Can Python replace Visual Basic? Should it?

[Alex Martelli]

"Brad Bollenbach" <bbollenbach at homenospam.com> wrote in message
news:5DZo6.11126$hn5.1578410 at news1.rdc1.mb.home.com...
> Okay, sure this has been asked again and again, but I've never really seen
a
> clear answer to this question:
>
>     Can Python replace Visual Basic? Should it?

Yes, and no, respectively.

> "languages" that are based on an IDE are not really my thing (I hate
having

Then, FOR YOU, Python has it all over VB.  Others' tastes differ.

> But really, very specifically, were YOU a former Visual Basic (or
> Powerbuilder, or Delphi) programmer that is now using Python to write the
> complex GUI's VB used to handle for you? I'm an on again, off again,
student

Sorry, no 'former' here, nor any _complex_ GUIs.  I do some _modest_ use
of VB for reasonably simple tasks, mostly connected to ease of deployment
of stuff embedded in Office applications.  I share your distaste for
'wizards' that hide from me what they're doing (I don't mind tools that
generate some code for me, as long as they keep it all open for my
inspection & tweaking).

> Again, I'm much more interested in the real world experience of those who
> used to use the big visual development tools in Windows like VB, Delphi or
> Powerbuilder rather than theoretical answers.

Why do you focus on 'used to use'?  One may perfectly well keep using
some VB (&c) for tasks it's particularly well-suited to, while using
Python wherever feasible (and, indeed, using both in the same project
is hardly strange -- e.g., use VBA inside [say] Excel to provide some
minimal intrinsic event-handling to some special workbook, and use COM
Python objects, instantiated and invoker from that modest amount of VBA,
for all of the real 'business logic'/complex-GUI/etc aspects).


Alex