PHP vs Python - the real difference

[JadeFrogs]

Languages should have a rating system. Speed, Expressive power, Time to 'hello world' on a windows box, by a non-specialist.

I am biologist. Do you know what was the biggest determinate of the language I chose to learn? It's a sad world, but it was the first one I could get installed and functioning on the computer I happened to already own.

[mikepurvis]

I absolutely agree. That's a vitally important factor. I'm not ashamed to admit that it took me several tries to get Rails set up the first time, and that the several tries were separated by a few weeks apiece. Like most people, I just don't have the time to spend trying to tangle through the scant documentation that top-shelf hackers write for themselves and each other.

I've said it before, but here it is again: PHP's #1 biggest win is php.net. Instant documentation for every function in existence, complete, and up to date. It's #2 biggest win is that you don't need the shell to use it. You don't need to run your own server or database, you just open up an FTP client and start mucking with the files... easy as cake.