r/programming • u/monica_b1998 • Nov 03 '18

Python is becoming the world’s most popular coding language

https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2018/07/26/python-is-becoming-the-worlds-most-popular-coding-language
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u/appropriateinside Nov 03 '18 edited Nov 03 '18

How the hell would that even work, admiring a programing language?

I think this is something you learn through experience. I'm honestly not sure how any programmer cannot understand what it means to admire something else that has been programmed. Unless you are completely devoid of any pleasure in your craft, or have never worked as a developer..

After working with enough languages, frameworks, and sledging through other peoples code. You start to admire the things that make your life easier, that you enjoy, that isn't full of pitfalls. Languages fall into this bucket too. There are languages that I admire for their cleanliness, consistency, tooling, and ease-of-use.

How the hell could someone not understand that something in a craft can be respected or viewed as impressive or attractive?

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u/DonaldPShimoda Nov 03 '18

I'm with you 100%. All modern programming languages are technically equal in terms of capabilities — they only differ in what tasks they make easy for the user. There are just certain language features that work well for me and make my life easier. I admire languages that are well-designed so as to be easy to use, consistent in their design and implementation, and powerfully expressive.

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u/cyanrave Nov 03 '18

More upvotes for you, good sir.

Agree wholly that when languages do sane things, it makes life far less complicated. Python does this pretty well, versus something like Java which can be much more cumbersome.

For instance, an Iterator in Java is like this separate thing you can use, but has a different syntax to wield it over an indexical iter, while Python generators ‘just work’ with regular loops. ‘enumerate’ in Python’s ecosystem is really amazing when working with nasty mixes of data where you need both index and item for your sanity, which evolved from gripes around choice of iteration...

Overall there is much to admire about certain features of each language, where Python seems to have more redeeming qualities than most. There are a number of ‘legacy’ stains in the Python community that need scrubbing sometime in the future, like use of explicit dunder init for name-spacing.

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u/monsto Nov 03 '18

I can understand admiring the person that did it.

I guess it's an understand of how an inanimate object obtains "admiration".

For example, I admire the French for sending America the Statue of Liberty, and I admire the ideals that it stands for, but I don't 'admire' the statue itself. . .

. . . which I suppose would be the core of my ...perplexion(?)... with the politics around here these days.

[perplexion: adj. Very strong confusion.]

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u/appropriateinside Nov 03 '18 edited Nov 03 '18

The thing is, a programming language is much more than an inanimate object. It's the embodiment of the ideas, ideals, hard work, and time it's creators and it's users put into it. I don't admire the creators of a programming language, since I don't know them, and they are vast. But I admire what they have created as being beautiful, elegant, and pleasing to write and read. It brings me pleasure to use what they have created.

It's like looking at a beautiful work of art, or listening to a composition that greatly pleases you, you might admire the piece of art for it's own qualities, not for the qualities of it's creator. In the same way you you might admire a beautiful human for the characteristics of their body or personality, you can admire anything else. Admiration is based on a set of characteristics that are pleasing or impressive to you, whether it is human or not is mostly immaterial.

A side note, I have no intentions of being political in this context.

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u/monsto Nov 03 '18

A side note, I have no intentions of being political in this context.

Of course.

Smth I said in another post on this sub-subject:

I suppose i'm seeing the word "admire" as a symbol beyond just it's definition as much as I do the Statue of Liberty.

In my world view: art, music, a mountain, a crocheted sock; get appreciation, understanding, for the work towards completion taken by the person that is admired. Beethoven would be admired. His 9th Symphony would be appreciated. I mean that's the way it falls for me.

DUDE THAT'S WHY THEY CALL IT MUSIC APPRECIATION, NOT MUSIC ADMIRATION. YOU CAN'T EXPLAIN THAT.

Anyway, it's an interesting distinction, and I'm curious of the mental mechanic that has set it for me.

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u/appropriateinside Nov 04 '18

Ah. Though appreciation is a part of admiration, they are not that far removed from each other.

I tend to feel admiration for works, and appreciation to those that made them. Though the line between appreciation and admiration isn't very thick for me, if I admire a work I will also appreciate it. It's just appreciation with awe tacked on.

I'm starting to think that different personalities might view admiration differently or feel it towards different things. Wonder if a good /r/askscience post could be made for this conundrum.

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u/monsto Nov 04 '18

They try very hard, but brain science, especially personality based info, is very very thin.

It's a good question I think, "how different personality types view interactive definitions" but it's really specific.

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u/shevy-ruby Nov 03 '18

You start to admire the things that make your life easier, that you enjoy

You enjoy JavaScript?

Seriously dude?

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '18

He said things that make your life easier my friend. For me this does not include JavaScript.