I've recently had to make a similar transition for work reasons, and it's been pretty painful. For better or worse, Python has a very different philosophy and way of working than Perl, and getting used to that can be frustrating. The things I've found most useful have been

• Spend a few hours going through all the basics. I found theofficial tutorial quite good, if a little dry.
• A good reference book to look up basic stuff ("how do I get the length of a string again?"). The ones I've found most useful are thePython Pocket Reference andPython Essential Reference.
• Take a look at this handyPerl<->Python phrasebook (common tasks, side by side, in both languages).
• A reference for the Python approach to "common tasks". I use thePython Cookbook.
• Anipython terminal open at all times to test syntax, introspect object methods etc.
• Getpip andeasy-install (to install Python modules easily).
• Learn about unit tests fast. This is because withoutuse strict you will feel crippled, and you will make many elementary mistakes which will appear as runtime errors. I recommendnose rather than theunittest framework that comes with the core install. unittest is very verbose if you're used toTest::More.
• Check out Python questions on Stack Overflow. In particular,Python - Things one MUST avoid andPython 2.x gotcha’s and landmines are well worth a read.

Personally, I foundDive Into Python annoying and patronising, but it's freely available online, so you can form your own judgment on that.

If you happen to be a fan ofThe Perl Cookbook, you might be interested in checking outPLEAC, the Programming Language Examples Alike Cookbook, specificallythe section that shows the Perl Cookbook code translated into Python.

Being a hardcore Perl programmer, all I can say isDO NOT BUY O'Reilly's "Learning Python". It is nowhere NEAR as good as "Learning Perl", and there's no equivalent I know of to Larry Wall's "Programming Perl", which is simply unbeatable.

I've had the most success taking past Perl programs and translating them into Python, trying to make use of as many new techniques as possible.

Check out theofficial tutorial, which is actually pretty good. If you are interested in web development you should be ready at that point to jump right in to the documentation of the web framework you will be working with; Python has many to choose from, with zope, cherrypy, pylons, and werkzeug all having good reputations.

I would not try to search for things specifically meant to help you transition from Perl, which are not to be of as high of quality as references that can be useful for more people.

This is the site you should really go to. There's a section calledGetting Started which you should take a look. There are also recommendations on books. On top of that, you might also be interested inthis on "idioms"

If what you are looking at is succinct, concise reference to python then the bookPython Essential Referencemight be helpful.

I wouldn't try to compare Perl and Python too much in order to learn Python, especially since you have working knowledge of other languages. If you are unfamiliar with OOP/Functional programming aspects and just looking to work procedurally like in Perl, start learning the Python language constructs / syntax and then do a couple examples. if you are making a switch to OO or functional style paradigms, I would read up on OO fundamentals first, then start on Python syntax and examples...so you have a sort of mental blueprint of how things can be constructed before you start working with the actual materials. this is just my humble opinion however..

• python
• perl