8 ms·

Why Is Rust Programming Language Becoming So Popular?

dudul 3y ago
Is it? I don't see anything in this article establishing it. It may be true, but it would be nice to have a proof of it at least.
- pornel 3y ago
  I wouldn't say it's popular yet, but it has surpassed most niche languages, and it is growing. • https://lib.rs/stats https://lib.rs/stats • https://redmonk.com/rstephens/2023/05/16/top20-jan2023/ https://redmonk.com/rstephens/2023/05/16/top20-jan2023/
  - k__ 3y ago
    If you only take the system programming languages, Rust seems to do pretty well.
- whobre 3y ago
  It’s not. There are quite a few people who wish they could use it at work (me included) but very few actually do.
- bogwog 3y ago
  This article reads like someone dumped a bunch of random Rust facts into ChatGPT and told it to generate a blog post.
d13 3y ago
This feels AI written.
- 404mm 3y ago
  I agree. Each paragraph is formatted in the same way GPT responds. Covering a whole lot of topics without going deeper into a single one. All just general summarizations. And the recap at the end.. so obvious.
  - FrustratedMonky 3y ago
    Is this the future, all articles are AI. Wasted energy trying to find something that is real.
alphanullmeric 3y ago
It’s not used in industry. C++ still dominates everything rust claims to be good at, turns out people with money on the line will not use a language that simultaneously takes away power from the programmer while also being more difficult to write.
- dralley 3y ago
  It's used in industry. Obviously it's not yet comparable to the scale on which C++ is used in industry, but it absolutely is used. * Amazon S3, Lambda and Fargate backends are written in Rust * Microsoft Windows is actively shipping Rust code in both the kernel and userspace * Android also ships Rust, and Google is writing some new components / has rewritten some older components in Rust * The Linux kernel is getting new drivers written in Rust * Much of the core infrastructure at Discord and Dropbox is written in Rust * Cloudflare and Facebook have adopted / are adopting Rust in some of their critical systems * The Disney+ client application is written in Rust * Volvo is using Rust in their entertainment system It's beyond the point where you can consider it an irrelevant internet fad language, or a self-contained bubble. There's shallow but meaningful penetration across a pretty wide swath of industries, including some fairly conservative ones, in places where it is very likely to "stick" for a good long while. Surely you're not going to argue that Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Facebook, Cloudflare, Disney and Volvo don't have money on the line.
  - linza 3y ago
    Maybe it's too polarizing as GP phrased it, but my anecdotal experience with two of the items you mentioned is wait and see, and having some early investment to not miss anything. C++ is still the safer bet, esp if you factor in the long term non-technical aspects like reliably finding talent, onboarding, and so on. My 2c: rust productivity seems to be behind that of C++ atm (which is not surprising given the different maturity).
  - pjmlp 3y ago
    Full on the spot, yet some reality check is also required when talking about Rust. Most language runtimes and compiler development frameworks aren't going to migrate from C++ into Rust anytime soon. When I feel like contributing to JVM, CLR, node, GCC, LLVM, I need to provide my contribution in C++. Same applies to anything related to GPU programming, AI frameworks, HPC, HFT, game console SDKs and major commercial engines. Eventually it might be relevant enough that we can finally reach out for Rust in such domains, maybe even the reference compiler will be bootstrapped and no longer depend on C++, it will take some time though.
aprdm 3y ago
Vocal minority is a good thing to keep in mind when reading about Rust
- bb1234 3y ago
  Vocal minority might be one of them. But I think that is not the only reason. I think it also because a lot of very useful and performant tools are being written in it. Also, the fact that so many programs are being created likely suggests to newcomers (like me) is that it is not unreasonably difficult to write code in it.
- pg_1234 3y ago
  It also solves very hard problems, that: a) need solving b) are expensive to fail at This in an age where the easy problems are increasingly pre-solved by free libs, or can be solved fast and cheap by AI. Rust is increasingly the best tool for high-value spaces where cheap and dirty options are obviously unworkable.
dingi 3y ago
Meh! The hype around it does not hold in real world. There is some momentum in a few niches. Other than that, not much getting build with Rust.
CoastalCoder 3y ago
The prevalence of a given language in job ads seems to be a good signal, at least for job seekers. I don't have hard numbers, but my impression from HN Who's Hiring posts is that Rust is gaining popularity and C++ is receding.
blurbleblurble 3y ago
Why is this blog post becoming so popular?
- sacnoradhq 3y ago
  They're good at X.ing* out press releases and SEO. *or whatever the verb to replacing "tweeting" is. PS: Elon now has a kid with a nonsense name that's the textual equivalent of a tramp stamp. I feel sorry for the kid having unreasonable and unwise parents.
FrustratedMonky 3y ago
This article was flagged, but the comments are good.
sacnoradhq 3y ago
Independent of fads, I remember a bottom-feeder tech recruiter dismissing another language, Go, as a "nothingburger" in 2012. Hubris is on them, as with any arrogant proclamation steeped in ignorance. The people closest to niche but useful tools are the best to see their trajectory, regardless of media characterization of hype or apparent obscurity. Around 2016 I exited the Go scene for Rust because it became crowded with noisy, low-skilled, needy users who were leading to time suck without contributing much in return.

Is it? I don't see anything in this article establishing it. It may be true, but it would be nice to have a proof of it at least.

pornel 3y ago
I wouldn't say it's popular yet, but it has surpassed most niche languages, and it is growing. • https://lib.rs/stats https://lib.rs/stats • https://redmonk.com/rstephens/2023/05/16/top20-jan2023/ https://redmonk.com/rstephens/2023/05/16/top20-jan2023/
- k__ 3y ago
  If you only take the system programming languages, Rust seems to do pretty well.
whobre 3y ago
It’s not. There are quite a few people who wish they could use it at work (me included) but very few actually do.
bogwog 3y ago
This article reads like someone dumped a bunch of random Rust facts into ChatGPT and told it to generate a blog post.

d13 3y ago

This feels AI written.

404mm 3y ago
I agree. Each paragraph is formatted in the same way GPT responds. Covering a whole lot of topics without going deeper into a single one. All just general summarizations. And the recap at the end.. so obvious.
- FrustratedMonky 3y ago
  Is this the future, all articles are AI. Wasted energy trying to find something that is real.

alphanullmeric 3y ago

It’s not used in industry. C++ still dominates everything rust claims to be good at, turns out people with money on the line will not use a language that simultaneously takes away power from the programmer while also being more difficult to write.

dralley 3y ago
It's used in industry. Obviously it's not yet comparable to the scale on which C++ is used in industry, but it absolutely is used. * Amazon S3, Lambda and Fargate backends are written in Rust * Microsoft Windows is actively shipping Rust code in both the kernel and userspace * Android also ships Rust, and Google is writing some new components / has rewritten some older components in Rust * The Linux kernel is getting new drivers written in Rust * Much of the core infrastructure at Discord and Dropbox is written in Rust * Cloudflare and Facebook have adopted / are adopting Rust in some of their critical systems * The Disney+ client application is written in Rust * Volvo is using Rust in their entertainment system It's beyond the point where you can consider it an irrelevant internet fad language, or a self-contained bubble. There's shallow but meaningful penetration across a pretty wide swath of industries, including some fairly conservative ones, in places where it is very likely to "stick" for a good long while. Surely you're not going to argue that Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Facebook, Cloudflare, Disney and Volvo don't have money on the line.
- linza 3y ago
  Maybe it's too polarizing as GP phrased it, but my anecdotal experience with two of the items you mentioned is wait and see, and having some early investment to not miss anything. C++ is still the safer bet, esp if you factor in the long term non-technical aspects like reliably finding talent, onboarding, and so on. My 2c: rust productivity seems to be behind that of C++ atm (which is not surprising given the different maturity).
- pjmlp 3y ago
  Full on the spot, yet some reality check is also required when talking about Rust. Most language runtimes and compiler development frameworks aren't going to migrate from C++ into Rust anytime soon. When I feel like contributing to JVM, CLR, node, GCC, LLVM, I need to provide my contribution in C++. Same applies to anything related to GPU programming, AI frameworks, HPC, HFT, game console SDKs and major commercial engines. Eventually it might be relevant enough that we can finally reach out for Rust in such domains, maybe even the reference compiler will be bootstrapped and no longer depend on C++, it will take some time though.

aprdm 3y ago

Vocal minority is a good thing to keep in mind when reading about Rust

bb1234 3y ago
Vocal minority might be one of them. But I think that is not the only reason. I think it also because a lot of very useful and performant tools are being written in it. Also, the fact that so many programs are being created likely suggests to newcomers (like me) is that it is not unreasonably difficult to write code in it.
pg_1234 3y ago
It also solves very hard problems, that: a) need solving b) are expensive to fail at This in an age where the easy problems are increasingly pre-solved by free libs, or can be solved fast and cheap by AI. Rust is increasingly the best tool for high-value spaces where cheap and dirty options are obviously unworkable.

dingi 3y ago

Meh! The hype around it does not hold in real world. There is some momentum in a few niches. Other than that, not much getting build with Rust.

CoastalCoder 3y ago

The prevalence of a given language in job ads seems to be a good signal, at least for job seekers. I don't have hard numbers, but my impression from HN Who's Hiring posts is that Rust is gaining popularity and C++ is receding.

blurbleblurble 3y ago

Why is this blog post becoming so popular?

sacnoradhq 3y ago
They're good at X.ing* out press releases and SEO. *or whatever the verb to replacing "tweeting" is. PS: Elon now has a kid with a nonsense name that's the textual equivalent of a tramp stamp. I feel sorry for the kid having unreasonable and unwise parents.

FrustratedMonky 3y ago

This article was flagged, but the comments are good.

sacnoradhq 3y ago

Independent of fads, I remember a bottom-feeder tech recruiter dismissing another language, Go, as a "nothingburger" in 2012. Hubris is on them, as with any arrogant proclamation steeped in ignorance. The people closest to niche but useful tools are the best to see their trajectory, regardless of media characterization of hype or apparent obscurity. Around 2016 I exited the Go scene for Rust because it became crowded with noisy, low-skilled, needy users who were leading to time suck without contributing much in return.