In Python, when using the built-in input() method, always import readline. Readline makes for much nicer text input and supports common operations like ctrl-A to jump to the start of a line. Without readline, trying to type ctrl-A will insert a literal 0x01 byte. IPython shows the difference: in both cases I typed This is a test. followed by ctrl-A.

In [1]: input()
This is a test.^A
Out[1]: 'This is a test.\x01'

In [2]: import readline

In [3]: input()
This is a test.
Out[3]: 'This is a test.'