Is python really slow?

[Erik Max Francis]

Chris wrote:

> Should I just be learning C instead? Is this just because of the
> different
> applications python is being put to use for or because Python
> programmers
> are more "multi-lingual" or is Python really so slow that one needs to
> go
> to C on a more regular basis?

Some projects have are a mixture of Python and C.  This is especially
true of heavy-duty library modules, either due for efficiency's sake or
because C acts as the glue between Python and some third-party library
or tool.

For your own personal projects, the question of whether Python alone
will be sufficient really depends on what you plan on doing.  The answer
is likely that it will be more than satisfactory.  While there certainly
are cases where applications are so CPU intensive that from the start,
Python alone would be inappropriate, these tasks are relatively rare,
particularly for user end stuff.  Even with intensive applications, it's
not a question of whether it's as fast as possible, it's whether it's
fast _enough_.  On a modern machine, Python is almost certain to be more
than sufficient for your needs, whatever they are.

-- 
 Erik Max Francis / max at alcyone.com / http://www.alcyone.com/max/
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 A lambda calculus explorer in Python.