Expert Python Programming - Third Edition

Why and when to follow PEP 8?

If you are creating a new software package that is intended to be open sourced, you should always follow PEP 8 because it is a widely accepted standard and is used in most of the open source projects written in Python. If you want to foster any collaboration with other programmers, then you should definitely stick to PEP 8, even if you have different views on the best code style guidelines. Doing so has the benefit of making it a lot easier for other developers to jump straight into your project. Code will be easier to read for newcomers because it will be consistent in style with most of the other Python open source packages.

Also, starting with full PEP 8 compliance saves you time and trouble in the future. ...