Had a total flip on learning Python versus starting with JavaScript

I was dead set on learning JavaScript first because everyone says it's more practical for beginners. But then I tried following a tutorial to scrape some roofing supply prices off a few sites, and the JavaScript version was a nightmare with async stuff and callbacks. A buddy who does data stuff showed me Python with BeautifulSoup and I had the data pulled in about 20 minutes flat. Made me realize that "easy" depends a lot on what you're actually trying to do. Anybody else find their first language choice got changed by a single project?

2 comments

2 Comments

amy_sanchez18d ago

Heard a dev podcast say JavaScript handles the web but Python handles everything else.

hernandez.brooke18d ago

Funny enough I had the exact same thing happen but with web development. Everyone pushes JavaScript as the obvious beginner language but then I actually tried building a simple inventory tracker for my small landscaping business. JavaScript was fine for the frontend stuff but trying to get it to save data locally and sync across devices was a huge headache. Threw together a quick Python script with sqlite3 and a basic local server and it just worked. Made me realize the whole "JavaScript is easier" thing really only applies if you're building websites and nothing else.