How do I get the python base64 encoder to encode the value of a variable?

January 24, 2022

I’m writing a basic base64 encoder just to learn.

import base64
prompt = (input("Type your message -> ")
bp = int(input("Base 16, 32, or 64? (Type a number) -> "))
if bp == 16:
    encoded = base64.b16encode(b'prompt')
elif bp == 32:
     encoded = base64.b32encode(b'prompt')
elif bp == 64:
    encoded = base64.b64encode(prompt)
print(encoded)

When I run the program, it just prints out "prompt" in base 64. How can I get it to print out whatever message I type instead?

>Solution :

You need to use encode() to turn the string into a bytes-like object.

import base64
prompt = input("Type your message -> ")
bp = int(input("Base 16, 32, or 64? (Type a number) -> "))
if bp == 16:
    encoded = base64.b16encode(prompt.encode())
elif bp == 32:
     encoded = base64.b32encode(prompt.encode())
elif bp == 64:
    encoded = base64.b64encode(prompt.encode())
print(encoded)