Is Python the right hammer for this nail? (build script) [closed]

Question

Currently I'm using a Windows batch file to build my software. It does things like running MSBuild, copying files, creating a ZIP file, running some tests, including the subversion revision number, etc.

But the problem is, batch files are evil. So I would like to change to something better. I was planning to recreate my build script in Python. Is that a smart choice? What about all those build systems, like Ant, SCons, Maven, Rake, etc. Would using any of those be a better choice?

Note: I'm not planning to replace my Visual Studio solution/project files. I only want to script everything else that's required to create a release of my software.

Edit: I have good reasons to move away from batch, that's not what my question is about. I would like to know (for example) what SCons gives me, over a normal Python script.

Answer 1

For a tool that is scripted with Python, I happen to think Paver is a more easily-managed and more flexible build automator than SCons. Unlike SCons, Paver is designed for the plethora of not-compiling-programs tasks that go along with managing and distributing a software project.