Lazarus + FreePascal is an excellent choice if you want to create desktop GUI apps that are: - fast to run (and compile) - native and cross-platform from a si

Lazarus + FreePascal is an excellent choice if you want to create desktop GUI apps that are: - fast to run (and compile) - native and cross-platform from a single code base - memory-efficient to run (depends on your code of course) - easy to distribute via a single self-contained exe file with no dependencies You might think lots of popular languages today can do all the above, but surprisingly there are fewer than you think. For example, using a dynamic language to create desktop apps will often require gluing together lots of separate libraries and packaging them into a single bundle using another third-party tool. And that's even before you get to speed of execution and responsiveness (yes, performance does matter). Like other posters have said, Pascal doesn't give you features you won't find in other languages, although if you're coming from a dynamic language, Pascal might make you think a little differently about how you solve problems due to its strong and strict typing features.