Path Handling

🗺️ Path Handling in Python: Your Map to Finding Files!

The Big Picture: What Are Paths?

Imagine your computer is a giant library. Every book (file) lives on a specific shelf, in a specific room, in a specific building.

A path is like the address that tells you exactly where to find that book!

/home/user/documents/story.txt

This says: “Go to home, then user, then documents, and find story.txt!”

🏛️ Two Ways to Handle Paths

Python gives you two tools for working with paths:

Think of it like this:

• os.path = Using separate tools (hammer, screwdriver…)
• pathlib = Using a Swiss Army knife (all-in-one!)

📂 Part 1: os.path Functions

The os.path module has simple functions to work with paths.

Joining Paths Together

Never glue paths with +! Use join() instead.

import os

# The RIGHT way
path = os.path.join(
    "home",
    "user",
    "music"
)
# Result: "home/user/music"

Why? Different computers use different separators (/ vs \). Python handles it for you!

Checking If Something Exists

# Does this file exist?
os.path.exists("story.txt")
# Returns: True or False

# Is it a file?
os.path.isfile("story.txt")
# Returns: True or False

# Is it a folder?
os.path.isdir("documents")
# Returns: True or False

Breaking Apart a Path

path = "/home/user/photo.jpg"

# Get just the filename
os.path.basename(path)
# Returns: "photo.jpg"

# Get just the folder
os.path.dirname(path)
# Returns: "/home/user"

# Split into folder + file
os.path.split(path)
# Returns: ("/home/user", "photo.jpg")

# Get extension
os.path.splitext("photo.jpg")
# Returns: ("photo", ".jpg")

graph TD
    A["/home/user/photo.jpg"] --> B["dirname"]
    A --> C["basename"]
    B --> D["/home/user"]
    C --> E["photo.jpg"]
    E --> F["splitext"]
    F --> G["photo"]
    F --> H[".jpg"]

Getting the Full Path

# Turn relative path into full path
os.path.abspath("story.txt")
# Returns: "/home/user/story.txt"

🔮 Part 2: pathlib Module

pathlib is the modern, magical way to handle paths!

Instead of calling functions, you create a Path object that knows how to do everything.

Creating a Path

from pathlib import Path

# Create a path
my_path = Path("documents/story.txt")

# Current folder
here = Path(".")

# Home folder
home = Path.home()

# Current working directory
cwd = Path.cwd()

Why pathlib is Amazing

With os.path, you write:

import os
result = os.path.join(
    os.path.dirname(file),
    "new.txt"
)

With pathlib, you write:

result = file.parent / "new.txt"

So much cleaner!

🎮 Part 3: Path Object Operations

Path objects have superpowers! Here’s what they can do:

The Magic / Operator

from pathlib import Path

base = Path("home")
full = base / "user" / "docs"
# Result: home/user/docs

The / joins paths automatically!

Getting Path Parts

p = Path("/home/user/music/song.mp3")

p.name        # "song.mp3"
p.stem        # "song" (no extension)
p.suffix      # ".mp3"
p.parent      # Path("/home/user/music")
p.parts       # ("/", "home", "user"...)

graph TD
    P["Path#40;'/home/user/song.mp3'#41;"] --> N[".name"]
    P --> S[".stem"]
    P --> X[".suffix"]
    P --> R[".parent"]
    N --> N1["song.mp3"]
    S --> S1["song"]
    X --> X1[".mp3"]
    R --> R1["/home/user"]

Checking Things

p = Path("story.txt")

p.exists()    # Does it exist?
p.is_file()   # Is it a file?
p.is_dir()    # Is it a folder?

Changing Parts

p = Path("photo.jpg")

# Change extension
p.with_suffix(".png")
# Result: photo.png

# Change name
p.with_name("image.jpg")
# Result: image.jpg

Reading & Writing

p = Path("story.txt")

# Read entire file
text = p.read_text()

# Write to file
p.write_text("Hello World!")

🏠 Part 4: Directory Operations

Now let’s explore folders (directories)!

Creating Folders

from pathlib import Path

# Create a folder
Path("new_folder").mkdir()

# Create nested folders
Path("a/b/c").mkdir(
    parents=True,    # Create a, b too
    exist_ok=True    # Don't error if exists
)

Listing Contents

folder = Path("documents")

# List everything
for item in folder.iterdir():
    print(item)

# Find all .txt files
for txt in folder.glob("*.txt"):
    print(txt)

# Find in subfolders too
for txt in folder.rglob("*.txt"):
    print(txt)

graph TD
    A["folder.iterdir#40;#41;"] --> B["Lists all items"]
    C["folder.glob#40;'*.txt'#41;"] --> D["Finds matching files"]
    E["folder.rglob#40;'*.txt'#41;"] --> F["Searches everywhere!"]

The Glob Patterns

Removing Things

# Delete a file
Path("old.txt").unlink()

# Delete empty folder
Path("empty_folder").rmdir()

🎯 Quick Comparison

🚀 Pro Tips

1. Always use pathlib for new projects
2. Never hardcode / or \ - let Python choose
3. Use exist_ok=True when creating folders
4. Use rglob() to search everywhere at once

🎪 Your New Superpowers!

You can now:

• ✅ Build paths that work on any computer
• ✅ Find files and folders easily
• ✅ Read and write files with one line
• ✅ Search for files with patterns
• ✅ Create and organize folders

Go explore your file system with confidence! 🗂️