Python 101 for Hackers

Install VirtualBox to run a Linux guest on your Windows host, set up a Python environment, and learn to write and execute Python scripts in a virtual machine.

Download and install Kali Linux from an ISO, set up a 64-bit VirtualBox VM with a 40 GB dynamic disk, boot, and enable bidirectional clipboard for host-guest Python development.

Discover how the python interpreter provides an interactive sandbox to test commands and functions line by line, enabling quick one-liners and hands-on exploration before running full scripts.

Learn to run Python scripts using Python 3 or Python 2, make scripts executable, and understand __name__ == '__main__' and import behavior.

Install sublime text on a linux system via apt, using the stable version from sublime text dot com and enable syntax highlighting for Python scripts.

Master Python syntax by understanding indentation defines code blocks and the rules for spaces or tabs. Explore variables, the print function, backslash line continuations, and Python docs and pep8.

Explore variables and data types in Python, including strings, integers, lists, tuples, dictionaries, booleans, ranges, and bytes, with casting, printing, and type checks.

Master python strings by defining single, double, and multiline literals, escaping quotes and newlines, and manipulating with upper, lower, strip, split, and replace, then formatting with format or f-strings.

Explore booleans and operators in Python, evaluate true and false values, use not, and, or, compare with equals and inequalities, and practice bitwise and/or and bit shifts with binary formatting.

Learn how dictionaries store data as unique key–value pairs in curly brackets, offering fast lookups in Python; create, access, update, remove, iterate keys/values/items, nest dictionaries, and build empty dicts.

Learn how Python sets store multiple values, are unordered, and disallow duplicates. Define sets with literals or set(), then add, update, and remove items, including using discard and pop.

Explore Python conditionals by branching on true or false comparisons, using if, elif, and else, combining conditions with and/or, and applying inline ternary expressions for concise decisions.

Master Python loops, from while and for loops to range and nested iterations, and learn loop control statements break, continue, and pass, plus iterating over strings and dictionaries.

Learn to read and write files in python using open in text and binary modes, use read, readlines, seek, and write, handle encoding, iterate lines, and manage file objects safely.

Master Python comprehensions to build lists from iterables with concise syntax. Utilize conditionals, range, nested structures, and the join method to compare with long form and apply ternaries.

Explore lambda functions as anonymous one-expression tools in Python, including simple adds, even/odd checks, and breaking strings into blocks, with one-line demos and function rewrites.

Master Python virtual environments to isolate packages, run multiple versions simultaneously, and manage dependencies across scripts with activation and deactivation workflows.

Explore the sys standard library module, learning how to access version info, the interpreter executable, platform, standard in, standard out, standard error, command line arguments, and exit codes.

Learn to use the Pontus library, a capture-the-flag framework and exploit development library, to interact with local and remote processes, pack data, work with contexts and assembly, and search gadgets.

Explore sha256 password cracking in Python, reading a password list from a file on the command line, hashing each guess, and comparing to a target hash with progress logs.

Learn the importance of comments in Python and how to document your scripts with single-line, end-of-line, and multi-line comments using the pound and triple quotes.