Tagged Questions
80
votes
15answers
8k views
Why did memory-managed languages like Java, Javascript, and C# retain the `new` keyword?
The new keyword in languages like Java, Javascript, and C# creates a new instance of a class.
This syntax seems to have been inherited from C++, where new is used specifically to allocate a new ...
69
votes
16answers
9k views
Do the young minds need to learn the pointer concepts?
Why did the C master Dennis Ritchie introduce pointers in C? And why did the other programming languages like VB.NET or Java or C# eliminate them? I have found some points in Google, and I want to ...
67
votes
1answer
7k views
What's the difference between Scala and Red Hat's Ceylon language? [closed]
Red Hat's Ceylon language has some interesting improvements over Java:
The overall vision: learn from Java's mistakes, keep the good, ditch the bad
The focus on readability and ease of learning/use
...
54
votes
11answers
9k views
A modern review of Java [closed]
I've been programming for a few years and I began in Java, and in my time I've found many different sources claiming Java to be an inferior language in some way or another. I'm well aware that each ...
46
votes
11answers
50k views
For what reasons should I choose C# over Java and C++?
C# seems to be popular these days. I heard that syntactically it is almost the same as Java. Java and C++ have existed for a longer time. For what reasons should I choose C# over Java and C++?
40
votes
6answers
5k views
Why didn't == operator string value comparison make it to Java?
Every competent Java programmer knows that you need to use String.equals() to compare a string, rather than == because == checks for reference equality.
When I'm dealing with strings, most of the ...
35
votes
9answers
11k views
Why is String immutable in Java?
I couldn't understand the reason of it. I always use String class like other developers, but when I modify the value of it, I need to create new instance of String.
What might be the reason of ...
35
votes
8answers
3k views
Is memory management in programming becoming an irrelevant concern?
Background
I revisited an old (but great) site I had not been to for ages - the Alioth Language Shootout (http://benchmarksgame.alioth.debian.org/).
I started out programming in C/C++ several years ...
34
votes
11answers
3k views
What are the factors that have made Java a success as a programming language in enterprise computing?
What are the factors that have made Java a success as a programming language in enterprise computing?
30
votes
17answers
6k views
How can I feel more confident about my programming skills? [closed]
Programming isn't alien to me. I first starting doing markup (HTML, now please don't laugh at me) when I was 12 and a little bit of BASIC when I was 13 (I knew much about Flowcharts, Pseudocodes at ...
23
votes
4answers
1k views
Why do C# and Java use reference equality as the default for '=='?
I've been pondering for a while why Java and C# (and I'm sure other languages) default to reference equality for ==.
In the programming I do (which certainly is only a small subset of programming ...
23
votes
5answers
6k views
Is programming in Python faster than in C, C++ or Java?
There's a widespread belief among programmers that the more dynamic and loosely typed the language, the more productive the programmer will be in it. Guido van Rossum wrote about programming ...
20
votes
6answers
7k views
Programming language usage at Google
I have heard Google uses Python, Java and C++. But what I don't know is how is each of those programming language is used. I mean what is Python, Java and C++ is used for at Google. Why would they ...
19
votes
10answers
7k views
What do Java developers think of Scala? [closed]
I've noted that IDE support is nowhere near as good, but the language itself supports functional programming idioms much more cleanly.
19
votes
14answers
7k views
Java devs: why not use Groovy? [closed]
OK, so there are quite a few people using Java these days. But as the language nears two decades of age, it isn't exactly the coolest option out there. Many of us are excited about dynamic languages ...
16
votes
4answers
2k views
Why does Java not do type inference?
I have always wondered why Java does not do type inference given that the language is what it is, and its VM is very mature. Google's Go is an example of a language with excellent type inference and ...
14
votes
7answers
6k views
Python productivity VS Java Productivity
Over on SO I came across a question regarding which platform, Java or Python is best for developing on Google AppEngine. Many people were boasting of the increased productivity gained from using ...
13
votes
5answers
954 views
What makes JVM so much versatile to support so many JVM languages?
JVM supports so many languages other than Java like Groovy,Clojure,Scala etc which are functional languages unlike Java(I am referring to Java before Version 8 where Lambda's are not supported) that ...
13
votes
2answers
1k views
Advantages and disadvantages of structuring all code via classes and compiling to classes (like Java)
Edit: my language allows for multiple inheritance, unlike Java.
I've started designing and developing my own programming language for educational, recreational, and potentially useful purposes.
At ...
12
votes
7answers
9k views
Is Java (still) the cross platform language of choice? [closed]
When I started using Java in the nineties, it was all "Write once, run anywhere!" from day one. That was probably all true then and I was a part of the choir as well.
I am not sure what to think ...
11
votes
6answers
4k views
Is Flash really superior to Java applets? [closed]
I'm still a student, without much real life experience in programming. I've never written anything bigger than ~5k lines of code. I've written code in both Flash and Java, and I just can't understand ...
11
votes
5answers
511 views
Analyzing a programming language
In SICP, the authors state (Section 1.1) that there are three basic "mechanisms" of programming languages:
primitive expressions, which represent the simplest entities the language is concerned ...
9
votes
4answers
876 views
Is there any reason lazy initialization couldn't be built into Java?
Since I'm working on a server with absolutely no non-persisted state for users, every User-related object we have is rolled out on every request.
Consequently I often find myself doing lazy ...
9
votes
5answers
755 views
Does Java promote a separation between class definitions and implementations, as is C++?
I have a homework assignment and I need to evaluate which approach is better according to GRASP "Protected Variation". I found a question on Stack Overflow about the separation of header and code ...
9
votes
6answers
686 views
Is there an infinite amount of knowledge in a programming language?
I can program in Java, C#, C, Scala, and Javascript fluently. I'm comfortable with Objective-C, but I don't remember the conventions used for memory management. I can read Python and Ruby and I've ...
9
votes
8answers
590 views
Past If statements Arrays, loops… Now what?
I gave up on programming a little over a year ago when I kept hitting this wall. I am revisiting the subject because I want to create basic Android application. But I feel that my limited knowledge ...
9
votes
9answers
972 views
Which Programming Languages Support the Following Features? [closed]
My personal programming background is mainly in Java, with a little bit of Ruby, a tiny bit of Scheme, and most recently, due to some iOS development, Objective-C.
In my move from Java to Objective-C ...
8
votes
5answers
3k views
What are the advantages of Ceylon over Java? [closed]
Looking for the recent and powerful upcoming programming languages over net, I came across Ceylon. I dropped in at ceylon-lang.org and it says:
Ceylon is deeply influenced by Java. You see, we're ...
8
votes
4answers
2k views
Is a lambda expression something more than an anonymous inner class with a single method?
There is a new hype with the long awaited lambda expressions in Java 8; every 3 day another article appears with them about how cool they are.
As far as I have understood they a lambda expression is ...
8
votes
4answers
502 views
What can and can't the Garbage Collector do?
Will the GC take care of all memory management issues (memory leaks) ?
Is there any case where you don't want the GC to take control of some part of your code ?
7
votes
3answers
2k views
Was Java originally designed for a toaster?
I've heard this tossed around few times, but never really a source. The wiki page says it was designed for home appliances, but never really references a toaster. Anyone have a source?
7
votes
8answers
2k views
Python : how can I impress people coming from Ruby/Java?
I am preparing a presentation about Python for my company, and would like to show Python's awesomeness to developers using Java or Ruby ! I guess it will be very simple to write shorter and cleaner ...
7
votes
4answers
362 views
How would a new language look if it was designed from scratch to be easy to TDD?
With the some most common languages (Java, C#, Java, etc) it sometimes seems that you are working at odds with the language when you want to fully TDD your code.
For example, in Java and C# you will ...
7
votes
5answers
5k views
What skills are needed for machine learning jobs?
I posted this question on Quora, but didn't get enough responses. reposting it here.
I am a learner sitting at home and learning linear algebra, very interested on working in Machine Learning ...
7
votes
5answers
616 views
Does language endorsement by different platforms (Android, iOS) hurt app development?
Developing iOS or OSX based applications typically requires knowledge of Objective C, since XCode is highly tailored to this language.
Android, on the other hand, has chosen Java as it's preferred ...
6
votes
8answers
499 views
Would you still use Java in your next project, despite the whole mess in JCP
It seems that there is a whole mess around current JCP.
Quite of number of highly respected guys like Doug Lea, Tim Peierls had quit JCP.
Reference :
Is JCP dead? and Final results of the JSR ...
6
votes
3answers
392 views
From an execution perspective is an interpreter the same as the JVM / or the .net Framework
I've recently started two introductory level courses - one using Python, the other Java.
I've read the answers to this Question but still have difficulty understanding how each ends up with machine ...
5
votes
5answers
537 views
Do I have to deliver my utility and helper code to clients?
Over the years I've created a bunch of Java utility and helper libraries which I just attach to new projects. Then, when I deliver code to my clients, I send all the code except for the libraries ...
5
votes
2answers
853 views
Asking people to disable Java for security - what's next for developer?
I don't know what best to give as title to this so pardon me if it sounds weird.
I saw this question asked on IT Security and another site asking people to disable Java from their system or browser ...
5
votes
4answers
639 views
What's the reason exceptions are heavily used in managed (C# and Java) languages but not in C++? [closed]
AFAIK, a lot of C++ projects don't allow exceptions and deny them in coding guidelines. I have a lot of reasons, for example, exception is hard to handle correctly if your binary needs to be compiled ...
5
votes
6answers
2k views
Programming languages differences and efficiency, does it matter?
I am fairly new to programming, I have studied in computer science for 3 years at college, but as you know, school is only 2% of what really makes one a fully-fledged programmer.
I have a lot of ...
5
votes
1answer
483 views
Can Scala be considered a functional superset of Java?
Apart from the differences in syntax, can Scala be considered a superset of Java that adds the functional paradigm to the object-oriented paradigm?
Or are there any major features in Java for which ...
4
votes
2answers
706 views
Java naming conventions vs. C++/C naming conventions
I am a Java developer who is starting to pick up more and more C++/C (yes I know they're different, bear with me). One thing that struck me as odd was the different naming conventions used by these ...
3
votes
3answers
8k views
Is C# more superior than Java as a programming language, objectively speaking? [closed]
A colleague (a .NET fan) argued that (in context to Java vs .NET comparison), while there are different arguments for Java and for .NET, and to determine which one is the better choice is a business ...
3
votes
3answers
2k views
Why were default and static methods added to interfaces in Java 8 when we already had abstract classes?
In Java 8, interfaces can contain implemented methods, static methods, and the so-called "default" methods (which the implementing classes do not need to override).
In my (probably naive) view, there ...
3
votes
4answers
732 views
Python vs. Java for embedded wireless module
We are developing a product at work which interfaces with basic I/O and sends data to a webserver over a GPRS connection.
What i need to know before we commit to a product, is which language is more ...
2
votes
3answers
374 views
Is there a way to use a higher level language in a competition that only has C, C++ and Java by default? [closed]
On that competition, you gain access to a system with gcc, vim, emacs and Java. You can't take any file with you and there's no internet access, but you can do whatever you want inside that system. ...
2
votes
2answers
3k views
How to execute a Ruby file in Java, capable of calling functions from the Java program and receiving primitive-type results?
I do not fully understand what am I asking (lol!), well, in the sense of if it is even possible, that is. If it isn't, sorry.
Suppose I have a Java program. It has a Main and a JavaCalculator class. ...
2
votes
3answers
236 views
MVC seems to create dependencies that just “don't feel right”
I might be misunderstanding MVC, so forgive me if that is the case.
This is my program structure (Java/Swing): I have a JTable (View) that is pointed to by a custom linked list (Model). When the user ...
2
votes
5answers
2k views
Best way to learn Java if you already have an OOP background, like ActionScript 3? [closed]
I'm looking to learn Java, but I don't want to get a book that is going to tell me what an object is, how OOP works, etc. I know this from my existing ActionScript 3 work.
One idea is to look at all ...
