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Files & data

Read and write files safely; parse JSON, CSV, and common text formats.

7 matches
Files & data medium

Build a Personal Work Hours Tracker in Python

A Python class that logs daily work hours to a CSV file and produces a weekly summary of total hours worked.

work-hours time-tracking csv
Python
import csv
from pathlib import Path
from datetime import datetime, date

class WorkHoursTracker:
    def __init__(self, file_path="work_hours.csv"):
        self.file_path = Path(file_path)
        if not self.file_path.exists():
            with open(self.file_path, "w", newline="") as f:
                writer = csv…
60 0 Open
Files & data medium

Calculate Working Hours Between Two Dates in Python

Compute total business hours (Mon-Fri, 09:00-17:00) between two datetime objects, excluding weekends and non-working hours.

datetime working hours business hours
Python
from datetime import datetime, timedelta

def work_hours_between(start: datetime, end: datetime) -> float:
    """Calculate total working hours between two datetimes (Mon-Fri, 09:00-17:00)."""
    def is_workday(d: datetime) -> bool:
        return d.weekday() < 5
    
    total_hours = 0.0
    current = start
    whi…
48 0 Open
Files & data easy

Generate Timesheet Reports from Daily Logs in Python

Aggregate daily log entries by project and produce a formatted timesheet report using Python's standard library.

timesheet reporting aggregation
Python
import json
from pathlib import Path
from collections import defaultdict

def generate_timesheet_report(daily_logs: list[dict]) -> str:
    """
    Generate a timesheet report from daily log entries.
    
    Args:
        daily_logs: List of dicts with 'date', 'project', 'hours', 'task' keys
    
    Returns:
       …
45 0 Open
Files & data easy

How to Archive Old Files by Age in Python

Move files older than a specified number of days from a source directory to an archive directory using Python's pathlib and shutil modules.

file-archiving pathlib shutil
Python
import os
import shutil
import time
from pathlib import Path

def archive_old_files(source_dir: str, archive_dir: str, days_old: int) -> None:
    cutoff_time = time.time() - (days_old * 86400)  # 86400 seconds in a day
    archive_path = Path(archive_dir)
    archive_path.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)

    for i…
47 0 Open
Files & data easy

How to Build a Dated Backup Filename with Timestamp in Python

Generate unique backup filenames with a timestamp using Python's datetime module and f-strings.

datetime backup filenames
Python
from datetime import datetime

def build_backup_filename(base_name: str, extension: str = "bak") -> str:
    """Generate a dated backup filename with timestamp."""
    timestamp = datetime.now().strftime("%Y%m%d_%H%M%S")
    return f"{base_name}_{timestamp}.{extension}"

if __name__ == "__main__":
    backup_file = bu…
12 0 Open
Files & data easy

How to Copy a File with shutil.copy2 in Python

Copy a file while preserving metadata like timestamps and permissions using Python's shutil.copy2 and pathlib.

shutil file-copy pathlib
Python
import shutil
from pathlib import Path

source = Path("sample.txt")
destination = Path("sample_copy.txt")

source.write_text("Hello, PythonSkillset!")

if __name__ == "__main__":
    shutil.copy2(source, destination)
    copied = destination.read_text()
    print(f"Copied content: {copied}")
    print(f"Source exists:…
11 0 Open
Files & data easy

How to List File Metadata in Python

This code walks a directory and returns a list of JSON-ready dicts with each file's name, size, and modification time.

pathlib file-metadata filesystem
Python
from pathlib import Path
import json

def format_files_data(directory_path):
    """Return a list of JSON-serializable dicts with file metadata."""
    base = Path(directory_path)
    if not base.is_dir():
        raise ValueError(f"Not a directory: {directory_path}")

    files_data = []
    for file_path in base.ite…
12 0 Open

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