If you’re a beginner who’s in search of the easiest programming languages to start with and build a future in the tech world, keep reading because learning programming languages is a good way towards a successful career path! Many people think that programming languages are only restricted to the world of technology. However, with the growing demand for data and tech advances, there are every day more industrial & retail companies are “doing tech”.
History of Programming Languages
Before diving into the basics, it’s important to know about the history of programming languages.
Even though it may seem as if programming languages are a thing of recent times, that’s not the case at all.
The first programming language was developed during a time when even computers didn’t exist! That is way back in 1843 when Ada Lovelace developed the first-ever machine algorithm.
Since then, programming languages have come a long way.
However, Lovelace provided the base for all the inventions that came after her algorithm related to this field. That’s why we keep a room in the OpenSistemas’ office named after her 🙂
After that came many advancements in this field. However, the first commercially available programming language was FORTRAN. This one comes in the list of old programming languages.
After FORTRAN, every programming language developed became widely popular. Examples of programming languages that came after FORTRAN include Java, HTML, C++, Phyton, Go, Ruby etc.
And this is real a thing: many coding languages are not in demand for new projects anymore, but a wide amount of apps currently used by companies are based on them.
So when learning a programing language, you might encounter that for a certain field you’ll have to face learning a language that is not popular anymore but still widely in use.
Types of Programming Languages
If there’s anything that has constantly been in demand, then it’s the need to learn programming languages. Due to this, various programming languages have been developed to help everyone out there. Here are the types of programming languages. Each one of these serves a different purpose to developers.
Functional Programming Languages
A programming language that is based on mathematical functions is called a functional programming language. It includes Python, Clojure, Haskell, Lisp, etc.
Procedural Programming Languages
A procedural programming language is focused on a series of procedures and steps that compose a program. These steps include coding functions, statements, and commands. Pascal, FORTRAN, and Java are some types of procedural programming languages.
Scripting Programming Languages
This type of programming language is quite similar to procedural programming language. The only difference is that the scripting programming language is a little restricted. This means that this programming language is limited to certain functions to run a specific program. Groovy, Python and Ruby, all come in the category of scripting programming language.
Object-oriented programming languages
As its name indicates, an object-oriented programming language is based on objects that contain data. This data can be of any kind, whether in procedures, fields, or codes. Examples of this programming language are Java, JavaScript, C++, etc.
Logic programming languages
Unlike other programs that tell the machine which steps to take next. A logic programming language gives the machine logic on what it should be doing. The coding of this programming language is done in the form of rules and facts. Absys, CHIP, Ciao, and ASP (Answer Set Programming), are some of the programming languages that fall under this category.
Most in-demand and easiest programming languages to learn for working
As a beginner, you must be looking to learn something that’s easy and will prove to be beneficial for your career.
If you are looking to work in this field, you will most likely be doing one of the following:
- Build apps
- Big Data and data analysis
- Automate actions
- Understand technology, test and solve coding problems
Here is a programming languages list to help you get an insight into what programming language you should learn first.
Python
The number one reason why Python is so easy to learn is because of its code’s readability. Python uses a coding system that mostly uses the English language. It is also the first programming language that’s taught to college students. Python is used to make websites, software, and data visualizations. Due to its versatility, Python is a favourite among professionals, scientists, and front-end developers.
Why Python is one of the most in-demand programming languages is due to it being in use in almost every industry. It won’t be wrong to say that Phyton is the perfect tool for everyday tasks. However, to learn Python, you will have to set your computer accordingly. This can prove to be complicated to some.
Java
Java is an object-oriented programming language that is a favourite among backend and frontend developers. It originated in 1995, and it remains to be one of the most high-level programming languages. This means that you won’t have to go deep into the basics to learn Java. A lot of the things in this program run automatically.
Why is Java easy to learn? It is because its coding is precise and to the point. If you have little experience with object-oriented programming languages. Then it will not take you long to master Java.
JavaScript
Where backend developers mostly prefer Java, JavaScript is the one that frontend developers mostly go for. It is one of those programming languages that can show results instantly. The reason why JavaScript is easy to learn is that it’s made specifically for non-programmers. On average, it can take you a maximum of three weeks to learn JavaScript.
As a beginner, JavaScript should be your top-most priority to learn. JavaScript is the best to use for web applications, and since the need for web applications has surged. That has added JavaScript to the list of most in-demand programming languages in the future.
If you learn JavaScript, you won’t find difficulty in learning other programming languages too.
C
To be able to understand the most complicated things, you should always know fully well about the basics. C is just the programming language you should get started with. This only applies if you’re looking to get your hands on the very basics of programming. Every great and successful programmer has first mastered the codes of C before moving on with complex programming languages. Even after so many years of its origination, this programming language still remains to be a strong base for every programmer out there.
C has the simplest data structures included, so it won’t require you to invest a lot of time into getting the hang of it.
Ruby
Is often compared with Python because the two have a similar framework.
Ruby is one of the easiest programming languages to learn due to its simplicity. Not to add that it can be really beneficial for your career in the future. Since it is mostly used to develop web applications, Ruby constantly remains highly in demand.
Ruby is a great first programming language to learn because it has a simple interface.
This programming language also has excellent resources on the internet that can help you get a grasp of it quickly. The productivity rate with this programming language is high.
What’s the easiest programming language to learn?
The programming languages mentioned above are one of the easiest programming languages to learn and use in a working environment.
By this, we mean that there might be many other languages easier to learn, but these ones are also in-demand.
So if you are in the search of a professional career in tech, here is where your efforts on learning a programming language are going to be well invested.
But the programming language that will be most convenient for you to learn, is only up to you and your needs.
To help you go through this decision process here is a very well produced video made by a senior developer in Codecademy that might clear things up for you regarding which programming language to use.
