[Tutor] Python Advocacy

[Sheila King]

On Sun, 15 Apr 2001 03:55:30 +0200, Remco Gerlich <scarblac@pino.selwerd.nl>
wrote about Re: [Tutor] Python Advocacy:

:On  0, Sheila King <sheila@thinkspot.net> wrote:
...<snipped>...
:"PK" is being clever. His point is that Perl is byte-compiled as well.
:
:Saying "How this is a difference is beyond me" is c.l.perl.misc talk for
:"I'm sorry, but you were inaccurate there, there is no difference."
:
:> He further states:
...<snipped>...
:> Then he proposes a challenge: Some task, where the Perl fans will write their
:> idiomatic solution, and the Python fans (me? I don't know that there is anyone
:> else there), will write their solution. And then they'll benchmark it.
:
:His first point is good. Perl and Python are both slow compared to typically
:fast languages (say, C). So if you're going to use one, it's not going to
:matter if one is slightly slower than the other. If one is going to be
:substantially slower (like a factor 20) then it matters, for that application.
:
:From what I've seen, most huge differences between Perl and Python were
:caused by incompetence in the slower language. Some idiom in Perl was
:translated too directly to Python or vice versa. There's often a better way.

Yes, this is what I figured. However, it's one thing to say to someone else,
"Well, it is my understanding that there isn't that much difference in speed
between the two languages." And have them just accept my statement at face
value. It is another thing, entirely, to convince them of that.

:Still, such a challenge would be reasonable, if it were to use a lot of
:different problems. I don't know what his challenge was about, url?

Yes, well, I'm warming up to the idea of a good challenge. If the Pythoners
from this list want to team up, I think I can find an opposing team of Perl
Monks who'd want to take up the challenge.

PK didn't suggest any specific task. More like, he was casting about for
someone to propose one. Here is the URL where this discussion is taking place:
http://www.aota.net/ubb/Forum3/HTML/001567-3.html

--
Sheila King
http://www.thinkspot.net/sheila/
http://www.k12groups.org/