Lou's Python Advocacy Page

Until this summer, Python was our leading candidate for the development of a new analysis tool suite for our research and perhaps even the WRF model. However, our final solution is to combine NCL and Python together, until Python matures futher. However, I think Python is a GREAT language, and indeed might become very widely used during the next decade because it is so easy to learn, has thousands of built-in functions and procedures which make many task, such as parsing files, creating lists, hash tables, etc., etc., very easy for mere mortals like myself.

Python has an excellent set of language features, including:

Built in ability to interface to Fortran-90, C, C++, and Objective-C modules through the CXX, SWIG and Pyfort utilities

Completely open source and freely distributable under GPL

Runs on almost all available platforms (Unix, Mac, Windows, NT, Linux)

An object orientated programing model

Built in ability to interface to Fortran-90, C, C++, and Objective-C modules through the CXX, SWIG and Pyfort utilities

Has a large community developing and maintaining source modules

Can be implemented as a scripting language as well as a program language

Has numerical, scientific, Tkinter/GUI bindings and modules for doing a wide variety of tasks

Is simple to learn

But don't take my word for it. See papers referenced below for more opinions on the advantages/disadvantages of Python.