📁 File Handling Project (Python CLI)

A menu-driven Command-Line Interface (CLI) application built in Python that lets users create, read, and delete files directly from the terminal — with live directory listing on every action.

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📌 Project Overview

File: file_project.py

A while True loop keeps the program running until the user chooses to quit. At each iteration the user picks an operation from a numbered menu, and the corresponding function is called.

Menu options:

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Press '1' to create a file
Press '2' to read a file
Press '3' to delete a file
Press '4' to quit the program
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🛠️ Technologies Used

Tool / Module	Purpose
Python 3	Core programming language
pathlib.Path	Object-oriented path and file operations
os.remove()	Deleting files from the filesystem
open() built-in	Reading and writing file content

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🧠 What I Learned

1. Using pathlib for Path and File Operations

• Path('') creates a Path object pointing to the current working directory.
• path.rglob('*') recursively walks every file and folder inside a directory — much cleaner than nested os.walk() calls.
• p.exists() checks whether a path (file or directory) exists on disk before acting on it.
• p.is_file() narrows the check down to regular files, guarding against accidentally reading a directory name.

path = Path('')
items = list(path.rglob('*'))     # recursive listing of all files & folders
p = Path(name)
if not p.exists():                # safe guard before creating
    ...

2. Working with the open() Built-in and Context Managers

• Opening a file with open(p, 'w') creates it (or overwrites it) for writing; open(p, 'r') opens it for reading.
• Using the with statement (context manager) ensures the file is automatically closed even if an error occurs — no need for a manual f.close().

with open(p, 'w') as fs:
    fs.write(data)   # write user input to the file

with open(p, 'r') as fs:
    data = fs.read() # read the full file content at once

3. Deleting Files with os.remove()

• os.remove(name) permanently removes the file at the given path.
• Always verify the file exists and is a regular file before calling remove() to avoid unexpected errors.

import os
os.remove(name)

4. Building a Menu-Driven CLI with a while True Loop

• A while True loop combined with a break statement creates an infinite menu that exits only when the user explicitly chooses to quit.
• if / elif / else chains map each numeric choice to its handler function.

while True:
    check = int(input("Enter your response: "))
    if check == 1:
        createfile()
    elif check == 2:
        readfile()
    elif check == 3:
        deletefile()
    elif check == 4:
        break          # exit the loop cleanly
    else:
        print(f"{check} is a/an invalid.")

5. Enumerating a List with enumerate()

• enumerate(items) pairs each item with a zero-based index, making it easy to print a numbered list without a manual counter variable.

for i, item in enumerate(items):
    print(f"{i+1}: {item}")   # 1-based numbering for readability

6. Error Handling with try / except

• Wrapping risky operations (file I/O, user input conversion) in try / except Exception as err prevents the program from crashing unexpectedly.
• Catching Exception at the top level surfaces helpful error messages while keeping the program running.

try:
    check = int(input("Enter your response: "))
except Exception as error:
    print(f"Please enter a valid number [{error}]")

7. f-Strings for Clean Output

• Python f-strings (f"...") allow variables and expressions to be embedded directly inside string literals — more readable than + concatenation or .format().

print(f"{i+1}: {items}")
print(f"An error occured as {err}")

8. Organising Code into Functions

• Each operation (readfileandfolder, createfile, readfile, deletefile) is encapsulated in its own function — keeping the main loop short and each concern isolated.
• readfileandfolder() is called at the start of every operation so the user always sees the current state of the directory.

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▶️ How to Run

1. Make sure Python 3 is installed on your system.

2. Clone or download this repository, then run:

python file_project.py

3. Follow the on-screen numbered menu to create, read, or delete files.

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📜 Feature Summary

Feature	Supported
Recursive directory listing	✅
Create a file with custom content	✅
Read and display file content	✅
Delete a file	✅
Prevent overwriting existing files	✅
Error handling & input validation	✅