How to create a phython clock with 3 loops?

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#1

Hi,
I’m trying to make clock with python.
At first, I tried to do the following:

import time
import random

hour = random.randrange(0, 23)
minute = random.randrange(0, 60)
second = random.randrange(0, 60)


while (hour < 24):
    second += 1
    time.sleep(1)

    if (second >= 60):
        second = 0
        minute += 1

    if (minute >= 60):
        minute = 0
        hour += 1

    print(str(hour) + ":" + str(minute) + ":" + str(second))

It works, but It has to be with 3 while loops. Does anyone know how to do this?

#2

Hi! Welcome to the forums :nerd_face:

I’m thinking you could do something like this:

while (hour < 24):
    while (minute < 60):
        while (second < 60):
            second += 1
            time.sleep(1)
            print(str(hour) + ":" + str(minute) + ":" + str(second))

        second = 0
        minute += 1
       
    minute = 0
    hour += 1

To be honest I haven’t ran this code so I’m not 100% sure it works, but the logic worked in my head.

Basically:
You only keep incrementing the seconds and printing the time while the conditions of the 3 while loops are met: hour < 24, second < 60 and minute < 60. If the second < 60 condition isn’t met, it’ll break out of that loop and proceed to setting the second to 0 and incrementing the minute by 1.
If the minute < 60 condition isn’t met, it’ll break out of that loop and set the minute to 0 and increment the hour by 1.

I truly hope this helped you, and if I made any errors please let me know :slightly_smiling_face:

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#3

That works,
Now I need to have user input. I tried using a for statement.

import time

h = input("Enter hours:")
m = input("Enter minutes:")
s = input("Enter seconds:")

for(int h=0; h<24; h++):
    for(int m=0; m<60; m++):
        for(int s=0; s<60; s++):
        print(str(h) + ":" + str(m) + ":" + str(s))

I get syntax error using that for statement. What is wrong with the code now?

#4

Just to clarify what we are dealing with, is that a homework assignment? And is it allowed that we help you? Remember that your professor might see the help you have gotten

#5

This is not homework. A friend of mine sent me some exercises he got from school, so I can try those exercises by myself.
I do it for fun :nerd_face:

1 Like
#6

That does explain why it looks like homework.

As for your error, the loop you wrote looks more like C syntax then python

you should use range()

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#7

I’m sorry to ask but where must range() go?

#8

On your for loop (instead of what you have right now).

The range() function takes 2 parameters (it can technically take more but for now you just need the first two): start and end.
In a for loop, you can iterate over a sequence of numbers produced by the range() function.
The sequence will start at the number you give it as the start argument, and end one number before the end argument.

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#9

I’m just going to jump in here to what @yizuhi said.

range() is actually a constructor, meaning it creates a range object. It can take one, two, or three arguments.

The way for loops are implemented in Python is different than how they’re used in C-family languages.

for (int i = 0; i < 5; i++):

Here, i acts like a counter variable, increments by one each iteration, and once the condition i < 5 is true (which will happen after 5 iterations), the loop exits.

for i in range(5):

The following is not completely accurate; I’m describing it like so just to present an analogy. Here, you can think of i as a counter variable that starts at 0 (since only one argument was passed to range() here). i increases by 1 each iteration and has a maximum value of 4 (one less than 5, the argument passed to range()). This means that after the iteration where i = 4, the loop exits.

See more here (just read the middle section about range()).

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#10

Thanks for the help!
I got it working.

I learned a lot with this exercise btw :upside_down_face:

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