Since your direct question -- about Perl's vs Python's OO -- seems to have been addressed a few times, I'd like to talk about the languages more generally. You can safely ignore this post if you want to concentrate entirely on the OO issue.

After knowing Perl for upwards of 7 years, I've been using Python for a few months now, and I think it's a fine language. (For those that wonder, I still use Perl at home, but at work we're doing Python.) The oft-discussed differences -- such as semantic whitespace and lack of messy syntax characters -- are just superficial. In my experience, those "features" become unimportant fairly quickly. They don't impact my feeling on the language one way or the other, they are just the way things are.

There are other differences in the languages that I think are more important for actual work. The scoping rules, assignment rules, and typing system are probably the biggest I've run into. There aren't as many differences as one might think, but these things matter for real code, and the issues are sometimes subtle. Frankly, I don't know Python well enough to enumerate all the differences, but I have had problems with my Perl-think not translating directly. Obviously I feel more comfortable with the Perl frame of mind, but the Python way doesn't seem inherently inferior, just different.

Language differences aside, there is also the question of the community. I don't think there's anything for Python quite like Perl's CPAN. I also don't know of a Python site anything like Perlmonks. These things may exist, and I just don't know about them, but I don't think they do. I have, however, had good experiences with the #python IRC channel on Freenode (which is actually split up into two separate channels that you get sent to randomly). So again, I'm not entirely convinced that either community is better or worse overall, but there are undoubtedly some important differences.

In short, there are differences. The differences are both real and superficial, but in the end, both languages are plenty capable. I would definitely advise learning Python. I think it's a good idea to learn as many languages as you can. Even if you decide to continue using Perl, seeing things from a slightly different perspective will be a really good experience.

In reply to Re: Perl fan being tempted with Python by revdiablo
in thread Perl fan being tempted with Python by jeyroz

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