Python pros and cons


Author: Dave
Date: 11.08.17 - 6:49am



So I have started using python more. I know people love it. Its ok. Here is my pro and con list which i will add to over time.

Pros
  • the cross platform aspect is a very powerful feature and strong draw
  • tons of skilled people use it and there is lots of sample code and libraries
  • it does make allot of things easy and has high level wrappers.
  • thank god for pip, getting packages with compiled dependencies setup used to suck. (i still worry about how trustworthy, audited, and where they came from though looks like ActiveState is addressing this)
  • writing a debugger for it is piss easy
  • interacts well with C and has loads of documentation/examples
Cons
  • python scripts are their own ecosystem. Leveraging python code in another language requires embedding the interpreter and making sure whatever libs they had installed are replicated, you cant just compile it all into one dll.
  • python is slow as hell. a py imphash routine on mshtml.dll took 25 seconds. In vb6 it was .3 sec
  • console apps have their use but most everything I want is GUI for efficiency.
  • py GUI apps are slow and ugly. The GUI code is also super ugly.
  • the forced indenting is annoying and tab/space problems suck. What if I want to disable some try blocks..now I have to unindent everything.
  • essentially every variable is a variant in python. IDE intellisense is left guessing or broken allot. Variants are fine for small scripts, but static typing is way better and makes the IDE experience way better.
  • I hate that allot of errors that should be caught on compilation only show up at runtime when that particular code path is hit! thats insane for large projects.
  • I dislike the None type, it adds one more type to test for and blows things up left and right if you arent expecting it. (And it can easily appear magically)
  • debugging in Wingware or VS2017 is ok, usable..but not as great as VB6. No intellisense in the immediate window, no edit and continue.
  • python is fragmented like linux, especially with IDEs and GUI toolkits
  • some elements of the language feel a bit hacked together like ctypes and COM support
Annoyances:
  • # for comments is much crappier than // or ' to type
  • if you want to disable an if or try, you have to block unindent which sucks
  • the enforced white space thing is stupid, we are adults give us {}
  • import seems to have some nuances still beyond me.
  • vb6 can seamlessly translate "str" & 1 without str() wrapper everywhere, just saying..
My conclusions are:
  • it does make many small tasks quick and easy
  • its useful and necessary and can not be denied
  • I need ways to leverage python code in other languages easily
  • python is the new vb6, immediately accessible to the masses
  • for windows its still not my go to
  • its good for glue, automation, and quick scripts
  • building large projects in it does not seem wise
  • overall its useful but I do not love it





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