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Python as a programming language was created by Guido van Rossum and first released on February 20, 1991. It has basically taken over the world (together with JavaScript) mostly due to the fact that it is relatively easy to learn especially for anyone with programming experience and also very popular in machine learning and Artificial Intelligence (AI) fields.
What is Python?
Most people with programming experience may already be familiar with python and its ecosystem so this is for the uninitiated.
According to python’s documentation, “Python is an interpreted, object-oriented, high-level programming language with dynamic semantics. Its high-level built-in data structures, combined with dynamic typing and dynamic binding, make it very attractive for Rapid Application Development, as well as for use as a scripting or glue language to connect existing components together”. Python is usually referred to as a scripting language since it is interpreted at runtime (like JavaScript) and not pre-compiled into bytecode like java for example.
The pros of Python
Python is a very popular programming language today for quite a number of reasons. Let’s take a look.
- Easy to Learn and Use
Python is one of the easiest programming languages to learn and master and that is fondly called pseudo code in the developer’s community. The reason for this is because the syntax is very clean and uncluttered and people have described it as “closely resembling plain English”. The very vibrant and huge community of programmers supporting python also means that there are a lot of free resources on the internet to learn python and to get help with any development problems.
- Diverse Applications
Python is one of the most diverse programming languages on the planet as it can be useful in a lot of environments and fields ranging from Artificial Intelligence, web applications, Enterprise and business applications, Image processing and graphic design applications, Scientific and computational applications, Games, Prototyping etc.
- Extensive Libraries
Python provides a large standard library which includes areas like internet protocols, string operations, web services tools and operating system interfaces. Many high use programming tasks have already been scripted into the standard library which reduces the length of code to be written significantly.
- Open Sourced
Python is open-sourced which makes it free to use and distribute and its development is community-driven which has seen a lot of enthusiastic developers collaborate and contribute to its codebase and numerous modules.
The Cons?
Everything that has advantages also has disadvantages and python is no exception. Although, python does not seem to have many cons associated with it and the ones it has aren’t really deal-breakers.
The major con mostly sighted by critics are the performance issues especially when compared to low-level languages like C and C++ but these issues also apply to other languages like JavaScript and the performance issues are not serious enough to be a deal-breaker in most applications and use cases.
Secondly, python is usually knocked for its weakness in mobile computing as it has little to no tools popular enough to be considered viable in mobile applications.
Another issue that may arise from using python is the fact that it is so easy to use that developers get too accustomed to it that they find using other languages a chore which could somehow have a negative impact on their growth as developers. Although, I would admit that this isn’t really a flaw with python but a flaw with people.
Conclusion
The pros of python greatly outweigh the cons and for that reason alone you can never go wrong in learning python and adding it to your arsenal of skills. The fact that it is a very popular, open-sourced and useful in almost all fields means that python is here to stay in the long run no matter what anybody might say.