4 ms·

This is what I was thinking about reading this post. Why add things to Python to make it strongly typed? Why not just use Java or C#?

Gibbon1 6y ago
Because Java and especially C# aren't 'cool'
ralmidani 6y ago
Not an exhaustive list of possible reasons: - (number_of_people_who_enjoy_coding_with_python_more_than_coding_with_c_sharp_or_java > 0) == True - Some people have large existing codebases, and would rather add types gradually than have to port all their logic to another language. - In terms of being free and open source, Python > C# > Java (meta: can you even do a comparison like that in C# and/or Java?)
- nerdponx 6y ago
  I thought Java being not-open-source in 2021 was a myth, no? What about OpenJDK (GPL licensed)?
  - ralmidani 6y ago
    GPL2 has no explicit patent grant, and Oracle's behavior does not signal good intentions.
nerdponx 6y ago
1. Because people like Python. 2. The type system is both gradual and not enforced by default. This means you benefit from the rapid prototyping and general freedom of dynamically-typed code, but you have the option to layer on the additional safety of static type checking as the project grows. There aren't many other gradually-typed languages out there anyway; Julia, Typed Racket, and Common Lisp aren't exactly in widespread industry use for general-purpose server dev.
- smallnamespace 6y ago
  Don't forget JavaScript/TypeScript. You can either start with JS and add types later on (you can mix them on a per-module/file basis), or just start with TypeScript, with a loose configuration.
dragonwriter 6y ago
> Why add things to Python to make it strongly typed? Python is strongly typed. The support for external tools is to enable static type checking, not strong typing. > Why not just use Java or C#? Why add “dynamic” to C#, why not just use Python?
6gvONxR4sf7o 6y ago
The libraries that make my job easier are in python. A language ecosystem is often more important than the language itself.

Gibbon1 6y ago

Because Java and especially C# aren't 'cool'

ralmidani 6y ago

Not an exhaustive list of possible reasons: - (number_of_people_who_enjoy_coding_with_python_more_than_coding_with_c_sharp_or_java > 0) == True - Some people have large existing codebases, and would rather add types gradually than have to port all their logic to another language. - In terms of being free and open source, Python > C# > Java (meta: can you even do a comparison like that in C# and/or Java?)

nerdponx 6y ago
I thought Java being not-open-source in 2021 was a myth, no? What about OpenJDK (GPL licensed)?
- ralmidani 6y ago
  GPL2 has no explicit patent grant, and Oracle's behavior does not signal good intentions.

nerdponx 6y ago

1. Because people like Python. 2. The type system is both gradual and not enforced by default. This means you benefit from the rapid prototyping and general freedom of dynamically-typed code, but you have the option to layer on the additional safety of static type checking as the project grows. There aren't many other gradually-typed languages out there anyway; Julia, Typed Racket, and Common Lisp aren't exactly in widespread industry use for general-purpose server dev.

smallnamespace 6y ago
Don't forget JavaScript/TypeScript. You can either start with JS and add types later on (you can mix them on a per-module/file basis), or just start with TypeScript, with a loose configuration.

dragonwriter 6y ago

> Why add things to Python to make it strongly typed? Python is strongly typed. The support for external tools is to enable static type checking, not strong typing. > Why not just use Java or C#? Why add “dynamic” to C#, why not just use Python?

6gvONxR4sf7o 6y ago

The libraries that make my job easier are in python. A language ecosystem is often more important than the language itself.