It seems like one of these sort of (opinion) articles pops up every once and a while, and they always cause their share of controversy. This new post on NetTuts.com comparing PHP and Ruby is no different (over 70 comments and counting).

It's time; queue the "Going the Distance" theme from Rocky. In the red ring: Envato developer extraordinaire, Ryan Allen, who built the original FlashDen with his cold bare hands. In the blue corner: Michael Wales, a well known member in the PHP and CodeIgniter communities. The battle? PHP vs. Ruby. Fight!

The two contenders in this "fight" were asked the same questions and answers from both sides are shared to help balance things out. The questions were things like:

• Do you feel that your language is more suited to beginners or advanced users?
• Many PHP developers move on to Ruby after a few years. Have you found this to be the case, and, if so, why do you think it's so common?
• Are there instances when you might choose to use Ruby for one project, and PHP for another?
• What specifically does your language have that the other does not -- if anything?
• How does Ruby or PHP's community compare to the other?

Be sure to check out the comments - there's lots of good thoughts from the communities on both sides there too.