Why learn Python ??

[Paul Rubin]

"Bicho Verde" <bichoverde at sapo.pt> writes:
>     And also I don't know exactly why would I learn Python rather than C#,
> C++ or Perl. Basicaly I don't know where to start, if there is much to do or
> if it is has it seems and there is software to everything nowadays and so
> doesn't make sense to spend time in learning a programming language.

I'd say don't bother with C++ unless you're working on a big
multi-person project.  Its design will make no sense to you unless
you've faced the problems that come up in those projects.  Otherwise
it's a big mess.

Perl has its fans and I can't promise you won't be one.  It's built
like a natural (spoken) language, that is, it wasn't designed, it just
sort of evolved, and has all kinds of specialized rules and exceptions
and multiple ways of doing the same thing.  Some people think that's
great.  Others (most Python fans) think Perl is a big mess.  The book
"Learning Perl" by Schwartz and Christiensen is definitely very good,
so you might look at it to decide if you like Perl.  But note that the
book only scratches the surface, and Perl gets messier the deeper you go.

C# is mostly Microsoft-specific and not much serious is done with it, IMO.

>     I just have this idea that I would like to contribute to the curve of
> accelarated exponential progress (technological singularity), artificial
> intelligence and so on. From that point of view there is much to do... But
> can I stand for it and where to start?
>       Anyone would help me and give me some hints?

Traditionally that kind of research has been done in Lisp.  You could
look at Winston and Horn's book on Lisp, which is also a reasonably
good introduction to AI methods.