The work as a geographer with statistical and remote-sensing related focus arise the necessity of mastering a programming language sooner or later.
Lets choose: C, C + +, Java,. Net, C #, VBA decide, etc., but you should ask yourself, what you want to do with your new skills. For me it was important to learn a possible open-source-based language construct. More important to me was the possible range of applications, simple language constructs and documentation, and a widespread use in GIS-related environments. The new language should also be a language that is compatible with applications that I already know and apply. As a result I chose Python.
Here you will find some very good summaries of Python vs. other languages:
Python. vs. C/C++
Python vs. Java vs. Ruby vs. C++
Python vs. “The rest of the world”
But there are also arguments against Python …
Why Python is NOT my favorite language
Finally, I chose Python, because leaving behind initial hurdles is crucial for a successful learning to me and understanding and using a programming language should be fun and should not be characterized by spasm:
Here a nice introduction to Python by Argonne Advanced Photon Source:
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