Which language is Craigslist written in?

Question

I know, I know - it probably doesn't (and shouldn't) matter - I've read this comment. But as a newbie just learning Python, I'm quite intrigued. The source seems to reference Javascript a few times - would the whole site be in this? Any idea about the rest of the technology stack behind the site?

Looking at the technology behind some of my fave sites is proving to be quite an interesting way to learn about the pros and cons of various languages/frameworks.

EDIT: Don't mean to sound like an exam, but give reasons for your answer :-) eg. why would/wouldn't you recommend following in their footsteps?

Answer 1

From http://www.craigslist.org/about/thanks:

• linux - essential to craigslist
• apache - open source web server par excellence
• mySQL - a fantastic open source SQL database
• perl - virtually all craigslist software is written in perl
• GNU - emacs, gcc, bash, and the very concept of free software
• openBSD - virtually crashproof
• [...]

(the list goes on)

Answer 2

According to this interview with Craig from 2008, it's mostly written in Perl.

EDIT: You also asked about the remainder of the technology stack used there, which in the interview linked above is referred to as "pretty conventional LAMP architecture, a whole bunch of Linux systems, Apache, MySQL, and Perl specifically mod_perl." As regards your specific mention of Javascript, Craigslist doesn't appear to be an especially Javascript-intensive site, but a quick "view source" confirmed that they do use jQuery.

Answer 3

Yeah Craigslist is built to run on absolute minimal processing power. I would NOT recommend following in it's footsteps.

EDIT

Just so no one gets the wrong idea. I'm not saying the way CL was designed is wrong. In fact it's pretty ingenious. However, they designed the application a long time ago and since then bandwidth, processing and hosting services overall have become much much cheaper. Essentially what I'm saying is, writing an application in the same manner now-a-days would be foolish.

Much love for CL though. I've landed quite a few clients through that site. :)