Where to get help#

If you are working on Python it is very possible you will come across an issue where you need some assistance to solve it (this happens to core developers all the time).

Should you require help, there are a variety of options available to seek assistance. If the question involves process or tool usage then please check the rest of this guide first as it should answer your question.

Discourse#

Python has a hosted Discourse instance at discuss.python.org. This forum has many different categories, most of which are open for all users to read and post. Those particularly relevant for help contributing to Python itself include:

Core Development for most general questions and help
Ideas to discuss new ideas for the Python language
Core Workflow for questions about the dev infrastructure and bots

Mailing lists#

Further options for seeking assistance include the python-ideas and python-dev mailing lists, which correspond to the Ideas and Core Development Discourse categories, respectively. The Discourse categories are generally more active and are the preferred venue for new discussions, but the mailing lists are still monitored and responded to. These mailing lists are for questions involving the development of Python, not for development with Python.

Ask #python-dev#

If you are comfortable with IRC you can try asking on #python-dev (on the Libera.Chat network). Typically there are a number of experienced developers, ranging from triagers to core developers, who can answer questions about developing for Python. As with the mailing lists, #python-dev is for questions involving the development of Python whereas #python is for questions concerning development with Python.

Note

You may not be able to access the history of this channel, so it cannot be used as a “knowledge base” of sorts.

Core mentorship#

If you are interested in improving Python and contributing to its development, but don’t yet feel entirely comfortable with the public channels mentioned above, Python Mentors are here to help you. Python is fortunate to have a community of volunteer core developers willing to mentor anyone wishing to contribute code, work on bug fixes or improve documentation. Everyone is welcomed and encouraged to contribute.

Core developers office hours#

Several core developers have set aside time to host mentorship office hours. During the office hour, core developers are available to help contributors with our process, answer questions, and help lower the barrier of contributing and becoming Python core developers.

The PSF’s code of conduct applies for interactions with core developers during office hours.

Core Developer	Schedule	Details
Zachary Ware	See details link	Schedule at https://calendly.com/zware

File a bug#

If you strongly suspect you have stumbled on a bug (be it in the build process, in the test suite, or in other areas), then open an issue on the issue tracker. As with every bug report it is strongly advised that you detail which conditions triggered it (including the OS name and version, and what you were trying to do), as well as the exact error message you encountered.