The most important skill to learn in today’s world is to know how to write a computer program. Today, computers have entered in almost every industry. Be it the autopilot in an aircraft or digital speedometer in your bike, computers in various forms surround us. Computers are extremely useful for an organization to scale up well. Gone are the days of pen and paper. Today, in order to store and access your information, you absolutely need computers.
The programming and developer communities are emerging at a rate faster than ever before. Various new programming languages are coming up that are suited for different categories of developers (beginners, intermediate, and experts) as well as for different use cases (web application, mobile applications, game development, distributed system, etc). Every beginner is puzzled with the question, "What programming language should I learn?"
1. Python
The object-oriented programming language has picked up popularity in recent time. Large companies such as Google, Facebook, and Instagram are among the top users of Python.
Used for: Web development, data science, machine learning, fintech and other financial industries.
Popular apps built with Python: Spotify, Dropbox, Instagram, Facebook, Quora, Netflix.
Pros: Extensive list of libraries, career opportunities, code readability, performance.
Cons: Design restrictions, weak in mobile and browser, speed limitations.
Difficulty level: Easy to learn. Best language for beginners. 5 out of 5.
Job opportunity: Huge! 5 out of 5
2. Java
The 25-year-old programming language is still a leader when it comes to enterprise software development. It is popularly used for writing apps for Android.
Used for: Native Android development, programming of legacy systems, desktop softwares.
Pros: Object-oriented language, a standard for enterprise computing, a well-established support network.
Cons: Older language and more complex.
Difficulty level: Easy to moderate to learn. 4 out of 5.
Job opportunity: Huge! 4.5 out of 5
3. JavaScript
The scripting language is used for front-end development. JS has changed the way how some of the biggest web apps are built today. It is relatively easy for programmers to get started with JS.
Popular sites that use JS: Facebook, Slack, Airbnb, Reddit, Dropbox.
Used for: Writing server code, modern front-end frameworks such as React, Angular, Node etc.
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Pros: Simple, flexible and easy to learn, follows rich user interface, versatile and used in many ways through Node.js server.
Cons: Bugs and oversight can be exploited, it lacks types similar to Python.
Difficulty level: Easy to learn. 4.5 out of 5.
Job opportunity: Huge! 5 out of 5.
4. Go programming language
Go, also known as Golang, is a programming language built by Google.
Go provides excellent support for multithreading and so, it is being used by a lot of companies that rely heavily on distributed systems. Go is widely used in startups in Silicon Valley. However, it is yet to be adopted by Indian companies/startups. Those who wish to join a Valley-based startup specializing in core systems should master Golang.
Pros: A smart standard library, ease of use,Strong security built-in, Google’s prominence in the industry
Cons: It’s still a young language, Lack of a virtual machine,It hasn’t quite found its niche
Difficulty level: Easy to learn. Need knowledge about programming for beginners. 4 out of 5.
Job opportunity: Huge! 4.5 out of 5