I'm trying to decide whether to dive into Python or Java for my programming journey. What are the key factors I should consider when choosing between them? Think about things like job opportunities, overall experience, workflow, and different project sizes, especially in the context of startups or small to medium-sized companies. I enjoy both languages, but I need to focus on mastering one initially.
5 Answers
When it comes to AI and machine learning, Python is my go-to because of all the libraries that simplify the development of those applications. There's a huge demand for Python in small to medium companies focusing on AI workflows.
If you're tackling a big project, Java is usually the way to go. For smaller projects, I tend to prefer Python. In cases of medium-sized projects, I lean towards Python if I'm confident it won’t spiral out of control, but I’d pick Java if I think it might grow bigger.
These days, language choice often depends on the specific libraries you need. Java can feel like it has too much overhead for small tasks, and it just doesn't have the vast array of statistical and scientific libraries that Python does, like NumPy or Pandas.
I personally stick with Java when developing Android apps, but for general programming on Linux, I find Python to be quite handy due to its nice GUI modules.
You don't really need to stress about which one to learn first. Most good programmers know several languages. When you learn, 80% of it is just about programming concepts that'll apply no matter the language. Once you've got the basics down, switching between languages will be much easier.
This is really helpful, thanks!