Absolute noob to Linux programming needs language choice help

[Cameron Laird]

In article <1hhdlmq.xxmlwo27govgN%aleax at mac.com>,
Alex Martelli <aleax at mac.com> wrote:
><stylecomputers at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Hey guys,
>> 
>> I am absolutely new to Linux programming, with no w######s programming
>> experience except a small amount of C++ console apps.
>> Reasonably new to Linux, BSD etc, got good sound networking base of
>> knowledge and dont have any problem working the command line etc.
>> 
>> I want to learn a language that I can use in my networking duties that
>> is most likely to be of use to me. I have a few choices I can think of
>> being:
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>Python, Perl, and a third language you have not mentioned, Ruby, are
>very high level, and each is suitable for just about the same range of
>programming (almost any programming, except very low-level;-).  The
			.
		[more true and
		pertinent obser-
		vations]
			.
			.
Tcl is also in this category.  Even with Alex expanding the discussion
to encompass Ruby, I wouldn't mention Tcl--except that the original
questioner explicitly mentioned "networking duties".  While his intent
is ambiguous, it deserves to be said that, just as Alex has written, 
all four of these languages are rough equivalents, differing as much 
in subjective feel as objective functionality, but that
1.  Tcl, with its emphasis on event programming,
    codes multi-processing TCP servers more com-
    pactly than the other three;
2.  Tcl is the extension language for Cisco's 
    IOS and several other networking products;
3.  Tcl-based Scotty is the single most mature
    SNMP suite any of the four languages have
    produced; 
4.  There's the whole BEEP story; and
5.  Tcl-based Expect has a special role in
    system administration and network manage-
    ment.

There's plenty to read on all these subjects, if you have an interest.
<URL: http://www-128.ibm.com/developerworks/linux/library/l-sc1/ > might
be a place to start.