Favorite programming language?

[funciona]

Im well aware that some of the options listed are accually "family" but hey you have to give options :)

If I missed a important one, please go ahead and say it and Ill add it :)

Thanks jimbo11883: Forgot to mention that.

Some "languages" here arent actually programming languages but ,in say HTML, you can make a simple tic-tac-toe program :) Lets count them anyhow unless someone is against it.

Added Ruby and Ada :)

Added Delphi

Edited May 10, 2008 by funciona

[psyko_x]

Why does a 3rd grader need to understand java code? :) </smartass>

haven't you heard?? half the developers at google are 3rd graders. lucky rascals...

http://blogoscoped.com/files/google-lego/1.jpg

http://picasaweb.google.com/zurich.office....254021819026258

http://www.ministryoftech.com/wp-content/u...k-offices-2.jpg

[markwolfe Veteran]

I voted "Python" because that is what I am learning right now. Very simple and flexible, so far. I am enjoying it. :)

[primexx]

I voted "Python" because that is what I am learning right now. Very simple and flexible, so far. I am enjoying it. :)

the only thing good i've noticed about python is you could do '10 < x < 100', but there's a shitload of things that it's crap at.

--

I voted PHP because I like interpreted languages better than compiled, but that's only because I write a lot more scripts than programs. I'm undecided between Java and C#, both are pretty good, both have their pros and cons. They're good for different uses I guess.

oh and OP: how the heck do you make tic-tac-toe with HTML?!?!

[Alex H]

Python. It's fairly simple, and it can be used in both web and desktop appliances.

[MtnDewCodeRedFreak]

Hmph - you forgot PL/SQL used in databases.

[psyko_x]

Hmph - you forgot PL/SQL used in databases.

a database language isn't useful for anything outside databases (not to mention PL/SQL is specifically for Oracle DBs) just like Matlab isn't useful for anything but mathematical calculations. no point in listing languages like these

[PL_ Veteran]

HTML as it's the one I know the best :p

[_kane81]

a database language isn't useful for anything outside databases (not to mention PL/SQL is specifically for Oracle DBs) just like Matlab isn't useful for anything but mathematical calculations. no point in listing languages like these

Heard that PL/SQL is like ADA....

either way right too for the right job!

this poll is really a "no point" cause it generalise "all" languages. sort of like comparing hammer and nail, which is better

[Borbus]

I disagree. Java makes a lot more sense than 95% of the languages out there...definitely more english-like than PHP

Java:

String greeting = "hello" + "world";

Println(greeting);

PHP:

$greeting = "hello"."world";

echo "$greeting\n";

A 3rd grader could understand that Java code.

My favs are Java and C++ btw

Well actually what you have there is a snippet of a java program which you are comparing to an entire PHP program (minus the <?php ?>). And you can also do it this way with PHP which is actually faster:

echo $greeting."\n";

And with that Java do you really understand what is going on? That you're creating a reference to a String object and then assigning the value of the reference to the string literal on the right hand side? You can get quite far with Java without fully understanding it. That's not a good thing.

the only thing good i've noticed about python is you could do '10 < x < 100', but there's a shitload of things that it's crap at.

Instead of 'x > 10 && x < 100' ?

Python is designed to be a mid level between system programming and shell scripting... It's easy to learn and very powerful. It's also very good. I like Python but it can't compete with C/C++ for speed.

[Unto Darkness]

I have tried basic Java programming for 3 years and man, I get irritated at having to run the program through command-line [Not at SWING and all those "hi-fi" stuff yet...]. C++ are executable files so no problems there.

But Java is vast. You couldn't cover everything in a 1500 page book.

[MMaster23]

btw guys .. i just checked in VS2k5 .. It has fall-trough support on C# switches....

Still .. try to avoid use of it

[funciona]

I wont add SQL as with SQL you can't really make a program....SQL is just for calculating/store stuff.

[ramesees]

C# for me, its a lovely language, very powerful and easy to understand.

Started on C++ and I prefer C# to C++ anyday, and I've dabbled a little bit with Java, but just didnt like it for some reason. Maybe it was the IDEs I was using, but whatever it was, it didnt sit with me. Give me visual studio 2005 any day (havent gotten around to playing properly with vs2008 yet).

As for the fall through on C# switch statements ... do you mean this:

public string method1(int var)
{
		 string result = "";

		 switch (var)
		 {
					   case 1:
					   case 2:
						   result = "Hello";
						   break;

					   case 3:
							result = "World";
							break;
		 }

		 return result;
}

or this:

public string method1(int var)
{
		 string result = "";

		 switch (var)
		 {
					   case 1:
						   result = "Hello";

					   case 2:
							result = "World";
							break;
		 }

		 return result;
}

If you mean the second snippet that wont compile as there is code fall-through between case 1 and case 2 which would give the wrong result when passing in 1 to the method. There is no code fall through in the first example just 2 case statements using the same result code which is perfectly valid.

Case statement fall through is just nasty and good that its tightened up in C# as compared to C++.

[sbauer]

either way right too for the right job!

this poll is really a "no point" cause it generalise "all" languages. sort of like comparing hammer and nail, which is better

Of course, but I think it's one of those fun polls. The question wasn't "What programming language is better and can be used in every situation". It's asking "Of all the programming languages out there, what programming language do you like to use the most?". We can do the same for regular tools as well. For example, out of all the tools out there, regardless of their use and the current situation, which one is your favorite to use? Personally, I like using a nail gun because it's bad ass and makes me feel bad ass. Of course, I wouldn't use it to hang a picture on the wall, but when I have to use it, I like using it.

I like C#, but I'm not going to use it for everything. I like the syntax. I just like the way it feels. Is it the right solution for everything? Of course not. I have a lot of tools in my belt. Of all the tools in my belt, I like using C# the most.

[Rudy]

I love C, too bad I have to use java at work

[kjordan2001]

C# for me, its a lovely language, very powerful and easy to understand.

Started on C++ and I prefer C# to C++ anyday, and I've dabbled a little bit with Java, but just didnt like it for some reason. Maybe it was the IDEs I was using, but whatever it was, it didnt sit with me. Give me visual studio 2005 any day (havent gotten around to playing properly with vs2008 yet).

As for the fall through on C# switch statements ... do you mean this:

public string method1(int var)
{
		 string result = "";

		 switch (var)
		 {
					   case 1:
					   case 2:
						   result = "Hello";
						   break;

					   case 3:
							result = "World";
							break;
		 }

		 return result;
}

or this:

public string method1(int var)
{
		 string result = "";

		 switch (var)
		 {
					   case 1:
						   result = "Hello";

					   case 2:
							result = "World";
							break;
		 }

		 return result;
}

If you mean the second snippet that wont compile as there is code fall-through between case 1 and case 2 which would give the wrong result when passing in 1 to the method. There is no code fall through in the first example just 2 case statements using the same result code which is perfectly valid.

Case statement fall through is just nasty and good that its tightened up in C# as compared to C++.

The first one is still fallthrough, case 1 just happens not to execute anything before the fallthrough. You could just as easily have a break statement in there.

Looks like I'm one of the lone people who likes Java in this thread. But then again at work I have to write a huge web application which we had started on with PHP, but PHP's quirks like not knowing when it will type convert and not having any decent ORM to speak of was getting to be a pain in the ass. Not to mention it would be nice if PHP had DB connection pooling. And of course it does nested ternary operators backwards from every other language. C# seems nice, but unfortunately mono is lagging behind and we run Linux servers at work, but I would love to have something like LINQ to use.

[funciona]

WOW C# is pretty popular...Ive heard of it but never thought it was so important.

[MMaster23]

Dunno about you but I can easily use default: in C# switch statements...

[psyko_x]

Well actually what you have there is a snippet of a java program which you are comparing to an entire PHP program (minus the <?php ?>). And you can also do it this way with PHP which is actually faster:

echo $greeting."\n";

And with that Java do you really understand what is going on? That you're creating a reference to a String object and then assigning the value of the reference to the string literal on the right hand side? You can get quite far with Java without fully understanding it. That's not a good thing.

That's a poor argument for PHPs superiority. We might as well only code in assembler...or better yet in machine language. PHP and Java are both high level languages and the whole point is to hide the low level details from the programmer. Do you have a deep understanding of transistors? x86 cpu architecture? virtual and physical storage? compilers? The answer should be, who cares. You don't need that knowledge to be a programmer just as a lifeguard doesn't have to go to medical school to do CPR.

Version 1:

int x=0;

int y=1;

while (1) {

if (x>y)

x = x-1;

else

y = y+1;

}

Version 2:

int x=0;

int y=1;

while (true) {

if (x > y)

x = x-1;

else

y = y-1;

}

Infinite loop version 1 will run faster than version 2 and it has to do with what the CPU is doing while processing those "if" statements. Do you have to know this to be a good PHP or Java programmer? hell no

[Internet]

If you're gonna put BASIC && Visual Basic, You have to put Delphi && Pascal! not just pascal :p

for me it's

1. C++

2. Assembly

3. Perl w/Tk

[Bi0haZarD]

1. C++

2. C#

3. Pascal/Delphi

I mainly program in c++ because i can't stand the .NET framework.

C++ is more confusing then C# sure, but you limit yourself to Windows only apps unless theres a .NET framework for Linux that i haven't heard of yet.

right now i'm learning cross platform apps, mainly for a Server app i'm working on..

only bad thing i have with C++, is unless you have Visual Studio theres no really good IDE, Dev-C++ is nice, but i want auto completion that doesn't suck.

[Andre S. Veteran]

One thing I can't believe is how C is still so hugely popular. Why would anyone ever want to use C when C++ has everything C has, plus classes, safe casts, templates, the STL, the boost libraries and all that awesomeness. I find C programs usually look obscure compared to C++ programs.

only bad thing i have with C++, is unless you have Visual Studio theres no really good IDE, Dev-C++ is nice, but i want auto completion that doesn't suck.

Bah, even then Visual C++ is not quite as good as Visual C#.

[funnyperson1]

I'll define favorite as "most enjoyable to program in" and I have to say that C#.NET is by far the easiest programming solution I have ever used. For getting a Windows Application with GUI up and running it is easy and crazy fast. For many applications programming in C#.NET is hardly programming at all, you spend more time finding the right .NET library function than you actually do writing your own code.

That said C# (at least the .NET variety) shares the downsides of Java in that the programs end up bloated and there are some limits to what you can do. Also I feel like both are poor first languages for people who intend to be career programmers. The development environments and libraries make it too easy to make programs work without learning good programming practices.

I like C++ as a first language as it combines the strong points of C with many advanced object oriented techniques. If you understand low level pointer arithmetic in C++, then you know C, if you understand high-level object oriented fundamentals in C++ then it takes like 15 minutes to learn Java or C#.

While probably being the most difficult language to master (of the ones still widely used), C has its place. In the embedded system space the low system overhead, low-level system access, and its flexibility make it the language of choice. One of the things I personally love about C is the flexibility of the pointer manipulation, really there is nothing you can't do to data that is stored in memory. C is a language that career-programmers should be forced to write a large project in at some point. If you can design and code a C program cleanly with no memory leaks, you can do that in any programming language still in wide use. If you show me a good Java or C# programmer, you've shown me a good Java/C# programmer, if you show me a good C programmer, you've shown me a good programmer.

[Borbus]

That's a poor argument for PHPs superiority.

I wasn't trying to say PHP was superior to Java! lol... no... Just to make that clear, PHP is not superior to Java... But you said Java is a lot easier to understand than PHP which I disagreed on because a surprising number of Java programmers do not understand Java.

Also it is interesting how people confuse the standard library of a language with the language itself. I wonder how many people actually prefer C#, or just prefer the conveniences of its standard library. I'm not sure if I'd use Python if it didn't have such a vast standard library.

[James123]

C++ closely followed by C# - I would say C# is my favourite, it's certainly a million times easier however every time I find myself enjoying C# I hit an annoying limitation which puts me off it again.