Installation of NumPy

Before working with NumPy, you need to install this package on your machine or workspace.

You can install NumPy using pip, which is a package manager for Python. Here are the steps to install NumPy using pip:

1. Open your command prompt or terminal.

2. Check if pip is already installed by typing the following command:

pip --version 

If pip is not installed, you can install it by following the instructions on this page: https://pip.pypa.io/en/stable/installing/

 
3. Once pip is installed, you can install NumPy by typing the following command:

pip install NumPy

4. Wait for the installation to complete. This may take a few minutes depending on your internet speed.

5. Once the installation is complete, you can verify that NumPy is installed by opening a Python interpreter and typing the following commands:

import numpy
print(numpy.__version__)

This should output the version of NumPy that you just installed.

That's it! You now have NumPy installed on your system and you can start using it in your Python programs.

 Why NumPy as np?

NumPy is often imported into a Python program using the alias "np". This is a convention that is commonly used in the scientific computing community, and it has several benefits:

1. Readability: By using "np" as the alias for NumPy, it makes it clear that the code is using NumPy functions and arrays. This makes the code more readable and easier to understand for other developers who are familiar with the NumPy library.

2. Consistency: The convention of using "np" as the alias for NumPy is widely adopted across the scientific computing community. By using the same alias, it promotes consistency across different codebases and makes it easier to share code between projects.

3. Convenience: Using a short and easy-to-remember alias like "np" makes it faster to type NumPy functions and arrays in your code. This can be especially useful when you are working with large datasets and need to type a lot of code.

Overall, using "np" as the alias for NumPy is a widely adopted convention that promotes readability, consistency, and convenience in scientific computing.