What Niche Programming Language Do You Prefer?
We asked our readers about niche programming languages and which they thought were the most important to know or learn right now. The numbers speak volumes with almost fifty percent saying that JavaScript was the most important and popular. JavaScript is heavily used to enhance websites so it makes sense that it would have the most votes in our poll.
1. JavaScript is a functional programming language that is used to enhance websites, documents, widgets, etc. JavaScript is client-sided code so it runs inside the user’s web browser, therefore taking the load off of the web servers running the site. JavaScript is not to be confused with Java, even though they share a similar name. It is the only language that most popular and heavily trafficked browsers support collectively.
2. Python is a widely used programming language whose design and purpose is to increase compatibility and readability among systems. It helps to integrate your systems to increase productivity with a very clear concise syntax. Python has a very large standard library to work with to further simplify the process and is available for all major operating systems.
3. Ruby is a dynamic, general use programming language that focuses on simplicity and productivity. Ruby creator Yukihiro Matsumoto once stated, "I wanted a scripting language that was more powerful than Perl, and more object-oriented than Python. That's why I decided to design my own language".
4. MATLAB is a high level programming language and environment mostly used for faster numerical computing. It is widely used in academic and research institutions as well as industrial enterprises.
5. Cobol, one of the oldest programming languages, is an acronym for COmmon Business-Oriented Language and is used in business, finance and administrative systems. Cobol is set to remain the dominant language for business applications.
6. Erlang is an open source programming language developed by Ericsson to support distributed, fault-tolerant, soft-real-time, non-stop applications. Although Erlang was originally designed to fill a niche, its popularity is growing due to demand for concurrent services.
Do you agree with our readers? Let us know in the comments section.
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I read this article fully about the difference of most recent and preceding technologies,it's awesome article. -
Livia •Thanks for the insight.
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Stone •You've solved all my problems
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LabView, from National Instruments is in my opinion the best of the best for industrial applications, programming of Field Programmable Gate Arrays from Xilinx and the like. It is a graphical language that allows making hierarchical block diagrams of any process, say electronic or informatic, etc.
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Allan Garcia •Clearly RPGLE is a much better applications programming language for business than COBOL.
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Jack Knight •What about perl? It's at least as widely used as python, and has a larger library courtesy of CPAN.
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Francis W. Stringer •COBOL is archaic, but there is probably more lines of program code in COBOL than all the other languages combined, or at least a significant percentage.
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ME •Is JavaScript really a niche programming language?
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Don J. Slogar •Ada was not mentioned and I wonder how many programmers are still using it. There are still a few jobs out there, but it has become less and less in the last 10 years. Maybe with the downsizing of the government and government programs Ada has fallen to the wayside, but once upon a time it was the way to go for a programmer.
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sqatesterelite •Excellent article on these languages. The more you know, the more stress and money.
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Steven Perete •I mostly agree. Although I feel Perl has been left out, it remains a glue to a great number of platforms and integrations out there.
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Mike H •Lua is a nice hobby-oriented language.
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