while True pattern in Python - Mini Project: Build & Apply

Using the while True Pattern in Python

📖 Scenario: You are creating a simple program that keeps asking a user to enter a number until they type 0. This is like asking a friend to keep giving you numbers until they say stop.

🎯 Goal: Build a program that uses the while True pattern to repeatedly ask for numbers and stops when the user enters 0.

📋 What You'll Learn

Create a variable to store user input

Use a while True loop to keep asking for input

Use an if statement to check if the input is 0

Use break to exit the loop when input is 0

Print a message when the loop ends

💡 Why This Matters

🌍 Real World

This pattern is useful when you want to keep asking for information until the user decides to stop, like filling a form or entering commands.

💼 Career

Understanding the <code>while True</code> loop and <code>break</code> is important for writing programs that need continuous input or repeated checks, common in many software jobs.

1

Create a variable to store user input

Create a variable called user_input and set it to an empty string "".

Python

# Create a variable called user_input and set it to an empty string ""
# Your code here

Need a hint?

Think of user_input as a box where you will keep the number the user types.

2

Set up a while True loop to ask for input

Write a while True loop that asks the user to enter a number using input() and stores it in user_input.

Python

user_input = ""
# Write a while True loop that asks for input and stores it in user_input
# Your code here

Need a hint?

Use while True: to create an endless loop. Inside it, use input() to get the number.

3

Add a condition to stop the loop when input is 0

Inside the while True loop, add an if statement to check if user_input is equal to "0". If yes, use break to exit the loop.

Python

user_input = ""
while True:
    user_input = input("Enter a number (0 to stop): ")
    # Add if statement to check if user_input is "0" and break the loop
    # Your code here

Need a hint?

Use if user_input == "0": to check the input. Use break to stop the loop.

4

Print a message after the loop ends

After the while True loop, write a print statement to display "Loop ended because you entered 0.".

Python

user_input = ""
while True:
    user_input = input("Enter a number (0 to stop): ")
    if user_input == "0":
        break
# Print the message after the loop ends
# Your code here

Need a hint?

Use print("Loop ended because you entered 0.") after the loop to show the message.