I am working on a project that requires reading text files, extracting data from them, and then generating reports (text files). Since there are a lot of string parsing, I decided to do it in Perl or Python or PHP (preference in that order). But I don't want to expose the source code to my client. Is there any good compiler for compiling perl/python/php scripts into linux executables?
I am not looking for a 100% perfect one, but I am looking for an at least 90% perfect one. By perfect, I mean the compiler doesn't require to write scripts with a limited subset of language features.
I'm sorry, it's simply not worth spending your time on. For any language you choose (from among the ones you listed), for any compiler/obfuscator someone chooses to come up with, I promise you I can get readable source code out of it (within an hour if it's Perl; longer if it's Python or PHP simply because I'm less acquainted with the implementations of those languages, not because it's intrinsically harder with those languages).
I think you should take a better look at what your goals are and why you want to work for a client that you're assuming a priori wants to rip you off. And if you still want to go ahead with such a scheme, write in C or Fortran -- certainly not anything starting with "P".
Good compilers for compiling perl/python/php scripts into linux executables?