What are the recommended scripting languages for complex shell scripts beyond bash?
I've been struggling with a rather complex shell script, and it's becoming apparent that Bash might not be the best choice for this particular task. While I usually gravitate towards statically typed languages like Go or Rust, I've noticed that many people recommend alternative languages such as Lua or Python for scripting tasks.
I'm curious to know your opinions and experiences with scripting languages for larger or more intricate shell scripts. Have you ever encountered a situation where Bash just didn't cut it, and if so, which scripting languages did you turn to for a more effective solution? Are there any specific languages you found particularly suitable for debugging, testing, or handling complex logic in your shell scripts?
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This is the correct answer. Perl is shell-like with support for advanced data structures and data parsing capabilities. Modern Perl is very slick, especially with the new object system.
Perl or Raku?
Both are good and they each have their uses.
Perl is very Unix-y, recent releases have a very good object system, and Perl is quite fast but the syntax can take some getting used to. CPAN is a huge database of Perl modules, you'll likely find what you need module wise.
Raku is amazingly flexible and I like its object and type systems more than other languages. The only only down side is compared Perl is that Raku on the slow side, even Python is faster at the moment. Raku has a much more consistent syntax than Perl but the module ecosystem is nowhere near as big.
I'd say try both and use what seems to be the most optomal for whatever task you're dealing with. Personally, I use both for quick scripts about equally with performance and module availability usually being the deciding factors.
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