If you’re a software engineer, you may feel overwhelmed by the industry’s quick pace. That’s okay. Sometimes I feel that way, especially while following the current trends.
By learning efficiently, you can be well-informed and use that knowledge to your advantage.
Programming languages abound. New ones are created every week—and don’t get me started on JavaScript frameworks.
Learn popular programming languages first. Choose the ones that make the most sense based on your knowledge, employment situation, and other criteria.
Choose a functional language if you want to learn the functional paradigm. Repetition. This post explains. We’ve listed five most popular programming languages. Now read and use it.
Sources
Where did we get this post’s data? Tiobe and GitHub are two of the most authoritative measures for ranking programming languages.
Programming Tiobe
Tiobe has compiled an index of major programming languages for decades. This list is updated periodically using hundreds of global sources.
Here’s how to calculate the Tiobe Index.
GitHub
GitHub is a popular code repository. Every year, they publish a Year in Review report with programmer statistics. This data shows language popularity.
This piece also predicts programming language futures.
We use many resources to anticipate fast-growing and influential languages. These observations are debatable, but they’re worth examining if you want to stay ahead.
Start. Here are 2019’s top programming languages and future projections.
Programming languages
Tiobe considers developer numbers, training courses, and third-party providers. Most of this info comes from searching. The Tiobe Index is explained. We also use statistics from GitHub’s yearly Year in Review report.
Using GitHub data, we can see the most popular languages and the fastest-growing ones.
Explaining Programming Languages
Why are programming languages popular? We’ll examine five popular languages to see how they’re used and why people enjoy them.
Java
Java has been Tiobe’s 1 or 2 most popular language since the mid-1990s. The world’s largest corporations utilize Java to build desktop programs and online backends.
Java skills won’t leave you jobless.
Java’s popularity stems from several factors.
Java is portable thanks to the platform-agnostic JVM. Java is the most popular Android language, hence most Android apps use it.
When web companies develop, they become Java shops, says James Governor.
Java is scalable, thus it’s popular with companies and scaling startups (Twitter moved from Ruby to Java for scaling purposes). Java is faster and easier to maintain because it’s statically typed. Old versions of the language will still work after new ones are published. This is a relief for firms that would have to rewrite their programming with each new edition.
Community-sized: A large user base ensures Java’s future appeal. Developers may obtain support for almost any problem on Stack Overflow and GitHub. Developers recognize that Java’s portability means long-term returns.
Stackify Retrace and Prefix help Java developers understand their code. Browse the web’s greatest Java courses if you’re still studying.
C-language
C is one of the oldest, most popular programming languages because to its adaptability and early adoption by Microsoft, Apple, Linux, and Oracle. C is popular for embedded systems in autos, electronics, and other devices. From cell phones to alarm clocks, nearly everything we touch today is affected by or written in C.
Why is it popular today? First, it’s portable assembling. It’s compatible with almost every system and runs as low as possible. C is great for operating systems and embedded devices (like your car’s dashboard). C’s small runtime helps keep systems compact.
Programmers should learn C.
C is used for online algorithms. It’s the programming “universal language” C spinoffs like C++ and C# are very popular, highlighting C’s influence.
Python.
Python’s popularity has climbed gradually over the past 15 years, breaking the top 5 on the Tiobe Index. Python is a key language in many cutting-edge technologies.
Python is used in machine learning, AI, Big Data, and robotics (Robotics also relies on C for its use in systems programming). Python is used in cyber security, a top software challenge.
Python’s simplicity is unexpected. It’s the most popular university beginning language and a second or third language for experienced developers.
PHP
JavaScript is one of the most popular programming languages in the world and has the most pull requests on GitHub. JavaScript has its flaws (more on that later), but it has held its own against newer languages and will remain important on the web. JavaScript enables interactive web page effects. It commonly works with HTML, although JavaScript-only apps are becoming more widespread.
More startups and IT companies are using JavaScript on the backend via the Node.js framework.
Ruby is a popular startup language.
Ruby is popular among developers. Ruby’s concise syntax lets developers do more with less code.
Ruby on Rails makes it faster to launch a web application than competing frameworks.
Startups love the language because it allows them to “move fast and damage things.”
Ruby’s dynamic typing makes it flexible and ideal for prototypes, but hard to maintain at scale. Ruby’s dynamic nature obscures code faults and consumes computer resources as a project grows. Twitter migrated to Java because of this.
2020 programming languages
After looking at the most popular programming languages, we’ll anticipate what’s next in 2020 and beyond.
Based on past trends, we’re optimistic that the top programming languages won’t change significantly.
Where do winds blow? Let’s look ahead.
Tiobe will name a new Language of the Year in a few weeks; Kotlin and C are candidates. C is one of the oldest (1987) while Kotlin is one of the newest languages (2011).
Let’s compare languages.
Kotlin
Kotlin, JetBrains’ statically-typed programming language, has thrived in recent years. Kotlin was named an official Android programming language in 2017. Android is the most popular mobile development platform and the third most popular overall, according to StackOverflow. Kotlin was the fastest-growing language in 2018, according to GitHub.
Kotlin’s popularity is due to its 100% compatibility with Java and its use of Java Virtual Machine (Java is another official Android language). Kotlin compiles to JavaScript, making it ideal for front- and back-end development.
Expect to hear more about Kotlin in the future, and if possible, learn it (it’s easy).
C-language
What’s behind C’s newfound popularity? C is a great language for embedded systems, and everything is becoming one. C is a popular programming language for wearables and automotive dashboards. More “smart” goods will increase C’s use.
Top programming languages
Which programming languages will be influential in the future?
The technology built on top of a language can help define its “influence” (see Python and C).
Examine a language’s capacity to solve intrinsic software challenges. Let’s focus on the second definition for novelty’s sake. Jake Ehrlich, a software developer and programming language aficionado, shared his insights. Individual difficulties are more influential than language, said Ehrlich. “Currently, Moore’s law is our biggest challenge.”
For the first time in decades, computer chip producers aren’t keeping up with Moore’s Law. Software developers must create sophisticated web apps with the same computer capability.
Ehrlich also mentions power usage.
Ehrlich claimed batteries aren’t improving despite more devices using them. We require power-efficient hardware and software.
Ehrlich advises using native languages to solve both problems. The same qualities that promote speed and responsiveness also help design power-efficient programs. Ehrlich expects hardware will adopt native languages like Go, Swift, and Rust.
