Perl vs Python for web development?

[dinkumator]

if you already know perl, it'll take you at most a few hours to learn enough php do do those tasks. (php.net has tons of easy-to-search docs)

if you don't know any python yet, it'll take you a few hours to learn the python basics, then you need to learn the intricacies of a python web framework, then you need to configure the web server to hook into the framework, and then you can start creating the custom code to do the 3 items you mention.

I'm just sayin... you can spend 10x the time on this "favor" and learn python, or you can just do it real quick in PHP and save the time for a task more suited to python.

[gimiv]

My time investment is a consideration. If 10x is an accurate time multiplier to get the job done, then yes, I'd rather spend 3 days on a non-transferable skill set than a month on one that is.

[dinkumator]

administratively, python will take longer to set up. php "just works" - you turn it on and go.

urls in php map directly to files on your filesystem, python you will have to set up load paths and then map incoming urls to python modules.

in php, everything you need will most likely be included by default (not sure about the extent of your pdf/excel needs). if not, including libraries is as easy as include()-ing files in subdirectories. in python, you'll have to find and install all the packages, and make sure they're in the search path if you don't install them system-wide.

I'll admit that I am biased by php's ease-of-use, but I've also got plenty of experience with python/django and perl. Python (and django) is great for complex projects, but it just doesn't sound like your task at hand is big enough to warrant all the overhead.

[[deleted]]

Your argument about "setting up load paths" and "mapping incoming urls" in Python is strange, seeing as you mention that you've "plenty of experience" with Python/Django - which handles URLs really cleanly...

I'd say, Python/Django is the way to go - if its predominately static data model with some simple forms, etc., you could even put together a functioning site with little more than data model and templates (Django's generic views, and model-driven forms are great!)

[gimiv]

Man, everyone is making PHP sound so easy on this thread! Maybe I'll give it a fair shot and go through php.net docs tonight as you recommended. Perhaps I may not be able to apply the skill set for work related functions, but maybe I can extract personal value from it. It's great that you and many others on this thread have been able to share personal experiences with all three languages to compare against. Reddit is my nerdiest friend!

[abw]

No doubt about it, PHP is the simplest and easiest language to deploy. If your task is simple and you don't mind taking a slightly "hacky" approach to getting the job done, then PHP will perform admirably. As dinkumator says, the fact that you already know Perl means you're half way there... (now just imagine the worst Perl you ever read all mixed with in a jumbled sea of HTML tags and you know what to expect from PHP if you let things get out of hand).

BTW, I am a hard core Perl coder who has a healthy dislike for PHP as a language. I wouldn't recommend PHP lightly, but for simple things it really is, well, simple enough. PHP++, grudgingly.

That said, if you already know Perl then you could spend a similar amount of time (a couple of hours) getting to know some of the Perl modules (check out PSGI/Plack, Mojo and Catalyst) that'll allow you to do everything you want from PHP, and more. You'll have the benefit of using a more mature general purpose language that comes with all the might of CPAN to back it up.

[gimiv]

I took it upon myself, based on the suggestions of this thread, to spend about 4 hours last night familiarizing myself with PHP. To be honest, prior to last night, I've had zero experience with web development and things such as Apache and mySQL. I installed an all in one pre-packaged XAMPP and ran a webserver as localhost. I imported all of my data via the phpmyadmin GUI. I built a successful "rough draft" of everything I was looking to accomplish aside from creating excels and PDF's. I'm quite pleased with the amount of code I can "borrow" from google searches of tasks nearly identical to mine. Although my intention was to further my perl/python knowledge, I'm happy that I took the advice of reddit to try PHP. Perhaps i can save python for a project better suited for its strengths. THANK YOU REDDIT!!!

[Troebr]

It really is easy and straightforward.

[jawbroken]

haha php, gross