Python File Open
We are going to talk about Python file open with examples today, to better serve the needs of the learners.
Open a File on the Server
When we talk about Python file open, assume we have the following file, located in the same folder as Python:
demofile.txt
Example
To open the file, use the built-in open() function.
The Python file open open() function returns a file object, which has a read() method for reading the content of the file:
Example:
If the file is located in a different location, you will have to specify the file path, like this:
Open a file on a different location:
Example
Read Only Parts of the File
By default the read() method returns the whole text, but you can also specify how many characters you want to return when it comes to Python file open:
Return the 5 first characters of the file:
Example
Read Lines
You can return one line by using the readline() method:
Read one line of the file:
Example
By calling readline() two times, you can read the
two first lines:
Read two lines of the file:
Example
By looping through the lines of the file, you can read the whole file, line by line:
Loop through the file line by line:
Example
Close Files
It is a good practice to always close the file when you are done with it.
Close the file when you are finish with it:
Example
Note: You should always close your files, in some cases, due to buffering, changes made to a file may not show until you close the file.
Python File Open Attribute Uses
Following are some common uses of the open() function for file handling in Python:
- You can use
open()to open a file in read mode ('r') and read its contents. This allows you to read data from files, process it, perform analysis, or display it to the user. open()can be used to open a file in write mode ('w') or append mode ('a') to write data to files. You can write new data to a file, overwrite its existing content, or append new content to the end of the file.- By specifying the file mode as
'rb'or'wb',open()can be used to read or write binary files. This is useful for working with non-text files such as images, audio, video, or other binary data. open()allows you to specify the encoding of a text file using theencodingparameter. This is important when working with files that have non-standard or non-ASCII characters, ensuring that the file is read or written correctly.- With the
open()function, you can set the position within a file using theseek()method. This allows you to move the file pointer to a specific location and read or write data from that position.
