According to Matt Asay, both PHP and Perl are crashing the enterprise party and are rapidly closing the gap between themselves and some of the more traditional "enterprise-ish" tools out there (like Java or .NET).
While dynamic programming languages like PHP and Python dominate Web engineering, the signs that they are breaking Java and .Net's hold on the enterprise are less clear. Forrester recently reported that PHP claims the highest instance of open source use within enterprises, at 57 percent penetration. But it's also the case that the bulk of enterprise software spending goes to Java and .Net-based software. Who is winning?
He links to a graph from Indeed showing the trends in the job market with PHP and Python (two dynamic languages) shooting their way to the top.
No, Java and .Net aren't going away anytime soon. But then, neither are the dynamic programming languages, which are increasingly blessed "enterprise ready." This is good for enterprise software, and potentially very good for ActiveState, SugarCRM, and others who build their businesses on dynamic programming languages.