I am always slightly amused by the concept of popularity rating programming languages.

In terms of which language has the most executables in daily use, the answer is -- COBOL. Followed closely by FORTRAN.

Shell, C, C++, IBM Assembler, Perl, Python are right up there. (I don't have any feel for where to put JCL, IBM's Job Control Language, since it's used by every Banking Institution, Medical Organization, Insurance Company, Stock Brokerage, Governmental Agency, etc on the planet to control the execution of all those COBOL programs.)

So, in direct response to your question, I don't really care.

I have always collected programming languages. I want to know enough about a given language to be able to determine its strengths and (more importantly) its weaknesses. When I was actively in The Business, I always tried to recommend the language(s) that best fit the Client's environment, problem, and expertise. My job was to craft a solution for the Client rather than for my own personal preference.

That said, in my Retirement, I am using Perl, Ruby on Rails, and Postgress for my home-brew music inventory system. Right now I have a Python window open for a quick calculator, a Perl window for quick prototyping, and a couple of Vim windows opened on source files. I am currently extending a Web-facing tool kit for a non-Profit using Apache, FastCGI, Perl, Shell, and Python.

In the past two years I have written a backup-tape inventory using Perl and Windows Excel; a network monitoring package in IBM Assembler, and a financial reporting application in Perl and Shell. (Why yes, I am busier now that I was before I retired. The difference is that now I can choose what project I will work on. Bosses can be so non-understanding when you tell them: "I wrote that for you last year; why do I want to do it again? What New and Interesting Thing is there in your new Client's new project?")

And, when People ask about why I selected a particular programming language for their project, I tell that I try follow the advice of the Mikado:

'Let the Punishment fit the Crime'.