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I was not expecting Python to be getting near as many votes as Ruby. It is my favorite language simply because the pseudocode I write on whiteboards is basical

I was not expecting Python to be getting near as many votes as Ruby. It is my favorite language simply because the pseudocode I write on whiteboards is basically Python. Strangely, it has been since well before I really started using it regularly.

fusiongyro 15y ago
Python seems to have higher penetration outside career programmers. When I learned Ruby about a decade ago, there was this "Ruby shouldn't be your first language" sentiment. I think there's been progress on that front, but Python had an early lead.
evoxed 15y ago
I'm not quite ready to cast my vote for Python, but this statement is so true. Basically all of my notes from planning stages as well as algorithms I'm looking at or working on... might as well already be in the interpreter.
InclinedPlane 15y ago
Python is rapidly replacing ruby as the de facto scripting language for automation. It's also starting to replace Java as the language of choice for teaching programming and CS.
- cicloid 15y ago
  With tools such as?
  - InclinedPlane 15y ago
    I'm not sure what point you're trying to make here. Are you claiming I'm wrong or do you want me to do a google search for you?
    - aaronblohowiak 15y ago
      A google search may not be as insightful as someone talking about a trend in popularity for a specific niche (automation.) I think the poster was just asking you to share specifics that helped form your opinion.
  - Tichy 15y ago
    There are those who think that if a programming language is only usable with bloated tools, the programming language might be flawed.
    - read_wharf 15y ago
      That's interesting. It was exactly what I was thinking while reading the C# thread at the beginning of this article's comments. Yes, yes, mono whatever, but really ...
    - deleted 15y ago
      [deleted]
  - rafedb 15y ago
    What exactly is this supposed to mean? IDE? Debugger? I mean if you really think the only way to develop in Python still is limited to a basic editor and logging to a terminal then you are greatly mistaken. There are fully capable IDEs such as PyCharm and of course emacs/vim. I gotta admit Sublime has won me over lately for the majority of my development, however I love how fully featured PyCharm is.
- wmoxam 15y ago
  I never knew ruby was ever considered the "de facto language for automation". Maybe you are thinking of perl?
  - calpaterson 15y ago
    No, he's thinking of Ruby. Puppet and chef.
    - Sikul 15y ago
      What is the Python equivalent to Puppet and chef?
      - haldean 15y ago
        Fabric comes to mind.
        jonstjohn 15y ago
        Fabric is more of a task-oriented SSH replacement with some really nice bells and whistles, much different from Puppet or Chef. Some folks are working on Salt Stack which is python-based and more akin to the others.
        manojlds 15y ago
        Fabric is more like Cap than Puppet / Chef
        manojlds 15y ago
        Fabric is more like Cap than Puppet / Chef
      - cbrinke1 15y ago
        bcfg2 I have been using it for a few years now. Have enjoyed it much more than the other similar tools we evaluated: puppet/chef/cfengine
      - cbrinke1 15y ago
- polemic 15y ago
  Python has been the de facto scripting language of choice for automation in a number of industries for quite some time. I don't believe (but correct me if I'm wrong) that Ruby has ever gained much traction outside of the software development world. Perhaps we're just seeing some natural consolidation.
  - pilom 15y ago
    Ruby is the language that Puppet and Chef (the 2 most popular configuration management systems) are based on.
    - njharman 15y ago
      The roles Puppet and Chef fill are small parts of "automation".
    - manojlds 15y ago
      Puppet is written in Ruby, but has it's own DSL, so it doesn't really count.
    - manojlds 15y ago
      Puppet is written in Ruby, but has it's own DSL, so it doesn't really count.
srparish 15y ago
Some language generate a lot more noise then others--the noise is not at all correlated to actual usage or popularity.
ylem 15y ago
I find that I'm rather productive in python for scientific computing and go towards C (or occasionally even fortran) when I need something faster. I also find that it has a rather shallow learning curve for students who come in knowing java... But generally, I think it's good to pick the right language for the right domain. I keep trying to find an excuse to learn Erlang ;>
- Estragon 15y ago
  > ...go towards C (or occasionally even fortran) when I > need something faster Try cython next time.
  - TazeTSchnitzel 15y ago
    Or PyPy.
    - slowpoke 15y ago
      Since he's specifically saying that he does scientific computing, PyPy is not a good suggestion. Pretty much all of the codebases of the stack for scientific computing can not be used in PyPy, and this will most likely not change in the foreseeable future since porting them is non-trivial. I'm not trying to talk down PyPy here, but for this domain of application, it's not appropriate at the moment.

fusiongyro 15y ago

Python seems to have higher penetration outside career programmers. When I learned Ruby about a decade ago, there was this "Ruby shouldn't be your first language" sentiment. I think there's been progress on that front, but Python had an early lead.

evoxed 15y ago

I'm not quite ready to cast my vote for Python, but this statement is so true. Basically all of my notes from planning stages as well as algorithms I'm looking at or working on... might as well already be in the interpreter.

InclinedPlane 15y ago

Python is rapidly replacing ruby as the de facto scripting language for automation. It's also starting to replace Java as the language of choice for teaching programming and CS.

cicloid 15y ago
With tools such as?
- InclinedPlane 15y ago
  I'm not sure what point you're trying to make here. Are you claiming I'm wrong or do you want me to do a google search for you?
  - aaronblohowiak 15y ago
    A google search may not be as insightful as someone talking about a trend in popularity for a specific niche (automation.) I think the poster was just asking you to share specifics that helped form your opinion.
- Tichy 15y ago
  There are those who think that if a programming language is only usable with bloated tools, the programming language might be flawed.
  - read_wharf 15y ago
    That's interesting. It was exactly what I was thinking while reading the C# thread at the beginning of this article's comments. Yes, yes, mono whatever, but really ...
  - deleted 15y ago
    [deleted]
- rafedb 15y ago
  What exactly is this supposed to mean? IDE? Debugger? I mean if you really think the only way to develop in Python still is limited to a basic editor and logging to a terminal then you are greatly mistaken. There are fully capable IDEs such as PyCharm and of course emacs/vim. I gotta admit Sublime has won me over lately for the majority of my development, however I love how fully featured PyCharm is.
wmoxam 15y ago
I never knew ruby was ever considered the "de facto language for automation". Maybe you are thinking of perl?
- calpaterson 15y ago
  No, he's thinking of Ruby. Puppet and chef.
  - Sikul 15y ago
    What is the Python equivalent to Puppet and chef?
    - haldean 15y ago
      Fabric comes to mind.
      - jonstjohn 15y ago
        Fabric is more of a task-oriented SSH replacement with some really nice bells and whistles, much different from Puppet or Chef. Some folks are working on Salt Stack which is python-based and more akin to the others.
      - manojlds 15y ago
        Fabric is more like Cap than Puppet / Chef
      - manojlds 15y ago
        Fabric is more like Cap than Puppet / Chef
    - cbrinke1 15y ago
      bcfg2 I have been using it for a few years now. Have enjoyed it much more than the other similar tools we evaluated: puppet/chef/cfengine
    - cbrinke1 15y ago
polemic 15y ago
Python has been the de facto scripting language of choice for automation in a number of industries for quite some time. I don't believe (but correct me if I'm wrong) that Ruby has ever gained much traction outside of the software development world. Perhaps we're just seeing some natural consolidation.
- pilom 15y ago
  Ruby is the language that Puppet and Chef (the 2 most popular configuration management systems) are based on.
  - njharman 15y ago
    The roles Puppet and Chef fill are small parts of "automation".
  - manojlds 15y ago
    Puppet is written in Ruby, but has it's own DSL, so it doesn't really count.
  - manojlds 15y ago
    Puppet is written in Ruby, but has it's own DSL, so it doesn't really count.

srparish 15y ago

Some language generate a lot more noise then others--the noise is not at all correlated to actual usage or popularity.

ylem 15y ago

I find that I'm rather productive in python for scientific computing and go towards C (or occasionally even fortran) when I need something faster. I also find that it has a rather shallow learning curve for students who come in knowing java... But generally, I think it's good to pick the right language for the right domain. I keep trying to find an excuse to learn Erlang ;>

Estragon 15y ago
> ...go towards C (or occasionally even fortran) when I > need something faster Try cython next time.
- TazeTSchnitzel 15y ago
  Or PyPy.
  - slowpoke 15y ago
    Since he's specifically saying that he does scientific computing, PyPy is not a good suggestion. Pretty much all of the codebases of the stack for scientific computing can not be used in PyPy, and this will most likely not change in the foreseeable future since porting them is non-trivial. I'm not trying to talk down PyPy here, but for this domain of application, it's not appropriate at the moment.