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C++ vs Kotlin: What are the differences?
C++ and Kotlin are two popular programming languages used for different purposes. Let's discuss the key differences between them.
Syntax: C++ uses a complex and verbose syntax, which includes features such as pointers, templates, and macros. On the other hand, Kotlin has a concise and expressive syntax that eliminates boilerplate code and provides features like null safety and extension functions.
Type System: C++ follows a static type system, which requires explicit declaration of variable types and does not provide null safety by default. Kotlin, on the other hand, has a static type system but also includes features like smart casting and nullable types, which eliminate many runtime errors caused by null references.
Memory Management: C++ gives the programmer full control over memory management, allowing them to allocate and deallocate memory explicitly using features like new and delete. In contrast, Kotlin uses automatic memory management through a garbage collector, where memory allocations and deallocations are handled automatically, relieving the programmer from the burden of manual memory management.
Platform Support: C++ is primarily used for system-level programming and is widely supported on different platforms, including Windows, macOS, and Linux. Kotlin, on the other hand, is predominantly used for application-level programming and is mainly supported on the Java Virtual Machine (JVM), although it has also gained popularity for Android app development.
Concurrency: C++ provides low-level concurrency support through features like threads and locks, allowing fine-grained control over thread execution. Kotlin, on the other hand, offers higher-level abstractions for concurrency, such as coroutines, which simplify asynchronous programming and make it easier to write concurrent code.
Standard Library: C++ has a large and mature standard library that provides a wide range of functionality, including data structures, algorithms, and input/output operations. Kotlin, although not as extensive as C++, has a comprehensive standard library that includes features like collections, string manipulation, and file handling, making it easier to develop applications without relying on external libraries.
In summary, C++ is a versatile, performance-oriented language widely used in systems programming, game development, and resource-intensive applications, while Kotlin is a modern, statically-typed language designed for concise and expressive development, often utilized in Android app development and backend applications on the Java Virtual Machine (JVM).
I was thinking about adding a new technology to my current stack (Ruby and JavaScript). But, I want a compiled language, mainly for speed and scalability reasons compared to interpreted languages. I have tried each one (Rust, Java, and Kotlin). I loved them, and I don't know which one can offer me more opportunities for the future (I'm in my first year of software engineering at university).
Which language should I choose?
I will highly recommend Kotlin. I have worked with all three intensely and so far the development speed and simplicity is the best with Kotlin. Kotlin supports coroutines out of the box. Now, it isn't something that can't be implemented in other languages but Kotlin makes it super easy to work with them. Kotlin has a bit of learning curve, so, by the time you can actually use it idiomatically chances are that you will get proficient in Java too. But once you get it, you get it, then there is no other language ;) Kotlin is backed by Google and Jetbrains team so you can expect latest programming features and good community support.
It depends on which level and use cases you prefer to work at. Close to the machine? Rust is great but if you need to find more job opportunities, then take C/C++. Java has many job positions but I suggest Kotlin over it. Think about it as a better Java, but fewer job positions. Do you want to do your own projects? So a productive language like Ruby is way better. Like to program front-end apps? Take JS. Find your passion.
If you want a compiled language then go for Rust. It takes a certain mindset to get your head around its memory management system and the way it handles "borrowed" memory. However, it will generate blindingly fast code that you can cross-compile for other platforms. As a systems programming language I highly recommend it. Take time and learn it.
Java is only compiled to bytecode, not to machine code. So it executes in the Java Virtual Machine. DOn't think that its not fast, because the latest incarnation are very fast indeed. For most practical purposes, users of your code won't notice any difference. There are a heck of a lot of features in Java that you either have to import via crates in Rust, or write yoursef. So productivity-wise, Java may well beat Rust.
Kotlin is a Java-lookalike. It's a nice, and succinct version of Java and is totally interoperable. But its a bit niche, and for me it fails because my dev environment of choice (Spring Tool Suite) doesn't really play well with Kotlin. To use it you would be well advised to use iDeaj. I have used kotlin, and I like it, but not enough to ditch all my Java code.
Other contenders, depending on your platform of choice are Golang, C, C++, and C# (available as Mono on Linux systems).
I use Rust and Java and if you need a compiled language I recommend Rust.
As you certainly know, there are languages that compile in meta-code for Virtual Machines (Java, C#, Kotlin) and languages that compile in Machine Language (Go, Rust). Apart specific domains (blockchain, IoT embedded software, AI, cloud) almost no-one uses languages that compile in machine language, for a series of reason, most of all security and portability. So, if you are going to learn for business go with Kotlin - Java is a bit ancien regime. If you seriously need to learn a language that compiles in ML - for example you will code for IoT - go with Go - or Rust - but keep in mind that Rust is much less used than Go. PS: Kotlin also compiles in ML, but I would choose a language designed for that, instead of one that compiles "also" in ML. PPS: Some Virtual Machines - ie: GraalVM - allow you to compile Java in ML. The world of IT is beautiful.
I'd say Rust's knowledge will be more valuable in comparison. You can work in Blockchain development, compile to WASM (WebAssembly). There is a new JavaScript/TypeScript runtime named Deno (by the creator of Node.js) that has its backend in Rust.
All those are nice languages, but Rust is harder to learn properly and has a smaller ecosystem. If you want to work in system programming (like hardware drivers) Rust is probably your choice. Otherwise, Java/Kotlin ecosystem is much larger and gives much more possibilities (maybe excluding low-level system programming).
When talking about Kotlin and Java, both are good. But Kotlin, again, gives much more opportunities. Kotlin-JS gives you browser applications, Kotlin-Native allows to compile to native application (and interop with them). Kotlin-WASM will be available shortly. Rust is better than Kotlin-Native for native development tight now, but not by far and it makes sense only if you are focusing only on native development.
I'd recommend you to take a look at Java and Kotlin, the first due to the number of companies that actively use it in your products. Kotlin is gaining adept since it is fully compatibly with the Java ecosystem but usually requires less code to do the same (ignoring other benefits of the language). Another benefits of the Kotlin is that it is in fact multiplatform, where you could use the same syntax to code for mobile, web and backend applications. The drawback of Kotlin, is the number of open jobs that exists currently compared to Java, but I pretty sure that it will change in the near future.
I would go with Kotlin. It is pretty hyped currently.
You can use Kotlin for a lot of application types. To name some:
- Kotlin Multiplatform with Gradle
- Ktor (https://ktor.io)
- Spring Boot
- Kotlin JS (as you already know Javascript, you might like this one)
The code is also really concise, readable and modern. It also provides many features that you will find in many other programming languages.
Hi there. I want to expand my coding toolset. So I want to learn a second backend language besides Kotlin. Kotlin is fantastic. I love it in every aspect, and I think I can never return to Java. And also why should I? It is 100% interoperable with java and can co-exist in every project.
So my question here is. Which language do you think will bring me more joy? I think F#; it is more like Kotlin. Then C# (it's more or like 100% java). But, let's say I learn F#. Is it 100% interoperable like Kotlin? can they live side by side? Can I, then, apply to .NET jr jobs after a while, for example, or is C# the holy cow? I would like to learn .Net.
If it is the worst and only C# is acceptable, then which language should I learn? Dart? Go?
animefanx1,
First let's get your questions sorted: Which language do you think will bring me more joy?
This you will have to decide for yourself, I am a long time C# developer and have seen it grow into a very compelling platform. The language and I'd compare it more to Kotlin than Java (by a long margin). More on .NET in a bit.
say I learn F#. Is it 100% interoperable like Kotlin?
You can have 100% interop with a caveat, your F# libraries have to implement certain guidance in order to be referenced from C#. Some (dare I say most) of the differences between F# and C# are predicated on language constructs that are not available in C#. For instance F# functions that return Unit.
can they live side by side?
Yes.
Can I, then, apply to .NET jr jobs after a while, for example, or is C# the holy cow?
I don't know if I take your meaning, but let me say this: Learning either C# or F# will likely force you to understand concepts such as garbage collection, primitive types, etc. which apply to all .NET languages, thus a lot of the effort you put into .NET is bound to pay off regardless of your choice.
If it is the worst and only C# is acceptable, then which language should I learn? Dart? Go? You can't go wrong with any of these and I venture to say whether you select C#, F#, Dart or Go as your next adventure, your willingness to learn will take you to try other languages, some which mey not even exist yet!
PS1: .NET is an end to end environment now. With the introduction of Blazor and Razor pages one does not need JavaScript or other browser scripting languages, it even interops with JavaScript. PS2. Microsoft is working on unifying .NET. Soon there will be only one version: .NET 5! Caveat: Some features such as WinForms will still be specific to the windows environment but all of those are likely things you don't need in Mac or Linux
Exceptional decision to go with Kotlin. For the other story, go full with C#. "is C# the holy cow? Yes it is.". Specially now when netCore is crossplatform and you can build asp.net core applications on Windows, Linux and macOS via Visual Studio Code which is also multiplatform. Nothing will beat C# in the near future. Also, at the end of 2021 Microsoft will release Net 6.0 which will include MAUI.
"For those new to .NET MAUI (standing for .NET Multi-platform App UI), Microsoft says it's "the evolution of Xamarin.Forms extended from mobile to desktop scenarios with UI controls rebuilt from the ground up for performance and extensibility."
So, C# all the way sire!
I think you can learn go instead C#. C# is cool, but Golang also cool. It can run on any OS without specific software. C# can run on linux too but it's only the .NET Core as I know. But golang is flexible. So try it and decide what do you think about Golang
Hi, I'm just starting to learn code, and I stumbled upon this website. I think I should learn JavaScript, Python, and C++ to begin with. I'm a quick learner so I am only worried about what would be more useful. Suppose my goal is to build an online clothing store or something. Then what languages would be best? I need advice. Please help me out. I'm 13 and just beginning and it's hard to understand when people use technical terms so please keep it simple. Thanks a lot.
Go with Python. It's syntax is really simple and less verbose compare to others. You can use Python for basically anything like web dev, task automation, data science, data engineering, cybersecurity etc. At initial level, it's more important to get an understanding of programming fundamentals. Once you get conformable with coding in general, then you can explore other languages.
I would worry less about languages when you're first starting out. If you want to build an online store, then javascript is a great language that is used all over the web! Get comfortable with your first language, learn some computer science concepts and how to build things the right way, and then just work towards a goal and learn as you go!
https://www.w3schools.com/ is a great resource and it's completely free, everything you need to know to build a website is on that page if you have the drive to learn it. Best of luck to you!
Here's a neat roadmap too, in case you find yourself lost on what to learn next https://roadmap.sh/frontend
I recommend JavaScript to build your first website, for both FrontEnd and BackEnd , even tho I am a BIG fan of C++ it is not well suited yet to create websites, and Python would be just as good for the BackEnd as JavaScript but having everything written in only one language will make your learning curve way easier, so it is easy to recommend JavaScript.
Python is an easy and beginner-friendly language. As you've mentioned about Online Clothing store, you'll need to deal with the website part and you'll need Javascript to make the site accessible and functional. Javascript will be more easy to learn if you learn Python first, so you can just start with Python.
Hello Rachel, as a fellow programmer, I am glad that you are planning on expanding your coding knowledge and skills.
I recommend learning python first as it has a very simple syntax (syntax is how your code looks and how simple it is to type) and is also very user-friendly. Once you get to know how to code in python, you can use this thing called Flask.
Flask is what you call a "web application framework" or a WAF, it basically is a tool used to develop websites and other similar things. You don't have to worry much about it's difficulty because it is based on python. You will still have to learn how to use Flask though as it could be a bit complicating in first glance.If you are looking for simpler ways for making website without having to learn a lot of programming, you can learn HTML and CSS. These 2 will help you in making a basic and functional website. The catch is, from a career perspective, HTML won't get you far, as literally every programmer knows it. So it is best to use programming languages.
I hope this gave you a clear understanding of the ways in which you can build websites. Wishing you the best of luck!
I have worked with all these a ton. I make ecommerce and enterprise apps now. The only one of these you need is JavaScript. You can use JS on the backend as Node.js in AWS Lambda. You will need HTML and CSS skills, as well as a database. I recommend MongoDB. Please forget about C++ until you built your first company. Python fits the same purpose as Node.js but is currently popular in the Data Science community so skip it until you have a LOT of customers.
Since you're new, I'd recommend Javascript and Python. With Javascript, just learn React and Node. And with Python, learn Django. With JavaScript, Node, React, Python, and Django; you can accomplish quite a lot for both frontend and backend.
Hi, When saying that "Suppose my goal is to build an online clothing store or something", I would go for a ready to use platform like Wordpress. it will give you a fast jump into the online world. By using WP you'll have to catch on with PHP\JQuery Goodluck.. Ping me when store is ready, I might buy something....
Can anyone help me decide what's best for app development or even android Oreo development? I'm in a state dilemma at the moment. I want to do Android programming, not necessarily web development. I have heard a lot of people recommend one of these, and it seems that both the tools can do the job. Which language would you choose?
I assume that you mean Flutter by Dart. I have over 6 years experience programming in Android SDK, but about 1,5 month in Flutter. So far I think that Flutter is the future for mobile development. Flutter SDK is much better designed. Ecosystem of libraries seems having much higher quality. I would even say that android opensource libs are having really poor quality. Many times I am wondering how can garbage like that have so many stars at GitHub. Android SDK is hard to compose so you reinvent even basic things on and on, which is totally different story at Flutter. Lolcycle? Both are having good documentation. I quess apps in Flutter can be done in 1/3 of time compared to develop AndroidSDK and iOS, its design is that much better and contemporary. As of language comparison - Kotlin is better, but the difference is not that important. Go from one language to other is no problem. Dart is being updated with new features.
I've selected Flutter and Dart for my side projects and never regretted. Dart learning curve is easy after any OOP language . Flutter as a framework is also has a low entry threshold. I've already started development after a week of learning. Pros for me: code can be build for Android and IOS devices (for ios you need mac or VM), apps written in Dart have great performance on each of these platforms, flexibility. Cons: if you want to build a product as a business and want to hire a new Flutter Developer in the future it can be a problem as the framework and language is not popular for the moment.
It depends on what is the purpose of your app development. Do you want to make one app that shares the codebase for both iOS and Android? If yes, then Dart is the way to go. Does your app include interacting with hardware features like camera, Bluetooth, if yes, then go for native Android for better performance? Dart is good for simpler UI apps where you just do basic crud operations over the network and show data but if you need richer UI experience go with native.
I have worked in mobile development since 2010. I have experienced myself on various techs including Native SDK (Android), React Native (from 2016) and Flutter (2018). Almost the apps nowadays can be built using cross-platforms frameworks like React Native or Flutter. I suggest you start with Flutter. Flutter SDK is designed well to speed up your development and it still keeps the quality for your apps. If you're familiar with OOP languages (Java, C#...), switching to Dart is really quick and easy. Of course, sometimes you will need to dive deep into native parts but almost the cases you don't need. Good luck!
Python has become the most popular language for machine learning right now since almost all machine learning tools provide service for this language, and it is really to use since it has many build-in objects like Hashtable. In C, you need to implement everything by yourself.
C++ is one of the most popular programming languages in graphics. It has many fancy libraries like eigen to help us process matrix. I have many previous projects about graphics based on C++ and this time, we also need to deal with graphics since we need to analyze movements of the human body. C++ has much more advantages than Java. C++ uses only compiler, whereas Java uses compiler and interpreter in both. C++ supports both operator overloading and method overloading whereas Java only supports method overloading. C++ supports manual object management with the help of new and delete keywords whereas Java has built-in automatic garbage collection.
After writing a project in Julia we decided to stick with Kotlin. Julia is a nice language and has superb REPL support, but poor tooling and the lack of reproducibility of the program runs makes it too expensive to work with. Kotlin on the other hand now has nice Jupyter support, which mostly covers REPL requirements.
From cross platform development point of view: Using kotlin multiplatform is more convenient than java for implementing cross platform code, since it can be converted to be used in iOS (swift) projects, and it can be easily learned if you already know swift. It still an experimental feature but it helped so far to unify a lot of the common code between our iOS and Android projects. And it is more future proof than java regarding support and maintain multiplatform converting.
As a personal research project I wanted to add post-quantum crypto KEM (key encapsulation) algorithms and new symmetric crypto session algorithms to openssh. I found the openssh code and its channel/context management extremely complex.
Concurrently, I was learning Go. It occurred to me that Go's excellent standard library, including crypto libraries, plus its much safer memory model and string/buffer handling would be better suited to a secure remote shell solution. So I started from scratch, writing a clean-room Go-based solution, without regard for ssh compatibility. Interactive and token-based login, secure copy and tunnels.
Of course, it needs a proper security audit for side channel attacks, protocol vulnerabilities and so on -- but I was impressed by how much simpler a client-server application with crypto and complex terminal handling was in Go.
$ sloc openssh-portable Languages Files Code Comment Blank Total CodeLns Total 502 112982 14327 15705 143014 100.0% C 389 105938 13349 14416 133703 93.5% Shell 92 6118 937 1129 8184 5.7% Make 16 468 37 131 636 0.4% AWK 1 363 0 7 370 0.3% C++ 3 79 4 18 101 0.1% Conf 1 16 0 4 20 0.0% $ sloc xs Languages Files Code Comment Blank Total CodeLns Total 34 3658 1231 655 5544 100.0% Go 19 3230 1199 507 4936 89.0% Markdown 2 181 0 76 257 4.6% Make 7 148 4 50 202 3.6% YAML 1 39 0 5 44 0.8% Text 1 30 0 7 37 0.7% Modula 1 16 0 2 18 0.3% Shell 3 14 28 8 50 0.9%
I work at Stream and I'm immensely proud of what our team is working on here at the company. Most recently, we announced our Android SDK accompanied by an extensive tutorial for Java and Kotlin. The tutorial covers just about everything you need to know when it comes to using our Android SDK for Stream Chat. The Android SDK touches many features offered by Stream Chat – more specifically, typing status, read state, file uploads, threads, reactions, editing messages, and commands. Head over to https://getstream.io/tutorials/android-chat/ and give it a whirl!
Pros of C++
- Performance203
- Control over memory allocation108
- Cross-platform99
- Fast98
- Object oriented85
- Industry standard59
- Smart pointers48
- Templates38
- Gui toolkits17
- Raii17
- Flexibility14
- Generic programming14
- Control14
- Metaprogramming12
- Hardcore10
- Full-fledged containers/collections API5
- Many large libraries5
- Simple5
- Large number of Libraries4
- Performant multi-paradigm language4
- Way too complicated3
- Close to Reality1
- Plenty of useful features1
Pros of Kotlin
- Interoperable with Java73
- Functional Programming support55
- Null Safety51
- Official Android support46
- Backed by JetBrains44
- Concise37
- Modern Multiplatform Applications36
- Expressive Syntax28
- Target to JVM27
- Coroutines26
- Open Source24
- Statically Typed19
- Practical elegance19
- Android support17
- Type Inference17
- Readable code14
- Powerful as Scala, simple as Python, plus coroutines <313
- Better Java12
- Pragmatic10
- Lambda9
- Better language for android8
- Expressive DSLs8
- Target to JavaScript8
- Used for Android6
- Less boilerplate code6
- Fast Programming language5
- Less code5
- Native4
- Less boiler plate code4
- Friendly community4
- Functional Programming Language4
- Spring3
- Official Google Support3
- Latest version of Java2
- Well-compromised featured Java alternative1
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Cons of C++
- Slow compilation8
- Unsafe8
- Over-complicated6
- Fragile ABI6
- No standard/mainstream dependency management5
- Templates mess with compilation units4
- Too low level for most tasks3
- Compile time features are a mess1
- Template metaprogramming is insane1
- Segfaults1
- Unreal engine1
Cons of Kotlin
- Java interop makes users write Java in Kotlin7
- Frequent use of {} keys4
- Hard to make teams adopt the Kotlin style2
- Nonullpointer Exception2
- Friendly community1
- Slow compiler1
- No boiler plate code1