4 ms·

The article really needs to explain how a comparison of Python to Java is supposed to explain what languages people choose for new services in 2024. Why aren't

by dkarl 2y ago

The article really needs to explain how a comparison of Python to Java is supposed to explain what languages people choose for new services in 2024. Why aren't other languages on the table? Even taking it at face value that the choice is between Python and Java, the article leaves so much unaddressed. > a good plan executed now trumps a perfect plan done next week In what universe does this apply to a payments system? Hatred for Java is burned deep in my soul, and I've spent an unreasonable amount of time on this very web site carefully articulating reasons why I think Java is a crufty relic whose design reflects a bunch of discredited beliefs from a quarter century ago. But gosh, if I had to choose between Java and Python for a payments system, I think I might choose Java.

cyberax 2y ago
Java just got unlucky to become popular at the height of "object oriented" era (hey, anyone here remembers EJB?). But it was interesting to see it evolving. It was one of the first large language ecosystems to adopt language-specific package repositories, with dependency tracking, and project-specific scopes (unlike CPAN or CTAN that installed modules globally). It also evolved from the XML hell of EJB to the more sane Spring Framework. Java IDE evolution was also unique. The first IDEs were just text editors, but then Eclipse and JetBrains IDEA revolutionized semantic text editing. The online type checking and linting in modern IDEs was popularized by these two IDEs!
- seanmcdirmid 2y ago
  Visual Studio 1997 was the first IDE to really do code completion well, but that was also inline with the Java era.
  - cyberax 2y ago
    Yes, and there was also VisualAge for Java around that time. IDEA and Eclipse were among the first IDEs that modeled the complete source code with 100% fidelity, so you could rely on their analyses of usages to do automated refactoring. And they worked by parsing plain text source files, instead of keeping the code in a special database like in VisualAge.

by dkarl 2y ago

cyberax 2y ago

Java just got unlucky to become popular at the height of "object oriented" era (hey, anyone here remembers EJB?). But it was interesting to see it evolving. It was one of the first large language ecosystems to adopt language-specific package repositories, with dependency tracking, and project-specific scopes (unlike CPAN or CTAN that installed modules globally). It also evolved from the XML hell of EJB to the more sane Spring Framework. Java IDE evolution was also unique. The first IDEs were just text editors, but then Eclipse and JetBrains IDEA revolutionized semantic text editing. The online type checking and linting in modern IDEs was popularized by these two IDEs!

seanmcdirmid 2y ago
Visual Studio 1997 was the first IDE to really do code completion well, but that was also inline with the Java era.
- cyberax 2y ago
  Yes, and there was also VisualAge for Java around that time. IDEA and Eclipse were among the first IDEs that modeled the complete source code with 100% fidelity, so you could rely on their analyses of usages to do automated refactoring. And they worked by parsing plain text source files, instead of keeping the code in a special database like in VisualAge.