tools

http://ipython.scipy.org/

Python can be run from the interpreter, meaning you can open up a shell window and type in code in real time and it executes them as you enter things. This allows you to test out snippets of code with simple test cases as you work.

Not sure how the syntax for something that COM call works? Just pop open the interpreter and experiment away until you figure it out. Need to do operations on a data set and plot graphs and such while you work to figure out what's going on? Just import the modules you're using and play with the data interactively.

Python (http://www.python.org) is a general purpose programming language. To be very specific about it, it's an interpreted scripting language. It's also the preferred language of the authors at NumberGrinder.

What we like about Python so much is that the syntax is clear, the modules powerful, it supports different styles of programming, and in general it makes programming fun and easy for us. While people have different preferences for languages, and no one language is suitable for all tasks, Python is the first thing we reach for when we need to do some programming work.

Excel is the de facto data analysis tool in the business world. At the Grinder, we often refer to it as "the swiss army chainsaw". It's got plenty of limitations and quirks, it's not the most elegant tool around, and there's plenty of ways, but you can get a huge amount of work done with it despite all its quirks.