Blog listing

Notes on Python and AI for curious people at every level.

Writing from Carol Willing of Willing Consulting on Python, open source, data science, and AI.

three panel image showing ai as a wizard, a bucket of AI slop, and ai tools to help humans

Reflections on PyCon US 2026 and AI Tools
tech
python
AI
PyCon

PyCon AI track and discussions on pragmatic workflows using AI tools, keynotes, and the importance of community in Python.

Carol Willing
2026-05-24

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Experimenting with napari and a remote GPU vm
tech
napari
python
visualization
GPU
remote

Searching for a cost-effective remote GPU vm to run napari for exploration and development.

Carol Willing
2025-05-29

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Setting up napari using containers - Part 1
tech
napari
python
visualization
containers

What I learned playing with napari and containers.

Carol Willing
2024-11-19

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Setting up a napari development environment (M1 MacOS)
tech
napari
python
visualization

What I learned setting up a napari development environment on my M1 Mac.

Carol Willing
2024-11-11

PyLadies Snowboard in my office

Thankful for PyLadies Conferences
tech
pyladies
python
conference
global

Empower the current and next generation of Pythonistas

Carol Willing
2023-11-20

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Let’s make something Shiny and Interactive
tech
python
jupyter
quarto
visualization

Interactive maps and plots in Quarto with ipyleaflet and matplotlib, straight from a Jupyter kernel.

Carol Willing
2023-06-04

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AI Ethics, Posts, and a Madlib
AI
ethics
madlib
research
Instructions: Fill in the blanks with the appropriate word types (noun, verb, adjective, etc.) to complete the AI ethics-themed story.
Carol Willing
2023-06-04

Migrating to a Quarto website and blog
tech
quarto
markdown
lua
site
blog

Why and how I migrated my website and blog to Quarto

Carol Willing
2023-06-03

Serving on the Inaugural Python Steering Council
tech
python
steering-council
governance

A Closer Look – Encouraging people to run for the Python Steering Council and offer insight on being a Steering Council member.

Carol Willing
2019-11-02

Trying the Python 3.8 beta with Jupyter Notebook
tech
python
jupyter
notebook

Try out Python 3.8.0b4 with Jupyter Notebook on macOS

Carol Willing
2019-09-19

Learning git: Locations, Remotes, and GitHub
tech
git
learning
github

Where is code located? The basics of remotes for new git and GitHub users.

Carol Willing
2019-07-01

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Cool Stuff with Jupyter and IPython
tech
jupyter
learning
ipython

Here are some resources that I have found helpful when learning Jupyter or IPython.

Carol Willing
2018-10-01

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Getting (re)Started - Resources
tech
learning
python
returning

I’m often asked what resources would be helpful when returning to tech after an absence or moving into tech from another career.

Carol Willing
2018-09-30

Sunrise and a New Semester
tech
circuitpython
jupyter
mu
nteract
jose
jupyterhub
binder
learning

Sunrise signals a new day and new opportunities. I’m taking on a new challenge over the next six months. In some ways, I will be changing my focus from developing Jupyter…

Carol Willing
2018-08-08

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Snakes and Planets
tech
psf
board
governance
As I get ready to step back from being a Director of the Python Software Foundation, I’m taking a moment to reflect back on the past two years on the PSF Board and open…
Carol Willing
2017-06-04

What’s a Fab Lab?
tech
arduino
community
education
fablab
open-source
outreach
python
raspberrypi
build
learn
A Fab Lab is a community space for people to gather and fabricate their dreams and ideas.
Carol Willing
2015-08-09

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Change, community, and compassion
tech
Today, I reflect on a life changing event. For a few days, we came together from around the world to form a community to share our thoughts on change and our compassion for…
Carol Willing
2015-06-09

Mission moment: Mark Hammond, PSF Distinguished Service Award Recipient
tech
Source: Mark Hammond and Andy Robinson, Python Programming on Win32, O’Reilly & Associates, Inc., 2000.
Carol Willing
2015-06-09

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Play it again pyvideo.org!
tech
Yesterday, the Python Software Foundation posted results of the election for the Board of Directors 2015-2016 term. Thank you to the many individuals that participated and…
Carol Willing
2015-06-03

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Mentors, music, and motivation
tech
As I get ready to attend the Write/Speak/Code conference, I’m doing more reflecting on the past few months than packing for the trip. While I would like to leave San Diego…
Carol Willing
2015-03-18

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Building a better community
tech
Watching someone bring their idea to life is an amazing reward.
Carol Willing
2015-03-04

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Security at the Seams: What’s a Software Development Manager to Do?
tech

Economics of Cybersecurity Reflection Essay

Carol Willing
2015-03-02

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Decorators visualized
tech
Decorators make code more readable. When learning how decorators work, it’s easy to get confused. When teaching decorators, students often ask “but how does it work” and…
Carol Willing
2015-02-18

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I am not a tree. I am a person. I speak for me.
tech
For years, I enjoyed reading Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax to my children. Today, a wise quote from the book pops into my head when I read a twitter post by or about Mr. Wadhwa.
Carol Willing
2015-02-03

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Music, Data Science, and Community - Poster at PyCon 2014
tech
I had the pleasure of sharing my love of music and programming last spring at PyCon 2014. I enjoyed presenting a poster about music21, a computer aided musicology framework.…
Carol Willing
2015-01-21

SciPy 2014: A mother-daughter collaboration
tech
I had the pleasure of sharing SciPy 2014 with my daughter. Well, the chance to share SciPy 2014 with a more grown up version of my daughter than the three year old girl…
Carol Willing
2014-07-14

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Security and Cryptography Gems
tech
I find cryptography and security fascinating. My current knowledge is limited to some math reading on cryptography years ago and some journal articles in IEEE, ACM, and…
Carol Willing
2014-06-27

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Monday Mention: Newcomers to Open Source Development
tech
Are you new to open source?
Carol Willing
2014-03-03

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Saturday Sharing: Some git goodness
tech
Version control and sharing source code help developers hone their craft. If you are new to developing software, learning git can seem a confusing task. In many ways, git is…
Carol Willing
2014-03-01

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Thoughts for Tuesday: Two Django-licious Scoops
tech
Audrey Roy and Daniel Greenfeld have recently released Two Scoops of Django: Best Practices For Django 1.6 (Two Scoops Press). Besides helpful books, Audrey and Daniel give…
Carol Willing
2014-02-18

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Weekend Wisdom: “Python Pocket Reference” by Mark Lutz; O’Reilly Media
tech
As someone who teaches beginning Pythonistas to l1earn to program, this updated edition of the Python Pocket Reference is worth keeping close at hand.
Carol Willing
2014-02-07

Weekend Sharing: Installing Inkscape on a recent Mac
tech
At a recent FabLab San Diego meetup, I was helping others to install Inkscape. I wrote some tips down from my install experience. Here’s a link to the PDF. I hope these…
Carol Willing
2013-12-22

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What can you do in 8 minutes? The importance of allies in advocacy
tech
8 minutes and 18 seconds. It’s a small amount of time. Yet, Laila Al-Shamma uses it wisely. Recently, Laila Al-Shamma was honored by GLSEN as the 2013 Student Advocate of…
Carol Willing
2013-10-22

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Weekend Whimsy: String theory, The Hics, and Candy Chang
tech
I’m keeping it short this morning while I write a little software. I’m enjoying some good music, art, and community. Enjoy! I’ve been singing this gem from A Capella…
Carol Willing
2013-09-29

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Thoughts for Tuesday: Tea Leaves
tech
It’s been a week.
Carol Willing
2013-09-24

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Weekend Wisdom: Distributed Network Data
tech
Distributed Network Data by Alasdair Allan and Kipp Bradford (O’Reilly Media)
Carol Willing
2013-08-24

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Moving Forward Monday: Meaningful, Mindful, Mental Health Resources
tech
Note: The links to other sites and this post may have triggers to those healing.
Carol Willing
2013-08-19

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Learn: MIT OpenCourseWare OCW
tech
Donate to MIT OCW.
Carol Willing
2013-08-13

Carol's mom

Moving Forward Monday: Mountains or Molehills
tech
I recently moved my mom into a nursing home. My dad, who has been her steady caregiver for many years, had made the decision that they needed more care and support during my…
Carol Willing
2013-08-12

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Moving Forward Monday: The Ada Initiative
tech
If you haven’t heard yet about the Ada Initiative, I highly recommend that you check out the good work that they are doing for women and men in open source technology
Carol Willing
2013-03-18

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Learning and Teaching Courses in an Open Environment - XBlock
tech
Kudos for edX opening the technical insides of its very successful platform for development of content rich learning and course delivery. XBlock, the API, is available for…
Carol Willing
2013-03-15

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International Women’s Day 2013
tech
people
What a great way to wrap up a week. There has been so much going on this week about women and girls in technology. Great work and passion by so many people - female or male. …
Carol Willing
2013-03-08

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Sharing the Knowledge
tech
people
I have the pleasure of mentoring a talented group of high school students. They are the soul of Team 2102 Paradox of San Dieguito Academy. They are creative, curious…
Carol Willing
2013-02-10

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Using Senses to Guide Yourself Through the Fog
tech
people

My mom has Alzheimer’s.

Carol Willing
2013-02-05
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