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How to Align Text in Two Columns with ljust in Python
Format pairs of strings into two aligned columns using ljust padding.
items = [
("apple", "red"),
("banana", "yellow"),
("cherry", "dark red"),
("date", "brown")
]
col1_width = max(len(name) for name, _ in items) + 2
for name, color in items:
print(name.ljust(col1_width) + color)
How to Transpose a Matrix in Python (List of Lists)
Swap rows and columns of a 2D list using nested loops to produce a transposed matrix.
def transpose(matrix):
# Number of rows and columns in the original matrix
rows = len(matrix)
cols = len(matrix[0]) if rows > 0 else 0
# Create a new matrix with dimensions swapped
result = []
for j in range(cols):
new_row = []
for i in range(rows):
new_row.appe…
Set Matrix Zeroes in Python: Markers List Grid Demo
Given a matrix, this code finds all rows and columns that contain a zero and sets every element in those rows and columns to zero, using boolean marker arrays.
def set_zeroes(matrix):
rows, cols = len(matrix), len(matrix[0])
row_markers = [False] * rows
col_markers = [False] * cols
# First pass: record which rows and columns contain zeros
for i in range(rows):
for j in range(cols):
if matrix[i][j] == 0:
row_markers[i] …
Validate Sudoku Board Rows Columns and Boxes in Python
Validate a 9x9 Sudoku board by checking that each row, column, and 3x3 box contains the numbers 1 through 9 exactly once.
def validate_sudoku(board):
def is_valid_group(group):
return sorted(group) == list(range(1, 10))
def get_columns():
return [[board[r][c] for r in range(9)] for c in range(9)]
def get_boxes():
boxes = []
for box_row in range(0, 9, 3):
for box_col in range(0, 9,…
Automatically Generate Charts from CSV Files with One Command
Read a CSV file with headers, extract the first two numeric columns, and save a matplotlib line chart as a PNG image.
import csv
import sys
from pathlib import Path
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
def generate_chart(csv_path: str) -> None:
"""Read a CSV file with headers and plot the first two numeric columns."""
data = []
with open(csv_path, 'r', newline='') as f:
reader = csv.reader(f)
headers = next(re…
Build a Python Utility That Detects Duplicate Records Across Multiple Excel Sheets
A Python utility that uses pandas to find overlapping records across different Excel sheets based on specified key columns.
import pandas as pd
from pathlib import Path
def find_duplicate_records_across_sheets(file_path: str, key_columns: list, sheet_names: list) -> dict:
"""
Detect duplicate records across multiple Excel sheets based on specified key columns.
Args:
file_path: Path to the Excel file
key_co…
Check Null Rate Threshold in PySpark DataFrame
This PySpark code checks the null rate of specified DataFrame columns against a threshold and returns violations.
from pyspark.sql import SparkSession
from pyspark.sql.functions import col, sum, count
def check_null_rate(df, threshold=0.2, columns=None):
"""
Check null rate for specified columns (or all) against a threshold.
Returns columns that exceed the threshold.
"""
cols = columns or df.columns
total…
How to Unpivot Wide to Long with pandas melt in Python
This code demonstrates how to use pandas.melt to unpivot a wide DataFrame into a tidy long format, converting subject columns into rows.
import pandas as pd
# Sample wide-format data
df_wide = pd.DataFrame({
'id': [1, 2, 3],
'name': ['Alice', 'Bob', 'Charlie'],
'math': [90, 85, 95],
'science': [80, 92, 88]
})
print("Original wide DataFrame:")
print(df_wide)
# Melt: unpivot subject columns into rows
df_long = pd.melt(
df_wide,
…
Union Multiple DataFrames with Aligned Columns in Python
Concatenate DataFrames with different columns, aligning them and filling missing values with NaN using pandas concat.
import pandas as pd
from io import StringIO
# Sample dataframes with different columns
df1 = pd.DataFrame({
'id': [1, 2, 3],
'name': ['Alice', 'Bob', 'Charlie'],
'age': [25, 30, 35]
})
df2 = pd.DataFrame({
'id': [4, 5],
'name': ['Diana', 'Eve'],
'city': ['NYC', 'LA']
})
df3 = pd.DataFrame({
…
How to Filter and Project Spark DataFrames with PySpark SQL
Simulate a SQL SELECT with WHERE using PySpark DataFrame select and filter to project columns and apply conditions.
from pyspark.sql import SparkSession
from pyspark.sql.functions import col
spark = SparkSession.builder.appName("QueryFilterMock").master("local[2]").getOrCreate()
data = [
("Alice", 28, "Engineering"),
("Bob", 35, "Sales"),
("Carol", 32, "Engineering"),
("David", 25, "Marketing"),
("Eve", 29, "E…
How to Implement row_number Window Function in Python
This code implements a SQL-style ROW_NUMBER() window function in pure Python, partitioning rows by a set of columns and ranking them within each partition by an ordered set of columns.
from collections import defaultdict
import itertools
def row_number(rows, partition_by, order_by):
partitions = defaultdict(list)
for index, row in enumerate(rows):
key = tuple(row[col] for col in partition_by)
partitions[key].append((index, row))
result = []
for key in partitions:
…
How to Mock DataFrame Schema Columns in Python
Create an empty pandas DataFrame with only the specified column names to mock a schema before any data is loaded.
import pandas as pd
def mock_schema(columns):
return pd.DataFrame(columns=columns)
if __name__ == "__main__":
cols = ["name", "age", "city"]
df = mock_schema(cols)
print(df)
print(f"Columns: {list(df.columns)}, Shape: {df.shape}")
How to select specific columns in Python with SQLite
A reusable function that connects to a SQLite database and returns only the requested columns from a given table.
import sqlite3
def select_pruned_columns(db_path, table, columns):
with sqlite3.connect(db_path) as conn:
cursor = conn.cursor()
col_list = ", ".join(columns)
query = f"SELECT {col_list} FROM {table}"
return cursor.execute(query).fetchall()
if __name__ == "__main__":
conn = sq…
Modeling a Hive Metastore Table Schema in Python
A dataclass that mimics a Hive metastore table schema—columns, partition keys, storage format, and location—with helper methods for description and mutation.
from dataclasses import dataclass, field
from typing import Dict, List, Optional
@dataclass
class HiveTable:
"""Simple mock of a Hive metastore table schema."""
name: str
database: str = "default"
columns: List[Dict[str, str]] = field(default_factory=list)
partition_keys: List[Dict[str, str]] = f…
Composite index leftmost prefix in Python
Simulate a composite index in SQLite and check whether query columns match the leftmost prefix rule for index usage.
import sqlite3
def get_indexed_columns(table_name):
"""Simulate a composite index by reading column names that start with 'idx_'."""
conn = sqlite3.connect(":memory:")
conn.execute(f"CREATE TABLE {table_name} (id INTEGER, idx_col1 TEXT, idx_col2 INTEGER, other TEXT)")
conn.execute(f"CREATE INDEX idx_…
How to Avoid SELECT * and Mock SQL Column Queries in Python
Mock a SQLite cursor to verify that queries specify explicit columns instead of using SELECT *.
import sqlite3
from unittest.mock import Mock, patch
def get_user_emails(connection):
"""Fetch only the required columns instead of SELECT *."""
cursor = connection.cursor()
cursor.execute("SELECT email FROM users")
return [row[0] for row in cursor.fetchall()]
def test_get_user_emails_specific_colu…
How to Create a Covering Index with INCLUDE Columns in Python
Create a covering index with INCLUDE columns in SQLite from Python and inspect the query plan to confirm the index covers the query.
import sqlite3
def create_covering_index_mock():
conn = sqlite3.connect(":memory:")
cursor = conn.cursor()
cursor.execute("""
CREATE TABLE employees (
id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY,
name TEXT,
department TEXT,
salary INTEGER
)
""")
employe…
How to enforce a unique index constraint in Python
Mock a database unique index in Python that rejects duplicate rows based on one or more columns.
class MockIndex:
def __init__(self, columns):
self.columns = columns
self._values = set()
def insert(self, row):
key = tuple(row[col] for col in self.columns)
if key in self._values:
raise ValueError(f"Duplicate key {key} for columns {self.columns}")
self._v…
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