Excuse me?
Perl is doing just fine.
The Python community doesn't really need a whipping boy, does it? It was quite offputting to me when Python texts, when promoting the features of the language, were essentially reduced to "It's more readable than Perl!"
Is it as powerful and expressive as Perl or is anything sacrificed for this supposed readability? (I never saw it myself).
An accepted grant to make it easier to compile perl5 on Android is currently in progress: http://news.perlfoundation.org/2012/05/grant-application-imp... | http://news.perlfoundation.org/2012/09/improving-cross-compi....
Also there is Perldroid - http://code.google.com/p/perldroid/
And I assume SL4A is still available on Android? - http://code.google.com/p/android-scripting/
And for many years I had perl5 running on my Symbian phone :)
(Early adopters only!)
I don't give at all credibility to such comments, but I have heard them. Perl's becoming every day more of a niche language.
Maybe some marketing about great Perl built projects could help. Does something like this exist?
Some do get "marketed" via Perl News (http://perlnews.org/) or PerlMonks (http://www.perlmonks.org/). But I know of many Perl built projects which you only get to hear about via contacts, mailing lists or jobs postings.
Here are some announcements of Perl built projects (that I recalled and found quickly)...
* The Secrets Behind Blekko's Search Technology - http://www.readwriteweb.com/hack/2010/12/the-secrets-behind-...
* DuckDuckGo Architecture - http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=525048
* LOVEFiLM’s love affair with open source - http://www.itpro.co.uk/622960/lovefilm-s-love-affair-with-op...
* Trendshare.org - http://www.modernperlbooks.com/mt/2012/09/announcing-my-new-...
And here is a list of Perl start-ups that come to mind: Lokku, Moonfruit, CareerJet & Adzuna.
Marketing is bringing your story to people who don't already know about it. Readers of Perl News and PerlMonks are very likely to already be Perl users/advocates.
^^ Really?