Learning Python – Post 1: Installing Anaconda and Launching Jupyter Notebook

This is the first post in my Learning Python series — a personal journey where I’m learning Python from scratch and sharing everything I pick up along the way.

I don’t come from a programming background, so I’m figuring things out one step at a time. If you’re also just getting started with Python, I hope these notes help you like they’re helping me keep things clear.

In this first post, I’ll walk through how I set up Python using Anaconda, and how I launched my very first Jupyter Notebook — a tool I’ve seen mentioned everywhere in the data science world, and now I finally get why.

Step 1: Download Anaconda

To start with, I didn’t install Python manually — instead, I went with Anaconda. It comes with Python, Jupyter, and a bunch of useful packages pre-installed, which sounded perfect for someone like me who doesn’t want to get stuck in setup issues.

Go to: https://www.anaconda.com/products/distribution
Choose your operating system (I’m using Windows).
Download the 64-Bit Graphical Installer (the one that includes Python 3.10 or newer).

Step 2: Install Anaconda

Once the download finishes, double-click the .exe file to start installing. Here’s exactly what I did:

Accepted the license agreement.
Selected Just Me (seemed safer).
Left the installation path as it was.
Did not check “Add Anaconda to my PATH” (installer even warns against it).
Left checked “Register Anaconda as my default Python”.
Clicked Install and waited (took a few minutes).

When it finished, I clicked Finish and… that was it! Python was officially on my machine 🎉

Step 3: Open Jupyter Notebook

This was the part I was excited about — launching Jupyter for the first time. There are two ways to do it:

Option 1: With Anaconda Navigator

Open Anaconda Navigator from the Start menu.
Click Launch under Jupyter Notebook.
It automatically opened in my browser. Super smooth.

Option 2: With Anaconda Prompt

Open Anaconda Prompt.
Type this and hit Enter: bashKopierenBearbeitenjupyter notebook
The Jupyter interface popped up in my browser. It felt like I was finally inside a coding environment.

Step 4: Create Your First Notebook

Once inside the Jupyter interface:

I clicked New > Python 3 (top-right).
A blank notebook opened in a new tab.
I typed a simple print("Hello, world!"), pressed Shift + Enter, and boom — it worked.

Running code inside a browser felt surprisingly satisfying. Definitely a good first step into Python.

Why I’m Sharing This

I’m learning Python slowly, on the side of my day-to-day routine, and I wanted a place to log everything I try — both to stay organized and maybe help someone who’s also learning.

This is not a polished tutorial — just me documenting what I’m figuring out, what works, and what confuses me. And if you’re reading this, maybe you’re on a similar path. Let’s keep going.