Learn Web Development with Python

Threads and processes – an overview

A thread can be defined as a sequence of instructions that can be run by a scheduler, which is that part of the operating system that decides which chunk of work will receive the necessary resources to be carried out. Typically, a thread lives within a process. A process can be defined as an instance of a computer program that is being executed.

In previous chapters, we have run our own modules and scripts with commands similar to $ python my_script.py. What happens when a command like that is run, is that a Python process is created. Within it, a main thread of execution is spawned. The instructions in the script are what will be run within that thread.

This is just one way of working though, and Python ...