The trend is likely caused because of Python’s great use for experimentation, and Java’s better use for production code. There is more experimentation than production code.
Java is a statically typed and compiled language, and Python is a dynamically typed and interpreted language. This single difference makes Java faster at runtime and easier to debug, but Python is easier to use and easier to read.
Python has gained popularity, due to its communicativit. With it, the libraries for Python are immense, so a new programmer will not have to start from scratch. Java is old and still widely used, so it also has a lot of libraries and a community for support.
Now, let’s take a look at these in depth, including some code examples to illustrate the differences between Python and Java.
Python Overview.
Python was first released in 1991. It is an interpreted, high-level, general purpose programming language. It is Object-Oriented. Designed by Guido van Rossum, Python actually has a design philosophy centered around code readability. The Python community will grade each other’s code based on how Pythonic the code is.
When to use Python?
Python’s libraries allow a programmer to get started quickly. Rarely will they need to start from scratch. If a programmer wishes to jump into machine learning, there’s a library for that. If they wish to create a pretty chart, there’s a library for that. If they wish to have a progress bar shown in their CLI, there’s a library for that.
Python is great for:
- New programmers.
- Getting ideas down fast.
- Sharing code with others.
Java Overview
Java is old. Java is a general-purpose programming language that utilizes classes and, like Python, is object-oriented. Java was developed by James Gosling at Sun Microsystems, released in 1995 as a part of Sun Microsystem’s Java Platform. Java transformed the web experience from simple text pages to pages with video and animation.
When to use Java?
Java is designed to run anywhere. It uses its Java Virtual Machine (JVM) to interpret compiled code. The JVM acts as its own interpreter and error detector. With its ties to Sun Microsystems, Java was the most widely used server-side language. Though no longer the case, Java reigned for a long while and garnered a large community, so it continues to have a lot of support. Programming in Java can be easy because Java has many libraries built on top of it, making it easy to find code already written for a specific purpose.
Who uses Python?
Python is often used with new programmers or junior developers entering a data science role. The big machine learning libraries, TensorFlow and pyTorch, are both written in Python.
Python has excellent data processing libraries with Pandas and Dask, and good data visualization capabilities with packages such as Matplotlib and Seaborn.
Who uses Java?
Java is used a lot for web development. It is more common among senior-level programmers. It allows for asynchronous programming, and has a decent Natural Language Processing community.
Well I can't say that python is better or Java is better, but both are used as well as known programming languages.