We all know that quantum computing is coming, but it is hard to know how to get started with it. [Mtreinish] suggests Qiskit — an Apache Licensed SDK for developing quantum applications. He has a presentation he gave in Singapore that you can see below, and a notebook you can go through on GitHub. If you are impatient, you can even run the notebook online through Google.

The tools can work against several backends including a simulator or the real hardware available from IBM. The official site has a different notebook you can use as a tutorial. Interestingly, the foundation of all Qiskit programs is “Terra” (the Earth) and permeating all Qiskit elements is Aer or air. There are also fire and water elements. At the bottom of the official notebook, you’ll find a lot of community notebooks that go deeper into specific topics.

The notebooks are a great example of using Juypter to share computation in a literate way. We agree with [Mtreinish] that it is nice to have a simulator, but the real thrill is to use one of the real devices IBM makes available via the Internet.

However, simulators do have a certain charm. We like Quirk, on which we did a three-part series last year. You might find that article useful to learn about basic transforms and other fundamental concepts.