Learn Python Django in Just 8 Minutes

Python Django is a popular web framework that allows developers to build dynamic web applications quickly and efficiently. In this tutorial, I will explain the key concepts of Python Django in just 8 minutes.

1. What is Python Django?

Python Django is an open-source web framework written in Python. It follows the model-view-template (MVT) architectural pattern, which is similar to the model-view-controller (MVC) pattern used in many other web frameworks. Django is designed to help developers build web applications quickly and easily by providing a set of tools and libraries that handle common tasks such as routing, database interaction, authentication, and templating.

1. Installing Django

Before we can start using Django, we need to install it. The easiest way to do this is using the pip package manager, which comes pre-installed with Python. To install Django, simply open a terminal or command prompt and type the following command:

pip install django

This will download and install the latest version of Django on your system.

1. Creating a Django project

Once Django is installed, we can create a new Django project using the django-admin command-line tool. To create a new project, navigate to the directory where you want to create the project and run the following command:

django-admin startproject myproject

This will create a new directory called myproject with the basic structure of a Django project inside it.

1. Running the development server

To run the Django development server, navigate to the project directory that was created in the previous step and run the following command:

python manage.py runserver

This will start the development server on http://127.0.0.1:8000/, which you can access in your web browser.

1. Creating a Django app

In Django, a web application is typically divided into smaller components called apps. To create a new app, run the following command in the project directory:

python manage.py startapp myapp

This will create a new directory called myapp with the basic structure of a Django app inside it.

1. Creating views

In Django, views are Python functions that handle HTTP requests and return HTTP responses. Views are typically defined in the views.py file inside each app. Here is an example view that simply returns a "Hello, World!" message:

from django.http import HttpResponse

def index(request):
    return HttpResponse("Hello, World!")

1. Mapping URLs to views

To map a URL to a view, we need to define a URL pattern in the urls.py file of the project or app. Here is an example URL pattern that maps the root URL to the index view we defined earlier:

from django.urls import path
from . import views

urlpatterns = [
    path('', views.index),
]

1. Templates

In Django, templates are HTML files that are used to render the content of a web page. Templates can contain placeholders called template tags that are replaced with dynamic content. Here is an example template that extends a base template and displays a "Hello, World!" message:

{% extends 'base.html' %}

{% block content %}
    <h1>Hello, World!</h1>
{% endblock %}

And that’s it! In just 8 minutes, we have covered the key concepts of Python Django, including installing Django, creating a project and app, defining views and URL patterns, and using templates to render dynamic content. Django is a powerful web framework that makes it easy to build complex web applications, so I encourage you to explore the official Django documentation to learn more about its features and capabilities.