9. Top-level components
The Python interpreter can get its input from a number of sources: from a script
passed to it as standard input or as program argument, typed in interactively,
from a module source file, etc. This chapter gives the syntax used in these
cases.
9.1. Complete Python programs
While a language specification need not prescribe how the language interpreter
is invoked, it is useful to have a notion of a complete Python program. A
complete Python program is executed in a minimally initialized environment: all
built-in and standard modules are available, but none have been initialized,
except for sys (various system services), builtins (built-in
functions, exceptions and None) and __main__. The latter is used to
provide the local and global namespace for execution of the complete program.
The syntax for a complete Python program is that for file input, described in
the next section.
The interpreter may also be invoked in interactive mode; in this case, it does
not read and execute a complete program but reads and executes one statement
(possibly compound) at a time. The initial environment is identical to that of
a complete program; each statement is executed in the namespace of
__main__.
A complete program can be passed to the interpreter
in three forms: with the -c string command line option, as a file
passed as the first command line argument, or as standard input. If the file
or standard input is a tty device, the interpreter enters interactive mode;
otherwise, it executes the file as a complete program.