Python Parallel Programming Cookbook

Introducing processes and threads

A process is an executing instance of an application, for example, double-clicking on the Internet browser icon on the desktop will start a process than runs the browser. A thread is an active flow of control that can be activated in parallel with other threads within the same process. The term "flow control" means a sequential execution of machine instructions. Also, a process can contain multiple threads, so starting the browser, the operating system creates a process and begins executing the primary threads of that process. Each thread can execute a set of instructions (typically, a function) independently and in parallel with other processes or threads. However, being the different active threads within the ...