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The more I think about it, the less I'm sure certain languages like Java will ever die. Java is a really good language for systems of mind-boggling size, and ju

The more I think about it, the less I'm sure certain languages like Java will ever die. Java is a really good language for systems of mind-boggling size, and just as it's easy to write, it's also easy to manage and measure people writing it. Java strikes a good balance between extensibility (easy to implement design patterns; cross-platform JVM) and safety (auto garbage collector; no memory access). Even if technology did rapidly change (nanomachines!) there would still be a business case for a Java-style language. Given how used to C syntaxes we are, it might end up looking like Java. Or Java might just be here to stay, for a long, long time. Side note: a lot of "dead" languages nowadays are ones that were written before memory and processing power were abundant so they had a lot of (what we in the glorious future might call) arbitrary character limits. sp(a,b); might have been sufficient back in the slow-old days, but we don't really consider character limits anymore, and so we can actually learn what a given line of code does by reading it. SubmitPostOnHackerNews(commentID,messageText);

wry_discontent 10y ago
> just as it's easy to write, it's also easy to manage and measure people writing it I think you nailed why I don't care for writing Java perfectly.
- macintux 10y ago
  You'd be the first person to write Java perfectly! #grammaticalambiguityforthewin
dfox 10y ago
The problem with Java systems of mind-boggling size is that their mind-boggling size is usually caused by them being written in Java (and not the other way around). As for design patterns, the patterns that are really extensively used have more to do with overcoming the limitations of Java (or C++, C#, or whatever similar language) than with expressing anything profound.
- pjmlp 10y ago
  Except people tend to forget those mind-boggling systems used to be written in C, C++ and Smalltalk before Java was a thing. Anyone that hates JEE, should spend some time having fun with CORBA or DCOM and see which one s/he likes best.
  - hodgesrm 10y ago
    CORBA. Oogh. You would bring that up.
  - nickpsecurity 10y ago
    Oh it's worse. Not sure why but the high-assurance security field relied on high-security ORB's for connecting components in separation kernel systems. I was like, "Can't we use ZeroMQ or something? What are the odds that could be more fu... insecure than CORBA implementations?" Unreal.
rectang 10y ago
On the other hand, the litigious environment around Java thanks to Oracle makes it a more risky ecosystem, for reasons that have nothing to do with language design. There is definitely room in this world for languages with more benign stewards.

wry_discontent 10y ago

> just as it's easy to write, it's also easy to manage and measure people writing it I think you nailed why I don't care for writing Java perfectly.

macintux 10y ago
You'd be the first person to write Java perfectly! #grammaticalambiguityforthewin

dfox 10y ago

The problem with Java systems of mind-boggling size is that their mind-boggling size is usually caused by them being written in Java (and not the other way around). As for design patterns, the patterns that are really extensively used have more to do with overcoming the limitations of Java (or C++, C#, or whatever similar language) than with expressing anything profound.

pjmlp 10y ago
Except people tend to forget those mind-boggling systems used to be written in C, C++ and Smalltalk before Java was a thing. Anyone that hates JEE, should spend some time having fun with CORBA or DCOM and see which one s/he likes best.
- hodgesrm 10y ago
  CORBA. Oogh. You would bring that up.
- nickpsecurity 10y ago
  Oh it's worse. Not sure why but the high-assurance security field relied on high-security ORB's for connecting components in separation kernel systems. I was like, "Can't we use ZeroMQ or something? What are the odds that could be more fu... insecure than CORBA implementations?" Unreal.

rectang 10y ago

On the other hand, the litigious environment around Java thanks to Oracle makes it a more risky ecosystem, for reasons that have nothing to do with language design. There is definitely room in this world for languages with more benign stewards.