Jupyter Notebook Print Long Text Multiple Lines

Printing Long Text in Multiple Lines in Jupyter Notebook

When working with Jupyter Notebooks, it's common to encounter situations where you need to print long text that exceeds the width of the cell output area. By default, Jupyter Notebooks will truncate or wrap the text in a way that might not be readable or desirable. In this article, we'll explore methods to print long text in multiple lines, enhancing readability and usability within the Jupyter environment.

Using the `print()` Function with String Formatting

One of the simplest ways to print long text in multiple lines is by using the `print()` function in combination with Python's string formatting capabilities. You can use the `\n` escape sequence to insert new lines within your text.

long_text = "Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat."
print(long_text)

However, for very long texts, manually inserting `\n` might not be practical. Instead, you can use Python's `textwrap` module to wrap your text into multiple lines automatically.

Using the `textwrap` Module

The `textwrap` module provides a simple way to wrap long strings into multiple lines. You can use the `wrap()` function to achieve this.

import textwrap

long_text = "Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum."
wrapped_text = textwrap.wrap(long_text, width=50)
for line in wrapped_text:
    print(line)

In this example, the `wrap()` function splits the `long_text` into lines of a maximum width of 50 characters. You can adjust the `width` parameter according to your needs.

Using Markdown or HTML in Jupyter Notebook

Jupyter Notebooks also support Markdown and HTML for formatting text in cells. This can be particularly useful for displaying long text in a more readable format.

from IPython.display import Markdown, display

long_text = "Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat."
display(Markdown(f"""### Long Text
{long_text}"""))

Or using HTML:

from IPython.display import HTML, display

long_text = "Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat."
display(HTML(f"""<h3>Long Text</h3>
<p>{long_text}</p>"""))

Both Markdown and HTML methods allow for more complex formatting and can be more visually appealing for presenting long text.

Best Practices for Printing Long Text

• Use Appropriate Width: When wrapping text, choose a width that balances readability with the need to limit line length.
• Format for Readability: Use headings, paragraphs, and other formatting options (like Markdown or HTML) to make long text more readable.
• Consider Audience: Tailor the presentation of long text based on your audience’s preferences and the context of the information.