brenda m. michelson 's Library tagged redmonk →  View Popular, Search in Google

"For years now, it has been self-evident to us at RedMonk that programming language usage and adoption has been fragmenting at an accelerating rate [coverage]. As traditional barriers to technology procurement have eroded [coverage], developers have been empowered to leverage the runtimes they chose rather than those that were chosen for them. This has led to a sea change in the programming language landscape, with traditional language choices increasingly competing for attention with newer, more dynamic competitors.

The natural consequence of this tectonic shift has been uncertainty. Vendors for whom supporting Java and Microsoft based stacks was once sufficient are being forced to evaluate the array of alternatives in an effort to maximize their addressable audience. Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) stacks like Cloud Foundry and OpenShift are perhaps the best example of this; the differentiation for each at launch was in part their support for multiple independent runtimes from JavaScript to Ruby.

While the question is obvious – which languages should I support? – the answer, and mechanisms for determining an answer, have been considerably less so...."

programming language sogrady redmonk

Thoughtful, data-rich, post from Steve O'Grady on the life and times of Java.

"How then might we reconcile the above data with the conclusions of the Forrester analysts and the conventional wisdom of the enterprise they represent? For my part, the answer is simple: I break with them.

According to the data at our disposal, it is apparent that on a relative basis, Java has peaked. It is not as popular as it once was, and is not likely to return to its former prominence in future. It is equally clear, however, that it is still a dominant platform, and the data we have on current usage and employment indicates that this position is sustainable moving forward.

Which means that, from our perspective, Java is anything but a dead end. But as always, it depends on who you ask."

java redmonk sogrady forrester