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Copy-ready Python snippets by topic and difficulty — short, focused, and runnable in the browser editor.
Extract Data from Strings in Python: Beginner's Guide
A beginner-friendly helper that splits a comma-separated string into a list, shows word count, and extracts the first and last words using Python's split() and join() methods.
text = "python,string,extract,beginner"
words = text.split(",")
print("Full text:", text)
print("Word count:", len(words))
print("First word:", words[0])
print("Last word:", words[-1])
joined = " | ".join(words)
print("Joined with separator:", joined)
How to Mask Credit Card Middle Digits in Python
Mask the middle digits of credit card numbers in a string, keeping only the first 8 and last 4 digits, using regular expressions.
import re
def mask_credit_card(text: str) -> str:
pattern = re.compile(r'(\d{4}[-\s]?)(\d{4}[-\s]?)(\d{4}[-\s]?)(\d{4})')
return pattern.sub(lambda m: m.group(1) + m.group(2) + '****' + m.group(4), text)
if __name__ == "__main__":
sample = "Card: 1234-5678-9012-3456 and 1111 2222 3333 4444"
print(mas…
Truncate List Keeping Last N Elements in Python
Return a new list containing only the last N elements from a sequence, handling edge cases like zero or oversized counts.
def truncate(seq, keep_last_n):
"""Return a new list keeping only the last n elements."""
if keep_last_n <= 0:
return []
return list(seq)[-keep_last_n:]
if __name__ == "__main__":
data = [10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60]
print(truncate(data, 3))
print(truncate(data, 0))
print(truncate(data…
How to Use a Lambda Sorting Key in Python
Sort a list of strings by their last letter using a lambda function as the sorting key.
def get_last_letter(word):
return word[-1]
words = ["banana", "apple", "cherry", "date", "elderberry"]
if __name__ == "__main__":
sorted_words = sorted(words, key=get_last_letter)
print(sorted_words)
How to Assert Preconditions with Descriptive Messages in Python
Use Python's assert statement with a custom message to validate function preconditions and fail fast with clear diagnostics.
def divide(dividend, divisor):
assert divisor != 0, f"Divisor must be non-zero, got {divisor!r}"
return dividend / divisor
if __name__ == "__main__":
print(divide(10, 2))
try:
divide(10, 0)
except AssertionError as e:
print(f"AssertionError: {e}")
How to Record Last N Errors with a Ring Buffer in Python
Use collections.deque with maxlen to keep only the most recent N error messages while discarding older entries automatically.
import collections
class ErrorRecorder:
def __init__(self, size):
self.buffer = collections.deque(maxlen=size)
def record_error(self, message):
self.buffer.append(message)
def get_errors(self):
return list(self.buffer)
if __name__ == "__main__":
recorder = ErrorRecorder(3)
…
How to Serialize an Exception to a JSON-Safe Dict in Python
Convert any Python exception into a JSON-safe dictionary with type, message, and the last few traceback lines for logging.
import json
import traceback
from typing import Any
def exception_to_dict(exc: Exception) -> dict[str, Any]:
"""Convert an exception into a JSON-safe dictionary."""
return {
"type": type(exc).__name__,
"message": str(exc),
"traceback": traceback.format_exc().strip().split("\n")[-3:],
…
How to parse a traceback to get the last frame in Python
Extracts the innermost frame's file, line, and function name from a Python traceback object.
import sys
import traceback
def parse_traceback_last_frame(exc_info):
"""Return the file, line, and function of the last (innermost) frame."""
_, _, tb = exc_info
last_tb = tb
while last_tb.tb_next is not None:
last_tb = last_tb.tb_next
filename = last_tb.tb_frame.f_code.co_filename
l…
How to Generate Beautiful QR Codes with Embedded Logos in Python
Generate a high-error-correction QR code and paste a logo image in the center to create a branded, scannable QR code.
import qrcode
from PIL import Image
def generate_qr_with_logo(data, logo_path, output_path):
qr = qrcode.QRCode(
version=1,
error_correction=qrcode.constants.ERROR_CORRECT_H,
box_size=10,
border=4,
)
qr.add_data(data)
qr.make(fit=True)
qr_img = qr.make_image(fill_c…
Tail last N lines of growing log file in Python
Prints the last n lines of a log file and follows new content appended to it, polling for size changes.
import time
from pathlib import Path
def tail_log(file_path, n=10, poll_interval=1.0, timeout=10):
"""
Print the last n lines and follow new lines appended to a growing log file.
"""
path = Path(file_path)
# Read the last n lines from the current file
with path.open("r", encoding="utf-8") as f…
LRU Cache with OrderedDict in Python
Implement an LRU cache using collections.OrderedDict to track insertion order and evict the least-recently-used item when capacity is exceeded.
from collections import OrderedDict
class LRUCache:
def __init__(self, capacity):
self.capacity = capacity
self.cache = OrderedDict()
def get(self, key):
if key not in self.cache:
return -1
self.cache.move_to_end(key)
return self.cache[key]
def put(sel…
How to Convert Data Types in Python with a Helper Class
This code defines a beginner-friendly OOP helper class for common data conversions like string to list, list to dict, JSON string, and CSV row, with an advanced subclass for numeric casting.
class DataConverter:
"""A beginner-friendly helper class for common data conversions."""
def __init__(self, data):
self.data = data
def to_list(self):
"""Convert string data (comma-separated) to a list."""
if isinstance(self.data, str):
return [item.strip() for…
Find the Last Index Where a Condition Is True in Python
This code scans a sequence from the end and returns the index of the last element that satisfies a given condition, or -1 if none do.
def last_index_where(sequence, condition):
"""Return the index of the last element in sequence that satisfies condition."""
for i in range(len(sequence) - 1, -1, -1):
if condition(sequence[i]):
return i
return -1
if __name__ == "__main__":
numbers = [1, 4, 7, 2, 9, 5, 8, 3]
is_…
How to Implement a Moving Average from a Data Stream in Python
Implement a MovingAverage class using a deque and running sum to compute the average of the last k values from a continuous data stream.
from collections import deque
class MovingAverage:
def __init__(self, size):
self.size = size
self.queue = deque()
self.window_sum = 0
def next(self, val):
self.queue.append(val)
self.window_sum += val
if len(self.queue) > self.size:
self.window_su…
How to Implement a Recent Counter with a Deque in Python
Implements a RecentCounter class that uses a deque to count ping requests within the last 3000 milliseconds.
from collections import deque
import time
class RecentCounter:
def __init__(self):
self.hits = deque()
def ping(self, t: int) -> int:
self.hits.append(t)
while self.hits and self.hits[0] < t - 3000:
self.hits.popleft()
return len(self.hits)
if __name__ == "__mai…
How to Remove Duplicates in Python Preserving Order
Removes duplicate items from a list while keeping the first occurrence order intact using a set for fast membership checks.
def remove_duplicates_preserving_order(items):
seen = set()
result = []
for item in items:
if item not in seen:
seen.add(item)
result.append(item)
return result
if __name__ == "__main__":
sample = [3, 1, 2, 1, 3, 4, 2, 5]
unique_items = remove_duplicates_preserv…
Pair Elements with Next Cyclic Neighbor in Python
Create tuples pairing every element with its next element, wrapping around to the first element for the last one.
def cyclic_pairs(lst):
if not lst:
return []
return [(lst[i], lst[(i + 1) % len(lst)]) for i in range(len(lst))]
if __name__ == "__main__":
sample = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
result = cyclic_pairs(sample)
print(result)
Circuit Breaker Pattern in Python for LLM API Calls
Implements a circuit breaker class that wraps LLM client calls to fail fast when the service is degrading, then recover automatically after a timeout.
import time
class CircuitBreaker:
def __init__(self, failure_threshold=3, recovery_timeout=5):
self.failure_threshold = failure_threshold
self.recovery_timeout = recovery_timeout
self.failure_count = 0
self.state = "closed"
self.last_failure_time = None
def call(self, …
How to Build an In-Memory Vector Store in Python
Build a lightweight in-memory vector store using a Python dict and cosine similarity for fast nearest-neighbor searches.
import math
from typing import Dict, List, Optional
class InMemoryVectorStore:
def __init__(self) -> None:
self.vectors: Dict[str, List[float]] = {}
self.index: Dict[str, List[str]] = {} # query -> list of ids sorted by similarity
def add(self, vector_id: str, vector: List[float]) -> None:
…
How to Filter Toxic Keywords in Python
Filter toxic keywords from text by replacing each occurrence with asterisks, useful as a basic guardrail for LLM inputs.
TOXIC_KEYWORDS = ["insult", "threat", "hate", "violence", "spam"]
def guardrails_filter(text: str, keywords: list[str] | None = None) -> str:
"""Filter out toxic keywords from the given text.
Args:
text: The input text to filter.
keywords: Optional keyword list. Defaults to TOXIC_KEYWORDS.
…
How to Keep Last K Turns in a Memory Buffer in Python
A TurnBuffer class using deque with maxlen to keep only the most recent k conversation turns in memory for LLM context.
from collections import deque
class TurnBuffer:
def __init__(self, k):
self.k = k
self.turns = deque(maxlen=k)
def add(self, turn):
self.turns.append(turn)
def last_k(self):
return list(self.turns)
if __name__ == "__main__":
buffer = TurnBuffer(3)
buffer.add("tu…
Detect Circular Imports Across Python Projects Automatically
This script walks through all .py files in a directory, builds an import graph, and uses depth-first search to find cycles—printing each circular dependency chain.
import ast
import sys
from pathlib import Path
from collections import defaultdict, deque
def find_imports(filepath):
"""Return set of module names imported by a Python file."""
imports = set()
try:
with open(filepath) as f:
tree = ast.parse(f.read())
except (SyntaxError, UnicodeDe…
Detect Memory Leaks in Python with Weak References
A custom LeakDetector uses weak references and garbage collection to find class instances that survive past expected cleanup in long-running Python applications.
import gc
import sys
import weakref
import time
from collections import defaultdict
class LeakDetector:
def __init__(self):
self._tracked = defaultdict(list)
def track_class(self, cls):
"""Track all instances of a class for leak detection."""
old_init = cls.__init__
def new_in…
Find Dead Code in a Python Project Using AST
Walk a project tree, parse every Python file with ast, and list defined functions that are never called anywhere.
import ast
import os
import sys
def find_dead_code(project_path):
defined_functions = {}
called_functions = set()
for root, dirs, files in os.walk(project_path):
for file in files:
if file.endswith('.py'):
filepath = os.path.join(root, file)
with open(f…
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