How to Fix 'UnicodeError 'unicodeescape' codec can't decode bytes...' When Opening Windows File Paths in Python?

"Unicode Error 'unicodeescape' Codec Can't Decode Bytes..." Problem When Writing Windows File Paths [Duplicate]

Issue:

When attempting to open Windows file paths using the "codecs" module on Python 3.1, users encounter the following error:

"Unicode Error 'unicodeescape' codec can't decode bytes..."

This error occurs specifically when using UTF-8 encoding and for path names that contain special characters or are in a translated folder, as is typically the case in Windows.

Solution:

The issue arises due to the interpretation of "" characters as Unicode escape sequences within the file path string. Two methods can be employed to resolve this problem:

1. Doubling Backslashes:

Replace every single backslash in the file path string with a double backslash:

g = codecs.open("C:\Users\Eric\Desktop\beeline.txt", "r", encoding="utf-8")

2. Using Raw Strings:

Prefix the file path string with the letter "r" to create a raw string:

g = codecs.open(r"C:\Users\Eric\Desktop\beeline.txt", "r", encoding="utf-8")

Using either of these methods ensures that the backslashes are treated as literal characters rather than Unicode escape sequences, resolving the decoding error.

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