Could Python supplant Java?

[T. Max Devlin]

In alt.destroy.microsoft, I heard Paul Boddie say:
>netvegetable <deathtospam43423 at altavista.com> wrote in message news:<Xns926F906924CBFAusYourStandingInIt at 130.133.1.4>...
   [...]
>Just as I find it hard to believe that the majority of consumers walk
>into their local computer superstore and insist on Microsoft purely
>out of brand obedience, so do I also find it difficult to believe that
>informed developers choose languages on the basis of the name alone.
>It's surely far more important even to consider the reputation of that
>language amongst developers in the same situation as yourself, for
>example.

The fact is, developers who want to make money choose their language based on
interoperability, industry support, how common or popular it is amongst
developers.  They need to do this to ensure they have a ready supply of
programmers to create and support their product.

So they choose Microsoft's whatever-they're-pushing-today.  "Developers,
developers, developers, developers," a famous quote from Balmer.  But it is
really no different than the user consumer, who may not insist on MS out of
brand obedience, but they insist on it nevertheless.

>I believe that Python could do with a bit more standardisation in
>certain domains, if only for increased interoperability within those
>domains rather than for "corporate endorsement" purposes, but it
>remains a very useful tool to be familiar with, and with Jython you
>can certainly enhance your Java development experiences without
>necessarily betraying your belief in the eventual dominance of the
>Java virtual machine. ;-)

While your response may be more in the spirit of veg's attempt at a cross-post
troll, the reality is that developers don't choose a language; they use the
one they know best if they can.

-- 
T. Max Devlin
  *** The best way to convince another is
          to state your case moderately and
             accurately.   - Benjamin Franklin ***