#1, TL, IronPython integrates the Python programming language with .NET - it provides access to the .NET framework and all of its libraries.
Like many light-weight programming languages, designed to fit within the CLR, it is about providing a universal virtual machine to support all of these languages in the same way heavy-weight statically typed and traditionally compiled programming languages are supported.
That says more about .NET and what it is all about, than it does any one langauge supported within the framework - simply, provide a common and powerful framework upon which many langauges of different types can be supported and expose them to the same results - e.g., produce commercially viable, robust and powerful software that can be run on common systems [W2K3/2008 server, for example].
Now, Python, which has been around a very long time, might be just the language you are looking for. It is more readable, but will take more time to get the same things written in many cases [over other languages]. It does have automated memory management and since it is not formally specified, you'll find it to be very flexible and easy to shape to your needs. Just remember, leveraging the IDE and .NET is as important as the language you choose to write in [as is any IDE, for that matter (I do think .NET is very complete and it gets better each day)]. CPython is the most commonly use variant, but that is rapidly changing - courtesy of IronPython and .NET. It has won a lot of converts over from Perl - which I think is a driver here.
All that said, and if you're just getting back into programming, I'd go here, http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/express/beginner/
Microsoft has set up a full online lab and training guides that will take one step by step through learning the technologies used to build applications of all types using the .NET framework and their IDE. Best of all, it's free and very lightweight - you won't need engineers to set up the IDE for you. For my money, I'd get into ASP/ASP.NET and C# and skip some of the others. You'll always find people that can use the work you'll perform. Finally, right after you get into it [like a few weeks in], I'd get my hands on the source code and DB for a really good app and DB and study the heck out of the DB and how it is designed. Understand how your code works with the DB and what drives solid DB design and the entire process and matter of applications dev will fall apart in front of you. Without that "construct" if you will, it will take a very long time for you to advance from ultra simple apps, to those that have industrial/commercial viability. If you study the DB and see how it works with the code, you'll move along faster than you can imagine. **You'll also learn to jump into exising apps more efficiently and learn how to build using modules - the real key to building "Profitable" applications. (To take a bridge, you have to hit both ends at once).
|