THE CODE ISSUE 30

Duda Owner IONOS • August 10, 2015

Here is another one of my favorite quotes from the special double issue of Bloomberg Businessweek on computer coding. This one illustrates that regardless of which programming language a coder might choose, its reputation always precedes it (Paul Ford, “The Code Issue”, 6/15/15–6/28/15, p. 102):

The choice of a main programming language is the most important signaling behavior that a technology company can engage in. Tell me that you program in Java, and I believe you to be either serious or boring. In Ruby, and you are interested in building things quickly. In Clojure, and I think you are smart but wonder if you ship. In Python, and I trust you implicitly. In PHP, and we sigh together. In C++ or C, and I nod humbly. In C#, and I smile and assume we have nothing in common. In Fortran, and I ask to see your security clearance. These languages contain entire civilizations.





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