How To Learn Python Effectively?

How can I find a Python job with the ability to learn Scala/Clojure/Erlang?

• I'm a software engineer with 5 years of extensive working experience (for real - from web-services development to reverse engineering). I have a deep Python knowledge (I really enjoyed reading Python sources), I was hacking on CLR internals when I was programming in C#, and I'm writing in Java from time to time since high school. And now I found myself interested in distributed systems and functional programming. But now I guess whether it's possible to find a job where I could work as an experienced Python programmer and learn Scala or Clojure or Erlang alongside. Unfortunately, all job opening that I've seen are sounds like 'needed Java programmer with desire to learn Scala', but what about combining languages from 'different worlds (VMs)'?

• Answer:

  My first exposure to Erlang was when I had to develop a performance test harness for mainframe transactions that scaled essentially to infinity.  I built a prototype in Python just to see that I understood what the problem was in the necessary detail, then I built what I thought was going to be the final version in C.  Once I started to load it up and try it out, I realised that the C version would never scale as far as I would need it to, so I rewrote it in Erlang which worked like a dream. My suggestion to you would be to not look for a job that fits your model, but to try to find a similar situation in your current job - somewhere that Python isn't going to work too well (extreme workload and/or extreme reliability would be the 2 scenarios I'd look for, as that's where Erlang shines and Python is relatively weak) - and then build a "temporary" solution in Erlang.  If you do it well enough, your temporary solution will become the "real" solution and you'll have become "The Erlang Guy". As far as learning Scala/Clojure/Erlang goes, I taught myself Clojure and Erlang purely from books and building small apps in my spare time.  I wouldn't consider myself expert in either of them, but I could comfortably hold down a job in either and have been offered roles using both.  The only reason I've been offered jobs that use those tools is because people have seen my other work, I've shown them my Erlang/Clojure code and they've been impressed enough in both the code and my work history to want to take me on.  People want to hire inquisitive coders; the problem is that it's usually hard to track them down.  Make sure you're inquisitive, and easy to track down when someone's looking for the skills you're interested in using!