Currently I'm using a Windows batch file to build my software. It does things like running MSBuild, copying files, creating a ZIP file, running some tests, including the subversion revision number, etc.
But the problem is, batch files are evil. So I would like to change to something better. I was planning to recreate my build script in Python. Is that a smart choice? What about all those build systems, like Ant, SCons, Maven, Rake, etc. Would using any of those be a better choice?
Note: I'm not planning to replace my Visual Studio solution/project files. I only want to script everything else that's required to create a release of my software.
Edit: I have good reasons to move away from batch, that's not what my question is about. I would like to know (for example) what SCons gives me, over a normal Python script.
As you're mentioning Python and SCons, I'd say go for SCons. It is Python after all. And yes, any of the above would be a better choice than hand-rolled build scripts.
Is Python the right hammer for this nail? (build script)