There are many programming languages available in the world of computers. Roughly there are about 700 programming languages which are available in the market. Each language has its significance. It is extremely important to understand the nature, behavior, and purpose of different languages.
It is impossible and impractical to discuss each one of these languages. But the best thing to do is to look at the top 10 of the most famous and widely used languages. We will look at the most popular languages which are supported by an active community and also have a large fanbase.
Information Technology and Data Science have these programming languages in their foundations. The Data Scientists and Software developers are developing new applications and creating new software for a range of industries such as aviation, banking, logistics, education, healthcare, and the internet of things (IoT), etc.
Learning a computer language is becoming the most important skill in today’s age and time. When we look around, we see computers of the small, medium, and large sizes being utilized in our daily life. From our smartwatch to an aircraft, we see a computer doing some sort of computing to bring ease to our life.
Developers and programmers are propping up at a very fast pace. Yet the thirst of the programming world is unsatiable. Every day a new way is being launched to utilize a computer to carry out a task. Below we will discuss the top 10 languages which are being used. By discussing their features, advantages, and disadvantages, and adaptability we will determine the worth for the future.
Java Programming Language
Java language has been in use since 1995 the time of its birth. Java is widely used for mobile applications; many android applications are developed in Java. It is frequently used for frontend and backend coding of mobile apps. It an object-oriented programming language that is class-based and is used to develop web applications, games, software products, mobile applications, application servers, and web servers.
Android, which is widely used in mobiles, for android app development Java is a prime choice of developers for application development. Data scientists and engineers use Java to develop large-scale data environments for data analysis and studies. Even for Machine Learning development Java libraries are a perfect choice.
Companies like Amazon, Google, Uber, Netflix, Spotify, and Airbnb use Java.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Lots of open-source libraries are available.
- Automatic management of garbage collection and memory resources.
- Object-oriented programming is followed.
- Availability of stack allocation system.
- JVM feature provides a high degree of platform autonomy.
- High security features because of a security manager.
- Provisioning of plentiful APIs for achieving many tasks.
- Multithreading is supported.
Cons
- High-quality data structures cannot be freely created due to a lack of templates.
- Utilizes more memory.
- Slower in comparison to other native compiled languages, like C/C++.
Best java programming courses:
- Servlets and JSPs Tutorial: Learn Web Applications With Java
- Oracle Certification: Mastering Java for Beginners & Experts
Best java programming courses:
Python Programming Language
Python was created by Guido Van Rossum in 1991. It is easy to learn and applies English-like syntax. Python is the kind of language which is also easy for beginners. It has an amazing availability of a library that caters to a wide range of coding requirements.
For web development, Python has libraries like Django and Flask. For Data Science application libraries like SciPy, Keras, and TensorFlow are most suitable. For developing web-based, desktop applications, network servers, ML models, and GUI-based desktop applications Python programming language is used.
Python is easy to learn and is easy to develop programming language. It is frequently used to generate scalable web applications. Python has a large developer community, a large library that is excellent support no matter what your programming requirement.
If you want to change your job move into something better this is the best time to learn Python. A lot of new companies use Python as a backend stack, this fact itself presents to us that there is a huge need for Python developers.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Because of Object-Oriented Programming constructing and utilizing classes and objects has become easy.
- Availability of wide-ranging library support.
- Readability of code is the focus of Python.
- Applications even if complicated can be scaled.
- Quintessential for developing prototypes and faster testing of ideas.
- Ever-expanding community and open source offer good support.
- Has compatibility with different platforms and systems.
- Simple and easy to learn and apply.
Cons
- The mobile computing area is weak.
- In comparison to other languages, performance is slow.
- Database access layers are not fully developed.
Best Python Programming Courses:
Best Python Programming Books:
- Python Crash Course, 2nd Edition: A Hands-On, Project-Based Introduction to Programming
- Learning Python, 5th Edition Fifth Edition
R Programming Language
R is a programming language that was developed in 1993 by two R’s. It was developed by Robert Gentleman and Ross Ihaka, so its name is R is taken from the first alphabet from their names.
R programming language runs on Windows, Linux, and Mac operating systems. To discover a pattern in a large data block R uses statistics. Statistical algorithms utilized in distributed libraries and regular data processing functions are embedded in this language.
To manipulate voluminous data developers, use R as high powered scratchpad within an IDE. Accenture, Cognizant, and Capgemini which are the leading IT firms are using R. One of the exceptional facets of R is that it works as an environment for graphics and statistical computing.
The R habitat is a unified suite of software tools devised for statistical computation, data handling, and graphical display. R programming language is tremendously protractible and presents an array of statistical (time series analysis, classification, clustering, regression, linear/non-linear modeling, etc.) and graphical methods.
R being a multi-criterion software supports functional, imperative, object-oriented, and transactional patterns. Just like Python has a vast array of libraries, R also has an impressive collection of its own. Things like ggplot, leaflet, tidyr, and many more are part of R language library.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- It is free (open source) for all to use anyone can work with it.
- Outstanding support for data squabbling.
- Humongous variety of packages.
- Graphing and plotting can be done in high quality.
- It can be paired with different programming languages because of its compatibility.
- Independent cross-platform programming language.
- Easy to create eye-catching reports.
- High facilitation in machine learning operations.
- R is famous for its statistical tools.
- Continuous evolution.
Cons
- Utilizes more memory.
- The base package does not support 3D graphics.
- Basic security features are missing.
- Complicated for beginners to learn.
- Slower speed in comparison to Python or MATLAB.
- Creates difficulty for programmers due to algorithms being spread over different packages.
Best R Programming Courses:
- Data Science and Machine Learning Bootcamp with R
- The Complete R Programming for Data Science – 7 courses in 1
Best R Programming Learning Books:
C++ Programming Language
C++ has developed three decades ago and was ranked 3rd in 2019 as per the TIOBE index. Even though it is three decades old, but it still dominates the world of information technology. It is one of the most fundamental and famous programming languages in the information technology sector.
C++ assists the fulfillment of low-level administration problems and also supports the current countenance that portrays real-world problems. It is also a major-league object-oriented programming language for general purpose use.
Bjarne Stroustrup noticed that the C programming language is devoid of simulations. He thought of overcoming this problem, so he developed C++ and called it C with classes. The programming language was developed in 1979, Stroustrup added features from his treasured language Simula.
The C++ language has many features, and some will be discussed here in this article. Like Java, Python, and other programming languages C++ is also an object-oriented programming language. It is also versatile meaning that it can perform on multiple platforms. It can be used on Windows and Linux.
Like Python the syntax used in C++ is similar to the English language, making it more understandable. It is considered a high-level language after the addition of Simula features to C. It also differentiates between upper and lower cases giving the programmer more options in apparently similar identifier names.
The C++ programming language has a compiler, before running the program it is compiled by the compiler. The size of variables and or data structure at the time of running the program can be adjusted with a feature of Dynamic Memory Allocation (DMA).
Like other programming languages C++ also has a wide range of libraries available which give access to a wide range of functions. It has an edge over Python and Java when it comes to speed since the language is compiler-based, therefore it is faster.
Pros and Cons
Pro
- Portability provides independence to run the program in multiple environments.
- The object-oriented feature makes it more reliable and allows code reusability.
- Being a multi-paradigm language gives it greater applicability.
- C++ being closely related to C allows low-level manipulation of data.
- Give complete control to the programmer for memory management.
- It has a large fanbase and following hence a lot of support is available.
- It has great compatibility with the C language.
- It has scalability.
Con
- Pointers used in C++ are difficult to understand and eat up a lot of memory.
- Security is not at par with other programming languages which are not object-oriented.
- No garbage collector.
- Built-in threads are not supported by C++.
Best C++ Programming Courses:
- Beginning C++ Programming – From Beginner to Beyond
- Learn C++ Programming -Beginner to Advance- Deep Dive in C++
Best C++ Programming Books:
- The C++ Programming Language, 4th Edition
- Programming: Principles and Practice Using C++ (2nd Edition)
C Programming Language
C is no doubt the most prominent programming language. It is also known as the mother of all programming languages. It is a high-profile language that is also primitive. The spectrum of this high-profile language is at the low-level end.
C programming language develops in the programmer the logistical approach to solve a problem; it induces a mindset to solve day-to-day real-life situations using a specific algorithm. It was developed in 1972 at AT&T’s Bell laboratories. It is an uncomplicated and fascinating programming language that assists you to develop complicated software applications with ease.
C programming language is a procedural language which means that it follows a systematic structure that specifies all the steps the computer must adapt to reach the desired output. It is also called a high-level language reason being that the language used in programming is similar to the language humans use to communicate.
Simultaneously it is also a low-level language, which makes it a friendly language for the machine to understand. It has many features which we will discuss briefly. It has a syntax that is easy to understand. It also supports dynamic memory allocation. It allows the programmer to allocate the memory at runtime.
It has the pointer feature where the pointer stores the memory address as a value. It also has case sensitivity. To execute a code, it has to be compiled, this language has a compiler.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- C language is portable.
- It has contributed to other language development.
- Follows a systematic structure to build a program.
- Simple and easy to understand and learn.
- Has many built-in functions.
- Users can add functions in the library.
- Gives access to hidden or blocked objects.
- Programs run faster in C in comparison to other languages.
- Low-level spectrum makes it easy for machine friendly.
Cons
- Memory corruption will occur when pointers are updated with wrong data.
- Runtime checking is not allowed in C language.
- Does not support object-oriented programming.
- Cannot declare two variables in conjunction at the same time.
- Since OOP is not supported, its concepts are also not supported.
- Library not large enough to support current complex environment.
- Program extension raises problems since bugs cannot be fixed.
Best C Programming Courses:
Best C Programming Books:
JavaScript Programming Language
JavaScript was created by Brendan Eich in 1995 while he was working for Netscape Communications. JavaScript was primarily known as LiveScript by Netscape, later it was named JavaScript. It shares a similar name to Java but there is a vast difference between Java and JavaScript. The common thing between the two is that both are registered by the same company Oracle in the world.
Many applications need an interaction between the device and the server. The server is contacted for data by the device, the server responds. This process uses time and resources, JavaScript gives us the privilege to avoid this time and resource-consuming process.
It is useful in validating forms without input from the server. This reduces the traffic from the server. It helps to make the website more user-friendly and eye-catching.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Being an interpreted language, it requires less time for compilation, which makes it fast.
- Simple and easy to comprehend.
- It is very popular, used by all modern browsers.
- It can be embedded on web pages, inside the script of other languages, which makes it interoperable.
- Reduces traffic load from the server.
- It has a drag and drop peripheral which makes the webpages eye-catching.
- Allows third-party add-ons.
- It supports frontend and backend development.
Cons
- JavaScript code can be used for malicious purposes since the code is viewable.
- Before publishing the code must be run on all browsers to ensure it runs smoothly.
- Lacks the facility to debug.
- Only supports single inheritance.
- Bitwise function is sluggish.
- One error in the code can stop the rendering of the entire JavaScript code.
Best Javascript Programming Courses:
Best Javascript Programming Books:
- JavaScript and JQuery: Interactive Front-End Web Development
- Eloquent JavaScript, 3rd Edition: A Modern Introduction to Programming
Swift Programming Language
Swift is developed by Apple, it is a compiled, multi-criterion, general-purpose programming language. It was developed as an upgrade over Objective-C, it works in association with Apple’s Cocoa and Cocoa Touch frameworks. It can easily work with the current pool of Objective-C code.
It has close-knit and neat syntax; it is famous for being a novice-friendly programming language. It is greatly articulate, and it allows the programmer to experiment with the code and the results can be viewed in real-time. Swift allows programmers to develop complex programs clearly and concisely with the combination of lightweight syntax and type inference.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Easy to read and write.
- Scaling of the product is easy with Swift.
- Performance and safety are enhanced.
- Use of dynamic libraries reduced load on memory.
- Automatic Memory Counting (ARC) increases app performance.
- Massive open-source community.
Cons
- Language is new in comparison to other languages.
- The Swift community is still small.
- Poor compatibility with third-party tools.
- Older iOS version is not supported.
Best Swift Programming Books:
- Mastering Swift 5: Deep dive into the latest edition of the Swift programming language, 5th Edition
- Beginning iOS 14 & Swift 5 App Development: Develop iOS Apps, Widgets with Xcode 12, Swift 5, SwiftUI, ARKit and more
Scala Programming Language
Scala is a blend of scalability and language. This programming language grows when the demand of the users grows. It is also a general-purpose programming language. It is similar to the Java programming language and its source code is compiled in Java bytecode. The resultant code can then be run on Java Virtual Machine (JVM).
Scala programming language is interoperable with Java and both can utilize each other’s libraries. There are many similarities between Java and Scala but there are some distinct differences as well. Scala encourages features like currying, immutability, pattern matching, type-inference, lazy evaluation, and nested functions.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Easy to understand and learn.
- Has vast IDE support.
- It is easily scalable.
- Amazing for data analytics.
- Very functional programming language.
- Scala reduces risk of thread-safety concerns.
- Code quality is better.
Cons
- Learning Scala takes time.
- The pool of Scala developers is small.
- Scala being more sophisticated it is hard to find better developers.
- Development tools for Scala are not advanced.
- Books and documentation to learn Scala is very few.
Best Scala Programming Courses:
Best Scala Programming Books:
TypeScript Programming Language
TypeScript is similar to JavaScript, but it has some differences as well. It is a varying version of JavaScript. In JS it is not easy to build enterprise-level applications. TypeScript can build enterprise-level applications. It has been equipped with additional tools that enhance the output and assist the building of large codebases.
Angular was developed by Google, it chose TypeScript to build it. TypeScript is the base language for building Angular apps, thus tapping into large-scale applications. TypeScript is one of the most loved languages because of its versatility and amazing tooling.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Errors and bugs are detected at compiling stage.
- Functions continue to work as they were initially planned.
- Because of strict types and other factors codes are self-explanatory.
- Has rich collection of IDEs.
- Apps can be updated with less effort.
- Supports OOP concepts.
- Workability with multiple platforms and browsers.
- Massive talent pool.
Cons
- Not a true statically typing language.
- Developers have to invest time to grasp TypeScript.
- More code has to be written in comparison to JS.
Best Typescript Programming Courses:
Best Typescript Programming Books:
- Programming TypeScript: Making Your JavaScript Applications Scale
- Effective TypeScript: 62 Specific Ways to Improve Your TypeScript
Golang Programming Language
Go is a programming language that is also open source and easy to learn. It was developed by Google employees as an internal coding standard. It was released for the public in 2009 and since then it has been growing.
The creators of this programming language are experts in their domains and are high-profile programmers. One of the co-creators of Golang is Ken Thompson who is also the inventor of the B programming language. The other co-creator is Rob Pike who was a member of the Unix team and he also created the Limbo programming language.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Simple and easy to use.
- Library is smart and standard.
- Built-in security is strong.
- Backed by Google.
Cons
- Lacks versatility.
- Libraries are not as equipped as competitors.
- Not based on Virtual Machine.
- Still looking for a niche to its name.
Best Go Programming Courses:
Best Go Programming Books:
- Go Programming Language, The (Addison-Wesley Professional Computing Series)
- Introducing Go: Build Reliable, Scalable Programs
Conclusion
From the above list of languages, we can judge which are the languages that will be used in the future as well. This knowledge is empowering for those who wish to develop programming language skills and find themselves a place in the IT marketplace.
Those who are already into programming and are developers can also use this article as a guide to add to their skills increase their horizon of working. Programmers and developers need to be up to date with the current market trends.
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