Web Programming Matters Most

Ian Bicking: Why Web Programming Matters Most.

I am a Python programmer, but as I've noted before, I've been frustrated trying to figure out the "right" or "best" way to develop web applications in Python. I can and do use Python for command line utilities, but web progamming is what I do and it's what I think about when I want to solve a problem and have people use it.

Think about it this way: The web won the API War. Which programming language is going to give me the easiest meta-API for programming to the the web?

Right now, it's PHP for commodity stuff and Java on the high end. Neither of these are very attractive for the enthusist programmer. PHP is an abomination, giving Perl a run for its money, and Java is heavy-weight and hard to get cheap hosting. I would love to have another alternative. It should have lots of developers so I know it's got a future. It'd be nice if it was cheap to get hosting, too. Right now, Ruby on Rails is winning the PR battle to be this platform.