In 2021, the Python programming language will celebrate its 30th anniversary. Completing three decades in the niche, Python gives most other programming languages a good thrashing, showing a 456% growth.
SOURCE: Stack Overflow
In 2020, the Python coding language is chosen by tech gods like Google and Reddit, Facebook, PayPal, Instagram, Netflix, and Dropbox. But achieving this success wasn’t easy. This achievement is explained by the fact that Python is a multi-purpose language that can be used for completing any programming task: mobile and web app development, scientific computing, game development, and system administration.
Whether you’re about to join IT as a coder or interested in Python web development, here’s what you need to know about why Python language has no expiration date.
It’s easy to learn
Less time and resources are required for a beginner to learn and start implementing Python if we compare this programming language to Java or C++. Python is now called an accessible and straightforward language free of intricate guidelines or complex language syntax.
At the time when C and C++ were dominant (and not very user-friendly) languages, Python was created with simplicity in mind. The core philosophy of the programming language’s syntax is based on three principles: readability counts, beautiful prevails over ugly, and simple beats complex. So it’s easy to figure out what the code does when you read it.
It’s a high-level language
What factor makes a programming language high-level? This is the number of layers of code that this language is away from machinery binary code. In other words, high-level languages are close to natural spoken and written languages.
SOURCE: Security Stack Exchange
Python leads the list of high-level programming languages, leaving Ruby, Java, C, and C++ behind. To form instructions, Python uses words that resemble abbreviations of English words. Developers prefer Python to other languages because while using the language to code, they can concentrate on the task itself instead of focusing on how the computer works.
It’s cross-platform
Cross-platform or platform-independent is one of the programming language features that allows a developer to run intermediate code on different OS. Coding in cross-platform languages like Python is rising in popularity.
A Python software written on a Linux system will run on macOS and vice versa. If the Windows PC has the Python interpreter installed, the Python program will run on the Windows PC as well.
It has exceptional scalability
In the context of web applications, scaling stands for the app’s ability to accept more requests and visitors and have long-term support for security patches and bugs. This is why scalability is the key concern when building a new application. Even though the app can start off as rather small, it might grow large with time.
SOURCE: Ncube
To avoid code rewiring in the future, it’s essential to pick the right programming language and its framework. Python’s framework Django scales exceptionally. This is why Django is the choice of Spotify, Instagram, YouTube, Quora, Pinterest, and Disqus. But Django isn’t the only possible choice. Check out more about the top 13 Python frameworks to learn.
It has hundreds of libraries
Any programming language’s library is a set of pre-written reusable codes. Python’s library collection is huge and allows developers to use pre-written code saving time when developing a new program. With a freely-accessible pre-written code, developers working on big projects can significantly cut down the initial development cycle.
In addition to standard libraries, Python has a few specific ones: those for natural language processing and machine learning. Most of the libraries are mature. Many of them have been battle-tested for over ten years.
SOURCE: Learn data science
It offers excellent community support
A Python developer stuck with a piece of code, shouldn’t be concerned about receiving relevant support. To start with, while most languages lack documentation, guides, and video tutorials, Python has this in abundance. And secondly, this is because Python has one of the strongest communities.
Say a Python developer (beginner or expert) runs into a major issue in the middle of crunch time. Receiving timely help from an active community will help him escape delays.
So what does a Python community look like? It includes international members with different experiences and skills who call themselves Python programming enthusiasts. They host meetups and conferences or arrange collaborations on code. The community uses mail lists to keep in touch with developers.
Top 5 Python real-world applications
What are the areas where Python programming plays a crucial role? With so many advanced features, Python has many applications, including:
Web and mobile app development — Top Python frameworks used for web and mobile app development are Django, Pyramid, and Flask. These frameworks are packed with tools that simplify many tasks and help developers build apps at a rapid rate.
Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence — Development of ML and AI apps requires stable but flexible, secure, and well-equipped programming language. Since these four qualities are what Python is known for, this programming language is favored by ML and AI developers. In the field of AI and ML, Python’s most widely used packages are Seasborn, SciPy, Pandas, Numby, and Keras.
Game development — Python’s extensions help with interactive game development. Basically, there are two Python-based extensions used for game engineering: PyGame and PySoy. They helped developers to build a basis for games like Civilization-IV, World of Tanks, and Battlefield 2.
FinTech and the financial industry — Python currently dominates the pack of top programming languages when it comes to FinTech and the financial industry. World-known financial institutions like Bank of America have already transformed their tech stack to Python.
SOURCE: Skill Crush
Desktop graphical user interface development — Along with its ability to work on various OS, Python is also known for its modular architecture. Combined, these two features make Python a rather frequent choice for GUI app development. The list of best Python-based frameworks for GUI applications includes PyQt, WxPython, PyGtk, Tkinter, PySide, and Kivy.
Python has been around for a while. Today, it is the choice of Netflix, Google, Dropbox, Stripe, Instagram, and Spotify. Indeed, Python is frequently referred to as a simple language. However, it’s also very powerful. And even though a developer starts easily, outgrowing Python isn’t as easy as outgrowing any other programming language. With this in mind, consider Python as our primer choice for software development at steelkiwi.