Week 1 - Python Foundations

Python Setup

Data Types and Variables

Control Flow: Logic and Loops

Functions and Modules

Type Hints for Clearer Code

Command-Line Interface Habits

Errors and Debugging

Logging in Python

File Operations

Azure Setup and Account Access

Practice

Week 1 Gotchas & Pitfalls

Week 1 Assignment: The Data Cleaning Pipeline

Career relevance: Week 1 in the NL data job market

Week 1 Glossary

Going Further: Optional Deep Dives

Week 1 Kickoff Slides

Azure Setup and Account Access

Throughout this track, you'll deploy data pipelines to the cloud using Microsoft Azure. This week, we'll just set up your access - actual cloud development starts in later weeks.

<aside> 💡 Student accounts have already been created for you in the Azure portal. You don't need to create a new Azure account or use a credit card.

</aside>

Logging Into Azure

Step 1: Get your credentials

Your instructor will provide you with:

Step 2: First login

  1. Go to https://portal.azure.com
  2. Enter your provided email address
  3. Enter the temporary password
  4. You'll be prompted to create a new password

Step 3: Set up Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

Azure requires MFA for security:

  1. Download the Microsoft Authenticator app on your phone
  1. Follow the on-screen prompts to link your account
  2. Scan the QR code with the Authenticator app

<aside> ⚠️ Keep your Authenticator app! You'll need it every time you log in. If you lose access to it, contact your instructor immediately.

</aside>

Step 4: Verify access

Once logged in, you should see the Azure Portal home page:

  1. Click on Resource groups in the left sidebar
  2. You should see at least one resource group assigned to you
  3. This confirms your account is set up correctly

Install the Azure CLI

The Azure CLI (az) is a command-line tool for managing Azure resources. You will use it from Week 5 onward. Install it now so it is ready when you need it.

macOS:

brew install azure-cli

Windows:

Download and run the installer from https://learn.microsoft.com/cli/azure/install-azure-cli-windows, or use winget:

winget install Microsoft.AzureCLI

Linux (Ubuntu/Debian):

curl -sL <https://aka.ms/InstallAzureCLIDeb> | sudo bash

After installation, verify it works:

az version

Then log in with the same student account you just set up:

az login

This opens a browser window. After you sign in, the CLI is ready.

GitHub Education Benefits

If you have a GitHub Student account (from the Core program), you may have additional Azure credits:

  1. Go to https://education.github.com/pack
  2. Look for "Microsoft Azure" in the benefits list
  3. Follow the link to activate free Azure credits

<aside> 💡 The student accounts provided by your instructor are sufficient for this track. GitHub Education credits are a bonus if you want to experiment on your own.

</aside>

Troubleshooting

Can't log in?

MFA not working?

No resource groups visible?

<aside> 🤓 Curious Geek: From Windows Azure to just "Azure"

Microsoft launched the platform in February 2010 under the name Windows Azure, framing it as a cloud companion to Windows Server. By 2014 the platform had become a serious AWS competitor and was running heavy Linux workloads, so Microsoft renamed it to Microsoft Azure to drop the "Windows-only" connotation. The name change tracked a deeper shift: Azure today runs more Linux VMs than Windows ones, ships a first-class managed Postgres (which you use later in the track), and embraces open-source data tooling (Spark, Airflow, dbt) far more than the Windows-Server lineage would suggest. The "Microsoft" prefix is usually dropped in casual usage, hence the azure.microsoft.com URL but everyone just says "Azure".

</aside>

Cheatsheet

Extra reading

Next up: 🛠️ Practice, where you put the week's Python skills (variables, functions, type hints, logging, file I/O) to work on five short exercises before the assignment.