I’ve taken up Python again. I quickly taught myself Python a few years ago, learning just enough to become enamored with the language before neglect drove it from my brain. I love its brevity, its elegance. I once fooled myself into thinking that Jython would be handy, offering the complete Java API through Python, but right now Java and I aren’t getting along, so that’s not too interesting anymore. So what brings me back to Python? Django and TurboGears, two Python web frameworks that stand to make me more productive with less code. Even if it’s just for fun and I never get the chance to use this stuff at work, I don’t care. I want to hack again.

What about Ruby on Rails? Don’t worry, that’s coming. I like what I see in Ruby — a lot — and it’s just become too hard to ignore Rails. I tried for a while, mostly because the hype factor turned me off, but a closer look at Ruby and a better understanding of what Rails is all about helped me get over that particular prejudice. RubyRails certainly reflects some worthwhile ideas, and I just can’t argue with the productivity it offers.

I wrestled with deciding whether to take up Ruby before Python, but opted for Python because I was afraid that if I started with Ruby it would be months before I returned to Python. My gut is telling me that I’m going to be much more at home in Ruby. Since part of why I’m learning these languages is to expose myself to different ways of thinking, I decided first to learn Python and see how that takes.

Still, Ruby beckons. I figure I’ll pick up the Pickaxe in a couple weeks.