[Tutor] Self-intro and two short newbie questions

[Kevin Kirton]

Hi all,

I've committed myself to learning Python and have started reading
"Learning Python" (Mark Lutz) and looking through various online
resources.
My career so far has involved a little high school teaching and about
10 years of translating Japanese to English, but no programming or
coding.

I've also joined this list today and this is my first post.

My aim is to be able to create Python programs, specifically
"activities" that work on the OLPC's XO laptops and SoaS (Sugar on a
Stick).

My questions are: how long would you estimate it to take and how
complicated would it be to create the following as Python programs? (I
know it varies depending on the person, but for example, how long
would it take _you_?)

(i) a simple guitar tuning program involving an image of a guitar and
the playing of each of the standard strings of a guitar (E, A, D, G,
B, E) upon key input by the user
(something similar to this:
http://www.gieson.com/Library/projects/utilities/tuner/ (page is 782kb
to open))
and
(ii) a very basic turtle art program with an intentionally limited set
of commands and on-screen display words (say, a total of 30 to 50
specific strings), wherein the entire set of strings is offered to the
user (perhaps at first use of the program) in a format that enables
easy and full localization of the program so long as each of the
strings is translated appropriately and inputted to the program. I
know of turtle.py and xturtle.py, but I'm thinking of starting
something from scratch. It's the easy localization I'm interested in.

Hope these questions are appropriate. I'm grateful to be able to ask them here.

Kevin (in Australia)