting errors while importing the "qgis.core" module, while using the original shell launcher through cmd.exe it works, but it's not a good IDE though...

How to install python 3.2.3 on Windows 7 enterprise

although I have been using python a long time very easily in a Linux environment, I have tremendous trouble to even install it correctly in a windows environment. I hope this is a question to be asked here, as it is not directly a programming question.
Especially, I have the following problems:
When on the command line, python is not a recognized command. Do I have to set the Windows path manually myself? If so, how to do that?
When starting a python script, should this be done with python.exe or pythonw.exe? What is the difference?
I also tried to install ipython several times, it never got installed (even after following the starting ipythonenter link description here thread.
When starting a script with python.exe, a window pops up and closes immediately. I saw some hints in putting in a readline command, which is of no help if there is a syntax error in the script. So how to be able to keep the window open, or how to run the command on the cmd.exe?
Thank you for any help on these items.
Alex

1) Look here: www.computerhope.com/issues/ch000549.htm
2) It has already been answered, always try to use search before asking question:
pythonw.exe or python.exe?
4) When using cmd.exe just navigate to your script folder using dir for changing directories and C:,D:,etc. for changing drives. Then run script by typing just the script name. When installed correctly, Python automatically launches .py scripts with python, so you don't have to write 'python' before script name. When run in cmd, window will stay open. If you want it to stay open even when launching script with double-click, use function waiting for user input, see here How to keep a Python script output window open?

You might want to use Python3.3, there is a new launcher for Python scripts in it. By that, you can start Python scripts with py <scriptname> which has the benefit of being installed in your path (C:\Windows\system32) and you can use a shebang to tell whether the script is for Python2 or Python3.
Also
In addition to the launcher, the Windows installer now includes an
option to add the newly installed Python to the system PATH
(contributed by Brian Curtin in issue 3561).

Running Python from the Windows Command Line

How do I run a Python file from the Windows Command Line (cmd.exe) so that I won't have to re-enter the code each time?

Wouldn't you simply save your Python code into a file, and then execute that file using Python?
Save your code into a file called Test.py.
And then run it?
$ C:\Python24\Python.exe C:\Temp\Test.py

If you don't want to install an IDE, you can also use IDLE which includes a Python editor and a console to test things out, this is part of the standard installation.
If you installed the python.org version, you will see an IDLE (Python GUI) in your start menu. I would recommend adding it to your Quick Launch or your desktop - whatever you are most familiar with. Then right-click on the shortcut you have created and change the "Start in" directory to your project directory or a place you can mess with, not the installation directory which is the default place and probably a bad idea.
When you double-click the shortcut it will launch IDLE, a console in which you can type in Python command and have history, completion, colours and so on. You can also start an editor to create a program file (like mentioned in the other posts). There is even a debugger.
If you saved your application in "test.py", you can start it from the editor itself. Or from the console with execfile("test.py"), import test (if that is a module), or finally from the debugger.

If you put the Python executable (python.exe) on your path, you can invoke your script using python script.py where script.py is the Python file that you want to execute.

Open a command prompt, by pressing Win+R and writing cmd in that , navigate to the script directory , and write : python script.py

A good tool to have is the IPython shell. Not only can it run your program (%run command), but it offers also many tools for using Python interactively in an efficient manner (automatic completion, syntax coloring, quick access to the documentation, good interaction with Matplotlib,…). After you install it, you'll have access to its shell in the Start menu.

You need to create environment variables. Follow the instructions here: http://www.voidspace.org.uk/python/articles/command_line.shtml#environment-variables

In DOS you can use edit to create/modify text files, then execute them by typing python [yourfile]