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Fwiw I have worked on multiple many hundred of thousands lines of code projects in multiple languages, several of which we rewrote from python, perl, php, and r

Fwiw I have worked on multiple many hundred of thousands lines of code projects in multiple languages, several of which we rewrote from python, perl, php, and ruby to go where I first maintained the existing code and then worked on a rewrite. I've also walked into existing large Go projects and worked in elixir and some limited js. In each and every case except one (some contractors did something really odd in trying to write go like java or ruby, can't recall, but the code was terribad), the go version was both more performant and easier to maintain. This is measured by counting bugs, development velocity, and mean time to remediation.

kerkeslager 2y ago
Meaningful comparisons between programming languages are difficult. I've done rewrites of Python programs in Python, and the rewrites were more performant and easier to maintain. My point is, is it the language? Or is it the fact that when you rewrite something, you understand which parts of the program are difficult, you know the gotchas, and you eliminate all the misfeatures you thought you needed the first time but didn't. In short, I suspect the benefit of learning from your mistakes is probably far more valuable than switching languages in either direction.
- sethammons 2y ago
  Hands down, the language made the projects easier to maintain. I have also rewritten from php to python, python to python, and perl to perl, many greenfield projects in each, etc. Why did the language matter? Largely, static typing, concurrency ergonomics, fast compilation, and easy to ship/run single binaries. The fact it also saved 10-20x in server costs was a great bonus. Better design can absolutely improve a project and make it easier to maintain and more performant. And bad code can be written in any language. I am more and more convinced that dynamically typed code doesn't have a place in medium to large organizations where a codebase no longer fits in one person's head.

kerkeslager 2y ago

Meaningful comparisons between programming languages are difficult. I've done rewrites of Python programs in Python, and the rewrites were more performant and easier to maintain. My point is, is it the language? Or is it the fact that when you rewrite something, you understand which parts of the program are difficult, you know the gotchas, and you eliminate all the misfeatures you thought you needed the first time but didn't. In short, I suspect the benefit of learning from your mistakes is probably far more valuable than switching languages in either direction.

sethammons 2y ago
Hands down, the language made the projects easier to maintain. I have also rewritten from php to python, python to python, and perl to perl, many greenfield projects in each, etc. Why did the language matter? Largely, static typing, concurrency ergonomics, fast compilation, and easy to ship/run single binaries. The fact it also saved 10-20x in server costs was a great bonus. Better design can absolutely improve a project and make it easier to maintain and more performant. And bad code can be written in any language. I am more and more convinced that dynamically typed code doesn't have a place in medium to large organizations where a codebase no longer fits in one person's head.