Anyone who wants to learn a new or first programming language is often faced with the question: which one
Not only is there an incredible linguistic diversity in IT, but the languages themselves all also have unique selling points or are particularly well suited for certain purposes. The language should be future-proof, easy to learn and you should also be able to do as much as possible with it: Why Python is currently the most popular programming language in the world, what Python actually is, and what alternatives there are:
WHAT IS PYTHON
Python is a high-level programming language with the intrinsic property of promoting clean, readable code with good structure. This is achieved by equating corresponding structural elements in the code with structural elements of a text document – for example, paragraphs are used to delimit commands, and indentation with tab stops describes scopes or views. A while loop, for example, is separated from the rest of the code in other programming languages by curly brackets, but in Python, it is separated from the rest of the code by equal indentation (and corresponding commands).
This binding of the most important syntactical elements to important textual-structural elements leads to easy-to-read program code, even for beginners, and thus not only makes learning easier, but also productive programming and, in particular, collaboration – others simply understand Python code faster. Python is therefore also a popular language for people who do not yet know a programming language and would like to learn more about programming courses, for example.
DEVELOPMENT HISTORY OF THE PROGRAMMING LANGUAGE PYTHON
The development of Python goes back to Dutchman Guido van Rossum, who developed Python in the early 1990s. Incidentally, the name is not derived from the snake, but from Monty Python, an English comedy group.
Up until the year 2000, Python 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, etc. were constantly being released with new versions with more and more functionalities. Python 2.0 brought major changes such as garbage collection and Unicode support. Python 3.0 or Python 3000 then appeared in December 2008 and brought with it even more profound changes, which also led to partial incompatibility with Python 2.0. As a result, many current programs with Python 2. x still exist years after Python was first published because it was decided at the time to continue supporting Python 2.0 until 2019 and to release new versions. The trend is now moving more and more towards Python 3.0.
THE POPULARITY OF PYTHON
There are several ways to measure the popularity of programming languages. One is to look at the Google Trends data and infer the popularity of the languages based on (Google) search activity on the web. The web application PYPL does exactly that and also presents the results clearly. These show that Python has replaced Java as the most popular programming language since around 2018.
At the beginning of 2021, Python is by far the most popular programming language worldwide with a share of almost 30% – Java is in second place with almost 18%. Looking at the development over the last 15 years, it is noticeable that the popularity of Python has grown almost consistently, with small plateaus in 2010, 2014, and 2020.
WHY IS PYTHON SO POPULAR?
There are several reasons for Python’s popularity. One of them is at the same time the great advantage of the language: easy readability and easy learning. But there are also reasons for this in general trends in IT – for example with regard to machine learning or big data, in which Python is often used and which has experienced strong growth for several years. Python simply offers some distinct advantages over other languages:
PYTHON FOR BOTH WINDOWS AND UNIX SYSTEMS
A major advantage of Python is that it is a cross-platform programming language. The language is suitable for development on both UNIX and Windows systems. In addition, many programs and libraries offer Python bindings, eg CAD and graphics programs such as FreeCAD or Blender, GUI frameworks such as Qt or PyQt, or web automation and testing tools such as Selenium – to name just a fraction.
Regardless of the cross-platform functionality, there are countless libraries and extensions in currently trendy areas such as Big Data (e.g. NumPy, Pandas, and Matplotlib), AR/VR (e.g. OpenCV), Machine Learning (e.g. Scikit-learn or Eli5), Deep Learning (e.g. TensorFlow) and natural language processing (e.g. NLTK).
It is this great variety that has made Python the most popular programming language, in combination with the ease of learning, the high compatibility with C++, and the resulting good performance.
ALTERNATIVE LANGUAGES: JAVA, C++, AND CO.
However, Java was once the most popular programming language and not Python. Python won’t remain the most popular language forever either. So what are the alternatives? Which languages could become very popular in the future? PYPL also gives an answer to this question by showing the trends in the ranking. For example, it is clear that languages such as Ada, Julia, or Lua are showing a strong upward trend. Ada is a language that is known for its security, for example, because it relies on strong typing and runs a lot of checks at compile time. Lua, on the other hand, has the advantage of being able to be embedded in other languages and systems. Therefore, it is also referred to as “glue language” or “sticking language”.
THE PROGRAMMING LANGUAGE ALONE IS ONLY PART OF THE PROGRAMMING
If you want to improve your career opportunities in IT through further training, retraining, or a course of study, you naturally have the best options with one of the major programming languages such as Python, Java, C++, etc. If you already know your niche, you can also prepare yourself by learning a certain language – although that is often not even the sole criterion. Knowledge of how to use libraries and frameworks such as OpenCV for image processing or Qt for programming GUIs is also important here across languages, both of which are very widespread in industry and suitable for several languages.
It should also be said that the programming language alone does not make a programmer – this requires more knowledge about the language, e.g. soft skills, knowledge about software architecture or simply dealing with a development environment (e.g. Microsoft Visual Studio ), and of course with an operating system like Windows.
