File Basics

File operations in Python follow a consistent pattern: open the file, perform operations (read/write), and close the file. The open() function returns a file object and takes a filename and mode as parameters. Common modes include 'r' for reading (default), 'w' for writing (truncates existing file), 'a' for appending, 'x' for exclusive creation (fails if file exists), and 'b' for binary mode. It's crucial to close files using the close() method to free system resources. The with statement (context manager) is the recommended approach as it automatically closes the file even if an error occurs. For reading, methods include read() (entire content), readline() (single line), and readlines() (list of lines). For writing, methods include write() (string) and writelines() (list of strings). Understanding these basics is fundamental for any program that needs to interact with the file system for data persistence.