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I have sporadically used Eclipse since the time of "Interface Age", but most of my Java programming was on Netbeans. I also used it with PhP. I have recently s

I have sporadically used Eclipse since the time of "Interface Age", but most of my Java programming was on Netbeans. I also used it with PhP. I have recently started another Java project and noticed than Apache Netbeans has a lot of problems that the Netbeans 8.0 had not, without having more features. Even Nb 8.1 and 8.2 had problems. I also noticed that most libraries versions are stalled since around 2010. So I have two questions: * Is Eclipse 2019 worth learning from a new user? * Has not the community moved to Python or something else? So a Java coder might be left without new resources?

ageofwant 7y ago
New Java projects is very much the exception in my experience. People will continue to make a living supporting old Java apps for decades to come though. But once you find yourself in that boat, you better make sure you stay there and make sure the journey is worth your while as you'll find it perhaps more difficult to jump ship. Java's 'COBOL' years are not here yet, but probably not far off. And those that remain to keep the Good Ship Java steaming will probably do OK, can't image it being very exciting though... but that's fine too.
- The_rationalist 7y ago
  While Java is stagnating, the JVM ecosystem will always be the leader of the server. It's the only place where you can get modernity (Kotlin, etc) AND the most production ready, feature rich library ecosystem.
  - mindcrime 7y ago
    I'm curious why you think that Java is "stagnating" considering how they are shipping new releases even faster than ever over the past couple of years? If anything, I sometimes feelthat some Java people are annoyed that they're moving too fast.
    - The_rationalist 7y ago
      I was talking marketshare wise. Otherwise, yes Java is catching up!
lenkite 7y ago
The Java community is quite vibrant. It is just that nearly everyone has moved onto Intellij. There are still people who use Eclipse however. I know a lot of Java developers and no one uses Netbeans.
- mindcrime 7y ago
  FWIW, I know far more people who use Eclipse, than use IntelliJ. This may be one of those things that varies dramatically depending on what industry segment / geography / $SOME_OTHER_FACTOR you're talking about. Among the "HN crowd" I don't doubt that there are more IntelliJ users, but the HN crowd is not necessarily representative of the entire industry.
mindcrime 7y ago
Has not the community moved to Python or something else? There is no "the community" in that sense. Java and Python are both incredibly widely used, by their respective communities, with a certain measure of overlap. And there's every reason to expect that both will remain incredibly widely used for the foreseeable future.

ageofwant 7y ago

New Java projects is very much the exception in my experience. People will continue to make a living supporting old Java apps for decades to come though. But once you find yourself in that boat, you better make sure you stay there and make sure the journey is worth your while as you'll find it perhaps more difficult to jump ship. Java's 'COBOL' years are not here yet, but probably not far off. And those that remain to keep the Good Ship Java steaming will probably do OK, can't image it being very exciting though... but that's fine too.

The_rationalist 7y ago
While Java is stagnating, the JVM ecosystem will always be the leader of the server. It's the only place where you can get modernity (Kotlin, etc) AND the most production ready, feature rich library ecosystem.
- mindcrime 7y ago
  I'm curious why you think that Java is "stagnating" considering how they are shipping new releases even faster than ever over the past couple of years? If anything, I sometimes feelthat some Java people are annoyed that they're moving too fast.
  - The_rationalist 7y ago
    I was talking marketshare wise. Otherwise, yes Java is catching up!

lenkite 7y ago

The Java community is quite vibrant. It is just that nearly everyone has moved onto Intellij. There are still people who use Eclipse however. I know a lot of Java developers and no one uses Netbeans.

mindcrime 7y ago
FWIW, I know far more people who use Eclipse, than use IntelliJ. This may be one of those things that varies dramatically depending on what industry segment / geography / $SOME_OTHER_FACTOR you're talking about. Among the "HN crowd" I don't doubt that there are more IntelliJ users, but the HN crowd is not necessarily representative of the entire industry.

mindcrime 7y ago

Has not the community moved to Python or something else? There is no "the community" in that sense. Java and Python are both incredibly widely used, by their respective communities, with a certain measure of overlap. And there's every reason to expect that both will remain incredibly widely used for the foreseeable future.