The most popular programming languages in the world

c is ok for low-level stuff but that is hardly the language for newbs. C you should only really learn if there is a clear demand for it in your organisation. if you are a newb and want to learn OOP, C# and java is by far your best bet. i think the Microsoft stack seems to be more popular here than in the rest of the world.

I think C++ still rides on the coattails of it being the language of choice for most CS programs, there are some uses for it but I really think Java and C# is where it at if you leave the academic environment and want to make some real money.

if you want to make good money a reasonable knowledge of HTML / CSS / javascript and PHP is going to get you a real good salary. The neat thing is that with Javascript and CSS you learn the basics but there is so much functionality in the frameworks that automate so much of the process that you learn the basics and then do very little real programming afterward, relying on inbuilt functionality in the frameworks to do 90% of the work.
 
If I could matrix-download one language, would probably be Python. A lot of data/api/interface stuff I'd like to build with uses Python.
 
HennieWelkom said:
c is ok for low-level stuff but that is hardly the language for newbs. C you should only really learn if there is a clear demand for it in your organisation. if you are a newb and want to learn OOP, C# and java is by far your best bet. i think the Microsoft stack seems to be more popular here than in the rest of the world.

I think C++ still rides on the coattails of it being the language of choice for most CS programs, there are some uses for it but I really think Java and C# is where it at if you leave the academic environment and want to make some real money.

if you want to make good money a reasonable knowledge of HTML / CSS / javascript and PHP is going to get you a real good salary. The neat thing is that with Javascript and CSS you learn the basics but there is so much functionality in the frameworks that automate so much of the process that you learn the basics and then do very little real programming afterward, relying on inbuilt functionality in the frameworks to do 90% of the work.
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The vast majority of top tier technology and finance firms use a combination of C++ and Java, depending on team as their primary programming languages. I personally, have only used C/C++ as a primarily language in the last 20 years (with some Python and R every now and then for scripting and data analysis). I don’t know anyone making “real money” with C# (because of the limited domain the language typically services).

Regardless, the above is mostly correlation, not causation - the people in the top tech/finance firms aren’t making money because of the language they use, but because of the skills they bring to the table.
 
cguy said:
I don’t know anyone making “real money” with C# (because of the limited domain the language typically services).
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I was about to say the same about Java. Beyond it's proliferation in Android apps, I haven't seen any new projects in the industry being done in Java. Most Java job posting seem to related to keeping existing developments running. Having worked with almost every language in that list (from Assembler, C and C++ for microcontrollers to multi-tier, Javascript for smart card application, etc) personally I consider Java a outdated technology. In terms of language features, I'd consider C# to be the gold standard.

I don't really put much faith in both of the lists though. They seem to be based more on languages people are struggling with (question asked on stackoverflow) than actually using.
 
recre8 said:
I was about to say the same about Java. Beyond it's proliferation in Android apps, I haven't seen any new projects in the industry being done in Java. Most Java job posting seem to related to keeping existing developments running. Having worked with almost every language in that list (from Assembler, C and C++ for microcontrollers to multi-tier, Javascript for smart card application, etc) personally I consider Java a outdated technology. In terms of language features, I'd consider C# to be the gold standard.

I don't really put much faith in both of the lists though. They seem to be based more on languages people are struggling with (question asked on stackoverflow) than actually using.
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I think that you're looking at a different market segment. The big tech companies and banks almost all use Java and C++. The only big tech company I know that uses C# at all is Microsoft (not-surprisingly). I am sure that there are still a lot of companies with Microsoft infrastructure that use C#, but I doubt that this is particularly lucrative.

I agree that there is a lot of skew and selection bias in these surveys, and even the poorly researched information they usually produce tends to be used incorrectly (E.g., JavaScript is the most in demand -- go learn JavaScript!). I don't hold much stock in them, and prefer to research the actual hiring practices of the companies I would like to work at -- most of which, don't really care about what language I use, and assume that I will be able to pick up whatever I need to.
 
cguy said:
The vast majority of top tier technology and finance firms use a combination of C++ and Java, depending on team as their primary programming languages. .
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I can vouch for this statement, as I have knowledge of what a few large finance firms are using.

cguy said:
I don’t know anyone making “real money” with C# (because of the limited domain the language typically services).
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What do you classify as "real money"? Is R1m considered real money, because I know many devs that use C# and make over R1m. Their domain ranges from Xamarin for mobile and .NET Core Systems for critical banking services.

cguy said:
Regardless, the above is mostly correlation, not causation - the people in the top tech/finance firms aren’t making money because of the language they use, but because of the skills they bring to the table.
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Agreed, experience and being able to code in more than 1 language, and having good knowledge of DevOps for Cloud counts for a lot.


cguy said:
The big tech companies and banks almost all use Java and C++. The only big tech company I know that uses C# at all is Microsoft (not-surprisingly). I am sure that there are still a lot of companies with Microsoft infrastructure that use C#, but I doubt that this is particularly lucrative.
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I think since the advent of .NET Core and Xamarin, C# is growing in company's, especially because both are multi-platform tools (And Open Source ,if that's worth anything with devs and companies)
 
rogerwe said:
IWhat do you classify as "real money"? Is R1m considered real money, because I know many devs that use C# and make over R1m. Their domain ranges from Xamarin for mobile and .NET Core Systems for critical banking services.
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When cguy says real money, he means from 10x that to 100x that, I believe. People who work for the larger financial companies in New York, London and Hong Kong get stupid money, if they have the appropriate skillset. I've seen jobs advertised in London with salaries up to GBP 200k per year, with a bonus of 20-100%. GBP 400k in one year is around R7.5 million, and remember that is just what is advertised. Real salaries for those with PhDs and the right track record could be much, much higher.

High ranking employees in the larger technology companies get similar amounts, but they tend to receive more of their compensation in stock than in cash.
 
Ancalagon said:
When cguy says real money, he means from 10x that to 100x that, I believe. People who work for the larger financial companies in New York, London and Hong Kong get stupid money, if they have the appropriate skillset. I've seen jobs advertised in London with salaries up to GBP 200k per year, with a bonus of 20-100%. GBP 400k in one year is around R7.5 million, and remember that is just what is advertised. Real salaries for those with PhDs and the right track record could be much, much higher.

High ranking employees in the larger technology companies get similar amounts, but they tend to receive more of their compensation in stock than in cash.
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Heh. I was thinking even 3x and up. Don’t get me wrong, R1m is great for SA, but in the rest of the world very very few of the top 10% or so (by compensation), developers are using C#.
 
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