Py LearnPythonForExcelThe Excel-user's path to Python
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Setting Up Your Environment

Install Python the easy way (Anaconda), set up VS Code, get a Jupyter notebook running, and turn on =PY() in Excel.

Foundations 6 lessons ~50 min

This is the most important module in the course because everything that follows depends on a working setup. The good news: we use the friendliest path on each platform, with screenshots-worth-of-description for every step.

⚠️ Do this module on a real computer
You can't do the rest of the course on a phone or tablet. Use a Mac, Windows, or Linux laptop or desktop.

Lessons in this module

  1. Install Python (the easy way, with Anaconda) · 10 min
    Get Python and the big data libraries on your machine in one installer. Works the same way on Mac and Windows.
  2. Install VS Code — your code editor · 8 min
    Set up Visual Studio Code, Microsoft's free code editor, with the Python extension.
  3. The terminal — a friendly introduction · 9 min
    Five commands that are all you really need: cd, ls/dir, mkdir, pip, python.
  4. Turn on Python inside Excel (=PY()) · 8 min
    Get the =PY() formula working in your Microsoft 365 Excel.
  5. A two-minute tour of Jupyter notebooks · 7 min
    Cells, run buttons, kernels, save, share — the bits of Jupyter you'll touch every day.
  6. When things break — reading errors without panic · 8 min
    How to read a Python error message, the five most common errors, and what to do about each.