Perl, Python, Ruby, Lisp, etc.?

[Billy Nostrand]

I'm familiar with C/C++ and I like the low level control, and I use Java when I want to get something done quickly. But I'm curious about the languages I mentioned in the title. Why are they used, and what for? I'm just looking for opinions and perspectives from people who have used them. Feel free to go off on a soapbox. I'm all ears! Thanks.

[Guaigean]

Perl - Systems administration, scripting, parsing, regular expressions, etc. Fast, powerful, proven. Python - Good scripting language, requires indentation for loops (no squirly brackets). Support is still mixed but growing. Lots of code out there, and is more recently being adopted for Web based. Ruby - Good OO scripting language. Not as high performance as Perl. Many people choose Python OR Ruby and stick with one. Similar capabilities, choose your flavor. Lisp - Not widely used anymore aside from teaching. Support is fading, but it had it's use in its heyday. Personally, I prefer to use Perl when doing admin scripting, and Python when running simulation/AI type stuff. I don't use Ruby much, but not because it's a bad language. I learned Python first, and figured it's better to be good at 1 of the two than mediocre at both (since they are so similar). Lisp, I haven't used since college.