[BioEdu] re: Languages and environments

[Greg Wilson]

There's a lot of empirical data showing that which language you choose is
secondary to which working practices you surround it with [1] --- you can
use C++, Java, Perl, Python, or whatever else you want, as long as you use
them well.  The Software Carpentry course [2] introduces some of these
practices (and includes a five-part tutorial on Python); the most
important are:

- version control
- automating build and execution
- test-driven development
- using a symbolic debugger

[3] explains why; [4] has a self-assessment you can use to see how likely
your current practices are to succeed.

Thanks,
Greg

[1] http://www.third-bit.com/reading.html#glass-facts-fallacies
[2] http://swc.scipy.org
[3] http://www.americanscientist.org/template/AssetDetail/assetid/48548
[4] http://swc.scipy.org/lec/intro.html