python 3 IDLE progressbar/loadingbar

Question

I am using the standard IDE that comes with python3.

I would like to make use of the backspace function (\b) within the ILE in order to create a NICE LOOKING progressbar. Even a simple percentage counter requires the backspace function.

When I run the script I get a wonderfully useless symbol instead of a backspace.

Questions:

1. How can I use \b in the IDE

2. How else can I make a progress bar that would use something similar to a backspace (in other words, I don't want a lame eg: loading:##########################

I've read threads on this and the best solution I've heard involves actually re-writing the IDE base code which is just an tkinter app. I just don't understand why this would be required ... did they think it was a stupid feature to have a function like this in the standard python IDE? Mind-baffling

Answer 1

It sounds to me like you want a 'GUI' (often pronounced 'gooey') widget. That stands for Graphical User Interface. Python normally runs in a Text-Base Interface aka command-line interface (CLI). CLI applications are the sort of boring 1980s style terminal things that they had around before they invented the computer mouse and invented better graphics devices. If you want a progress bar to look modern (my interpretation of 'not lame'), you will have to create a GUI. Python can do this too, if you use special tools. You need a GUI framework. Some good GUI frameworks are listed here. Different frameworks are like different tools. I would recommend using tk and ttk for starters (TKinter and themed TKinter), and you can get that version of the progressbar here.

So actually implementing GUIs is always a mess. It is really complicated and very difficult to program. That is the value of the boring 1980s style CLI terminal applications is that they are much simpler to program.

If you still decide you want a GUI app, you should check out a tutorial or maybe even a GUI-builder. See this stack overflow thread and this website.