Python 3000 released!

Python 3.0 has just been released! Be wary though, this is just an alpha release, with beta releases next year and hopefully the final version will be delivered by August 2008.

For those who are not familiar with Python, it is a high-level and multi-paradigm programming language (functional, object oriented and imperative) which has a fully dynamic type system and uses automatic memory management; it is thus similar to Perl, Ruby, Scheme, and Tcl. [wikipedia.org]

Its new version is called Python 300 (a.k.a. "Py3k", and released as Python 3.0) is a new version of the language that is incompatible with the 2.x line of releases. The language is mostly the same, but many details, especially how built-in objects like dictionaries and strings work, have changed considerably, and a lot of deprecated features have finally been removed. [python.org]

So if you are ready to learn the wonderful world of python, well I just started myself, click here to download the new alpha version of the language. Be warned though, this is not yet a stable release.

Of Rails and other Programming Languages

Recently I chatted with a colleague of mine from work. Here is the excerpt of our conversation.

• Stefan: Have you seen this? www.ubercool.dk.
• Jan2x: Nope! Wait… It has nothing on it?
• Stefan: Well… I planned to use that site where my friends will post their pictures. And I will use Ruby on Rails for it.
• Jan2x: Really now? But do you know how to code in Rails? You’re a Perl guy!
• Stefan: I have books here and Rails is cool!

After a few days

• Jan2x: Hey did you know that Rails was created by a Danish? (Well Stefan is a Danish)
• Stefan: I know! So are C++ and C#.

Well I look it up at wikipedia.org and low and behold, Denmark produces some of the greatest software developers on Earth. And I was wondering, what are the other nationalities that created or spear-headed some of the most influential programming languages. And with the help of wikipedia again I found out that…

• PHP – created by another Danish
• Ruby – created by a Japanese
• C, Java, Perl and BASIC – created by the Americans
• Python – created by a Dutch

Absent from this list are the Chinese and the Indians? Do you know any programming languages or frameworks created by these two IT powerhouses? And where are the Filipinos? I’m hoping that a Filipino could really make something revolutionary and could make an impact in the computer science world, now that we are already recognized as a software outsourcing destination. If that day will come well count me in!