alternate language

[Lou Pecora]

In article <mailman.1382.1165821112.32031.python-list at python.org>,
 Bryan <belred at gmail.com> wrote:

> what is a good alternate language to learn? i just want something to expand
> my mind and hopefully reduce or delay any chance of alzheimer's. i would
> especially like to hear from those of you who learned python _before_ these
> languages.
> 
> haskell, erlang, ocaml, mozart/oz, rebel, etc.

I have no experience with any of these.  Of course, now I will give my 
opinions.  :-)  Just based on my experience with Python, C, C++, BASIC 
(several flavors), Fortran 77 (mostly).
> 
> i don't require any of these features, but extra browny points for any of
> the following:
> 
> interactive interpreter

Python has several.

> batteries included

Not sure what you mean here.  Certainly the standard Python packages 
would offer you an immediately usable Python from Terminal and some 
other interpreters.  But there are LOTS of add-ons available.  A big 
plus with Open Source.  Keeping them coordinated is a task, though (a 
big minus with Open Source).  Overall, I haven't had to mess too much to 
get lots of usability from Python, especially for Scientific computing.

> can integrate with c

Yes. Several approaches, but none trivial.

> compiles to native code

No.

> can use a gui toolkit such as wx

Yep.  Wx is here for Python.  Also a book on it by Rappin and Dunn 
(Manning , publ. 2006)

> doesn't take 60 hour weeks over years to master

You'll be writing code on day 1. Useful code, too.  Very, very nice 
language to learn and use.  I recommend Python in a Nutshell by Martelli 
(O'Reilly Publ.) to read as you learn.  Lots of online tutorials.  See 
Python.org, SourceForge and google.  I think you can get pretty good at 
Python coding in a month or so.  


Along with Perl and Ruby, Python is really a very popular 
interpreted/scripting language rather than a niche language (which I 
think most of the ones you mentioned are somewhat niche).  That means 
there's a big, helpful community out there to talk to and lots of code 
available.  I do all my new coding in it and then when I need speed in 
some routine I rewrite it in C as a Python extension.  I can develop 
many times faster than I could in C/C++ or Fortran or BASIC (even).  I 
cannot compare, however, to the languages you mentioned.  Sorry.

-- Lou Pecora  (my views are my own) REMOVE THIS to email me.