I'm writing a Library Technology Report for ALA TechSource on short, useful
programs people have written (in whatever language) in libraries, so....ask
me again in six months and I'll have a giant list for you ;)

(In the meantime, if you've written short -- under a hundred-ish line --
programs that do fun or useful things for your library, and ideally if
"developer" is *not* in your job title, let's talk.)

IMO advantages of Python include:
* (Relative) ease of learning and reading
* Python makes it particularly easy to write string-manipulation-type stuff
* Tons of high-quality packages available (pymarc, written by code4libbers,
is particularly library-relevant)
* A large, often friendly user community that cares about outreach and
diversity
* For me personally, it's the only programming language I know that's ever
felt *fun* to write

The main disadvantage in a library context is that the big open-source
projects used in libraries tend not to be in Python. Also, if you want to
use Python for a web app, you're going to also want to learn Django or
Flask or something (which, mind you, are great; it just feels like a hurdle
if you're used to embedding PHP in HTML pages).

So if your goal is to script some part of your workflow (especially if you
need to munch on MARC, csv, text, data...), Python is awesome. If you want
to be hacking on Hydra or Koha or Drupal or Wordpress or something, you'll
need a different language.


Andromeda Yelton
LITA Board of Directors, Director-at-Large, 2013-2016
http://andromedayelton.com
@ThatAndromeda


On Wed, May 7, 2014 at 9:13 AM, Julia <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> Hi All,
>
> This is my first time posting to Code4Lib.  Now seems like a good time.
>
> I am wondering how you have applied Python in your library.  What projects
> have been successful?  What have you heard of other libraries doing?  What
> advantages or disadvantages does it have compared to other scripting
> languages used in the library field?
>
> If you have any thoughts on any of those questions, I'd love to hear from
> you.
>
> Thanks,
> Julia
> [log in to unmask]
> Simmons College Library
>