Python versus Perl ?

[surfunbear at yahoo.com]

 I've read some posts on Perl versus Python and studied a bit of my
Python book.

 I'm a software engineer, familiar with C++ objected oriented
development, but have been using Perl because it is great for pattern
matching, text processing, and automated testing. Our company is really
fixated on risk managnemt and the only way I can do enough testing
without working overtime (which some people have ended up doing) is by
automating my testing. That's what got me started on Perl.

 I've read that many people prefer Python and that it is better than
Perl. However, I want to ask a few other questions.


1. Perl seems to have alot of packaged utilities available through
CPAN, the comprehensive perl network. These can aid in building
parsers, web development, perl DBI is heavily used. This seems to be a
very important benifit. I'm not sure that Python is as extenive at all
in that regard ? Perl also has excellent pattern matching compared to
sed, not sure about how Python measures up,
 but this seems to make perl ideally suited to text processing.

2. Python is apparantly better at object oriented. Perl has some kind
of name spacing, I have used that in a limited way. Does Perl use a
cheap and less than optimal Object oriented approach ?
That was what someone at work said, he advocates Python.
Is it likely that Perl will improve it's object oriented features
in the next few years ?

3. Perl is installed on our system and alot of other systems.
You don't have to make sys admins go out of there way to make it
available. It's usualy allready there. I also did a search of job
postings on a popular website. 108 jobs where listed that require
knowledge of Perl, only 17 listed required Python. Becomeing more
familiar with Perl might then be usefull for ones resume ?



 If Python is better than Perl, I'm curious how really significant
those advantages are ?