Server Side Python
I'm doing my stuff in Java, and I'll explain what and how at some point when I've got something to show, but I was wondering about Server Side Python. There seems to be a movement towards Python in the Java community for a lot of the scripting needs, including using Jython as a way to script actions. But with Python itself, there doesn't seem to be an industrial strength answer to J2EE. 90% of what I do uses the web as a front end (or mobile phones with an XHTML browser now - same thing basically), so to me the server side is really the only thing I'm looking at.
I'm really swayed the argument about the productivity of Python and how its organization and conciseness leads to faster developed and easier to maintain code. However, when I went looking for a way to replace Orion Server with something in the Python world, there isn't such a beast. There only seems to be a few specific ways of developing Python for server-side apps. There's Zope, Webware and a bunch of CGI stuff. Hmm... That's not really what I was expecting.
Webware is the obvious winner of the three options because it mimics J2EE's style of programming down to the JSP-style PSP pages and the Python Servlets. I like it. But I have *no* idea if it's robust. No idea if there's a decent community around it. No idea if in three months any experience I have developing for that server will be worth anything real. Top this off with the fact that when I tried to use it, it doesn't work. I downloaded the latest, unzipped, followed the install directions and it dies. No idea why. Not something that gives me a lot of confidence.
Zope, by the way, is just too weird. It's its own world with a massive learning curve and is more a CMS app than the generic app server I'm looking for. So it's out, despite the fact that it is the highest profile Python app there is.
But I'm looking for an Orion Server killer. Robust, fast-enough not to require Apache, standards-based, able to host multiple websites using HTTP 1.1 (that's how I have so many sites... older HTTP 1.0 clients only see this weblog if they try to see mobitopia or manywhere), integrated database pooling, and more. Is there such a beast in the Python world? If not, I wonder why not?
Anyways, like I said, I'm sticking with Java at the moment, but I'd really like to see if all the Python hype is true... if you're a Python pro, drop me a note and explain to me how I would host a real live site using Python because right now I just don't see how it works.
-Russ