I still use ODBC. Didn't find the argument convincing."off-putting" describes that blog you linked. The hipster/programmer attitude is like smelly feet.
From what I remember there's a heavy xml processing bias, the python isn't that idiomatic (partially due to new features being introduced since its publishing date) and the libraries used for particular tasks aren't the best. Most of its problems stem from it being dated. I think Mark Pilgrim is a good author and teacher though, and even now this might make up for its faults to a degree.
I would disagree. I personally used Dive Into Python to learn Python. If you know programming, Dive Into Python is a great Python primer. Besides, reading is useless. You want to write code as soon as possible.
