getting back into programming

[M.-A. Lemburg]

On 2008-12-10 22:02, usawargamer at yahoo.com wrote:
> I used to program in C and Perl (up until 2001) (a little C++ and Java
> too).  Since then I've been a Business Analyst and only coded in VBA/
> Excel and written some SQL queries.  (we use Sybase)
> 
> I feel the need for other tools.
> Primarily I want to write a bunch of small programs to query a
> database and perform some calculations.   While I can do this inside a
> Sybase stored procedure, its a bit messy trying to "reimplement" a set
> of calculations from Excel into Sybase.
> 
> I would like to either:
> - relearn Perl
> or
> - learn Python (I have heard its a nice language)
> 
> 1. How good and easy to use is the Python database interface (to
> Sybase)?

If you're looking for a reliable database interface to Sybase,
I'd suggest mxODBC:

http://www.egenix.com/products/python/mxODBC/

It's been used in production by many banks for years and so far
without problems.

> 2. Can you suggest some good books, and/or links for learning Python,
> as well as teh database interface?

One of the best books is "Learning Python":

http://oreilly.com/catalog/9781565924642/

> 3. How difficult is it to install Python vs Perl on PC/Windows
> machines?

There's an MSI installer, so it's basically just a few clicks
away:

http://www.python.org/download/

Hope that helps,
-- 
Marc-Andre Lemburg
eGenix.com

Professional Python Services directly from the Source  (#1, Dec 10 2008)
>>> Python/Zope Consulting and Support ...        http://www.egenix.com/
>>> mxODBC.Zope.Database.Adapter ...             http://zope.egenix.com/
>>> mxODBC, mxDateTime, mxTextTools ...        http://python.egenix.com/
________________________________________________________________________
2008-12-02: Released mxODBC.Connect 1.0.0      http://python.egenix.com/

::: Try our new mxODBC.Connect Python Database Interface for free ! ::::


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