PHP vs Python

[Cameron Laird]

In article <3A6283B3.76D07875 at engcorp.com>,
Peter Hansen  <peter at engcorp.com> wrote:
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>> 2-who has more users
>
>Don't know.  Suspect it's Python, that one being
>rather broader in scope ("rather" means "massively"
>in my world).
No one understands the question, let
alone being certain about the answer.

This is often an obscured form for,
"How many resumes include 'PHP' vs.
'Python'?"  PHP might actually win out
on that score.
>
>> 3-who hits the wall in scaling up and or handing complexity
>
>PHP.
Yes.  Most of the languages popularly
aggregated as "scripting" have converged
remarkably in their capabilities.  One
of the strongest differentiations, 
though, is that Python handles complexity
well, and PHP is on the low end of that
particular dimension.
>
>> 4-general performance
>
>Python is better for "general" performance,
>given that PHP is not designed for "general"
>use.
Often people asking this question mean,
"How's the CPU load when working with
Apache, IIS, and iPlanet?"  That's not
*your* idea of "general", of course, and
perhaps not even the original questioner's.
'Makes sense in Webworking circles, though.
>
>> 5-where would I be better off using PHP over Python
>
>An environment already using PHP.  Or an environment
>where Python is not available.  Or if you know
>only PHP.  Only sure about the first two...
There will be commercial announcements
about PHP next week that will slightly
extend PHP's domain of dominance.

Here's what I emphasize:  if you hang
out (are a fellow employee, for example)
with a lot of PHP enthusiasts, it's 
absolutely right to go with their flow
and enjoy the advantage of their exper-
tise.
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-- 

Cameron Laird <claird at NeoSoft.com>
Business:  http://www.Phaseit.net
Personal:  http://starbase.neosoft.com/~claird/home.html