idle is freeeasy to useportableand automatically available on most platforms generally recommend it to python newcomers because it simplifies some startup details and does not assume prior experience with system command lines howeverit is somewhat limited compared to more advanced commercial idesand may seem heavier than command line to some to help you avoid some common pitfallshere is list of issues that idle beginners should bear in mindyou must add pyexplicitly when saving your files mentioned this when talking about files in generalbut it' common idle stumbling blockespecially for windows users idle does not automatically add py extension to filenames when files are saved be careful to type the py extension yourself when saving file for the first time if you don'twhile you will be able to run your file from idle (and system command lines)you will not be able to import it either interactively or from other modules run scripts by selecting run-run module in text edit windowsnot by interactive imports and reloads earlier in this we saw that it' possible to run file by importing it interactively howeverthis scheme can grow complex because it requires you to manually reload files after changes by contrastusing the run-run module menu option in idle always runs the most current version of your filejust like running it using system shell command line idle also prompts you to save your file firstif needed (another common mistake outside idleyou need to reload only modules being tested interactively like system shell command linesidle' run-run module menu option always runs the current version of both the top-level file and any modules it imports because of thisrun-run module eliminates common confusions surrounding imports you need to reload only modules that you are importing and testing interactively in idle if you choose to use the import and reload technique instead of run-run moduleremember that you can use the alt- /alt- key combinations to recall prior commands you can customize idle to change the text fonts and colors in idleselect the configure option in the options menu of any idle window you can also customize key combination actionsindentation settingsautocompletionsand moresee idle' help pull-down menu for more hints there is currently no clear-screen option in idle this seems to be frequent request (perhaps because it' an option available in similar ides)and it might be added eventually todaythoughthere is no way to clear the interactive window' text if you want the window' text to go awayyou can either press and hold the enter keyor type python loop to print series of blank lines (nobody really uses the latter techniqueof coursebut it sounds more high-tech than pressing the enter key! how you run programs