NYCPHP Meetup

[Paul A Houle]

Ajai Khattri wrote:
> On Sat, 15 Aug 2009, Leam Hall wrote:
>
>   
>> Of course, now part of me wonders if Python could cover where PHP 
>> doesn't and we could keep Java contained in the Uni classroom. That 
>> might help computer load levels a good bit...
>>     
>
> Why not Ruby?
>
>   
    Looking at post-PHP alternatives,  I gave up on both Python and Ruby 
pretty quickly.  Although Python and Ruby are more advanced languages in 
some ways,  they're not "better enough" than PHP to be worth the cost of 
switching.  There's also the issue that neither one has developed a 
completely satisfactory server runtime,  although Ruby has come close.

    Python,  Ruby,  PHP and all other dynamic languages are going to be 
handicapped when it comes to concurrent programming.  Although languages 
of that type ~can~ support threads with primitives much like Java,  they 
invariably have data structures that require locking (symbol tables) 
that reduce the amount of concurrency they can exploit.  Open source 
languages also tend to depend on legacy libraries that aren't thread 
safe:  the "100% Pure Java" xenophobia has helped Java create one of the 
very few runtimes that supports concurrency on different platforms.