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FlaskApp Tutorial

This tutorial was developed with the support of the PDX Code Guild as a seminar project within the "Advanced Portfolio" class.

The Advanced Portfolio class offers students an opportunity to design and implement projects that stretch their current abilities. They are invited to solve a new problem with a familiar technology, for instance, or to solve a classic problem using a new technology, framework or language.

As the instructor, I felt it was important follow the course myself, along with the students. At the beginning of this project I knew very little about the Python language or the popular Python frameworks and libraries, much less about the larger ecosystem of Python-based development. My initial research, however, brought me to more or less directly to Flask.

Like Django, which is taught in the Code Guild's introductory course, Flask is a common framework for full-stack web development. But Django is a framework, whereas Flask is a micro-framework. As demonstrated in the tutorial, a minimal Flask application can be launched with minimal dependencies very quickly. Dependencies are introduced only as needed, for instance when importing Flask Extensions. This is ideal for developing lean applications, and ideal for learning the various required components.