Comparative Study on Programming Languages

Did you know that around 700 separate programming languages exist today, with more languages being added to the list each year? What’s even crazier is that the first programming language wasn’t even created until 1964. During this year, an American computer scientist named John Backus headed a team that created the first-ever programming language, which was called FORTRAN. While FORTRAN is still in use today, the landscape of programming languages has transformed significantly.

With hundreds of programming languages today, it can be hard to decipher which languages are the most in-demand. Learn about the ten most commonly used programming languages in the tech space today and how they can help streamline and grow your business.

1. HTML

HyperText Markup Language or HTML is one of the most common and basic programming languages used on the Web today. HTML is the standard markup language for creating Web pages, describing the structure of a Web page. Essentially, HTML consists of a series of elements that tell the browser how to display the content. 

What is this programming language used for?

• Web documents
• Website development 
• Website maintenance 

2. CSS

Cascading Style Sheets or CSS is the programming language that is used to style web pages. CSS describes how HTML elements are to be displayed on a screen or in other media. CSS can control the layout of multiple web pages at one time, saving a lot of time and work for programmers and web designers.  

What is this programming language used for?

• Web documents
• Website development 
• Website design

3. JavaScript 

Along with HTML and CSS, JavaScript is one of the core programming languages of the World Wide Web. JavaScript can be used to update and change HTML or CSS. In addition, JavaScript can calculate, manipulate, and validate data. Essentially, JavaScript is a scripting language that enables programmers and web developers to dynamically update content, control multimedia, animate images, and make the Web come to life through better navigation and readability. 

What is this programming language used for?

• Web development 
• Game development 
• Mobile apps 
• Building web servers

4. Java 

Created in 1995, Java is a popular programming language owned by Oracle. Java runs on more than 3 billion devices and has a wide variety of uses from mobile applications, desktop applications, web applications, web servers, games, database connections, and more. In addition, Java is a relatively simple programming language that is easy to learn and use. Another benefit of Java is that it is open-source and free. Two closely related programming languages are C++ and C#. 

What is this programming language used for?

• E-commerce
• Finance 
• App development 

5. Python 

Created by Guido van Rossum in 1991, Python is a popular programming language that can be used to develop web applications and workflows. Python is also used to handle Big Data or complex mathematics. Python was designed for readability. Therefore, Python syntax is generally easier to read compared to other programming languages. 

What is this programming language used for? 

• Back end development 
• Data science 
• App development 

6. C 

Created in 1972 by Dennis Ritchie, C is a programming language based on the early programming languages of ALGOL, BCPL, and B. The programming language of C actually forms the base for many other programming languages that are currently in use today, like C++, C#, and Java. 

What is this programming language used for?

• Operating systems 
• Databases 
• Embedded applications 

7. C# 

First released in 2002, the programming language C#, pronounced C-Sharp, is an object-oriented programming language. C# was created by Microsoft and runs on the .NET Framework. The C# programming language is based on the C programming language and shares many similarities with other programming languages from the C family, like C++ and Java. 

What is this programming language used for?

• Game development 
• Desktop/web/mobile apps
• VR

8. C++

C++ was developed as an extension of the C programming language. Therefore, the two programming languages have nearly the same syntax. The primary difference between C and C++ is that C++ supports classes and objects, while C does not. Overall, C++ is one of the world’s most popular programming languages used in many of today’s operating systems, Graphical User Interfaces, and embedded systems. 

What is this programming language used for?

• Operating systems
• Game development
• Databases
• VR

9. R

R is a specialized programming language primarily used for statistical computing and data visualization graphics. This programming language is used widely by business analysts, data analysts, data scientists, and scientists. 

What is this programming language used for?

• Data science
• E-commerce
• Finance 
• Research

10. SQL

Structured Query Language or SQL, pronounced Sequel, is a programming language primarily used for accessing and manipulating databases. Essentially, SQL is a programming language that allows programmers to work with data that sits in various database systems. Being able to work with this data is crucial in the modern world as data sits at the core of many of today’s web applications and mobile apps. 

What is this programming language used for?

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