What Made Golang so Popular?

What Made Golang So Popular? | TurnKey

Golang has gained tremendous popularity in software products in recent years. But what has led to its meteoric rise in popularity? Is it the language’s powerful features, its intuitive syntax, or maybe even its quirky mascot, the gopher?

I’ve been obsessed with Go’s popularity over the last 2 months, so in this article, I’ll reveal what I’ve discovered and share some of Go’s impressive successes. So grab your favorite energy drink and put on your snorkel as we dive deep into this popular language.

Table of Contents

What is Golang Programming Language?

If you haven’t heard of Go, let me drop some knowledge for you. It’s a programming language that’s gaining popularity faster than a viral TikTok dance.

Known for its simplicity, efficiency, and ease of use, it has increasingly become a go-to option for developers looking to build scalable, high-performance applications.  Developed by Google, Go (or Golang for the formal types) is loved by developers for its simplicity and efficiency. It’s open source, statically typed, compiled, and was created back in 2007 by Robert Griesemer, Rob Pike, and Ken Thompson.

But what makes it so special? It’s like the no-frills airline of programming languages – you won’t find any fancy features, but you’ll get where you need to go in a breeze. With Go, you can write code that runs lightning-fast, without pulling your hair out over complex syntax. Its design is focused on being simple, efficient, and scalable, which makes it perfect for concurrent and networked programming. Web services virtual machines, cloud infrastructure, and DevOps all love this versatile language, but there are countless other uses as well.

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What Does “Go” Programming Language Do?

This programming language is designed for simplicity, efficiency, concurrency, and scalability, particularly in networked and parallel computing environments. Golang is used for a wide range of programming tasks, including web development, data processing, web services, cloud infrastructure, DevOps, and more.

The syntax is similar to that of the C programming language, and it includes features like garbage collection, low-level memory management, and a built-in concurrency model that enables developers to make large software systems that take full advantage of multi-core processors. Overall, it’s a versatile programming language that is well-suited to a wide range of applications.

C# vs Go simple "Hello, World!" program syntax sample

Go Usage and Market Demand

It is used by major companies such as Google, Uber, Netflix, and Dropbox, to name a few. According to a Stack Overflow survey in 2021, it was the 5th most loved programming language. Today it’s sitting in 8th place (with high performance Elixir taking the silver medal) in the top most loved ones. However, true market demand for a popular programming language is difficult to measure and can vary depending on the industry, location, and other factors.

Go in Stack Overflow survey in 2022 | TurnKey

According to the TIOBE Software Index, Go just reached the competitive 10th spot in March 2023.

TIOBE Software’s CEO Paul Jansen | TurnKey

GitHut 2.0 shows steady growth in the interest and usage of Go year over year, placing it 5th among other languages. More then 10,4% of all Pull Requests on Github in 2023. 

Go in GitHut 2.0 | TurnKey

Thoughts on Why Go is Becoming a Popular Choice Among Developers

Go has been making some waves in the developer community lately. So what adds to the Golang popularity? Some say it’s because of its simplicity and ease of use, while others praise its speed and concurrency capabilities. Here are a few other thoughts to add to the debate:

Static Language With a Dynamic Twist

So, what does that mean exactly? Well, it uses static typing to make sure your code is safe and error-free, but it also includes some dynamic-typing features to make programming a little easier. For instance, there’s interface{} and type assertions that allow you to work with a ton of different data types without sacrificing safety. This language is the best of both worlds – you get the efficiency of static typing and the flexibility of dynamic typing all in one language.

Golang Is Versatile, Fast, and Scalable

The syntax is similar to C, making it easy to learn, and it includes features like garbage collection and low-level memory management. It also includes a built-in concurrency model that enables developers to take full advantage of multi-core processors, making it well-suited for high-performance, concurrent applications.

Additionally, it has proven to be scalable, with the ability to handle large-scale applications and systems. Golang’s focus on performance, efficiency, and concurrency makes it a good fit for applications that require high-speed processing, scalability, and reliability.

Why Golang Might NOT Be Your Best Choice

We all know that the tech industry and software development is like a game of musical chairs – one day you’re on top, and the next day you’re left standing. And that’s exactly why choosing the right programming language is crucial. So, if you’re thinking of jumping on the Golang bandwagon, hold your horses and read on to find out why it might not be your best choice.

Golang Can Be Time-Consuming

It’s a language that is all about safety and efficiency, which means you can expect some seriously fast-running code with fewer errors. However, this focus on safety and efficiency can also mean that writing code in it might take a bit more time and effort. Another thing to keep in mind is that Golang doesn’t have as many standard libraries as some of its counterparts, which can make searching for and integrating third-party libraries a necessary and time-consuming step.

Golang Doesn't Support Generic Functions

The official FAQ states that the design team decided to prioritize simplicity and ease of use over adding generic functionality. While generics can offer several benefits, including code reusability and reduction of code duplication, they can also complicate the type system and lead to more complex syntax. The Golang team has stated that they are open to reconsidering this decision in the future if a simple and elegant solution can be found.

While it’s true that Go doesn’t have a built-in way to define generic functions, there are still workarounds that can make your code more flexible and reusable. You can use interfaces, type assertions, and reflection to achieve similar functionality. Plus, Golang’s strong, static typing often makes up for the absence of generics since you can catch typing errors at compile-time rather than run-time.

Overall, Reddit users in r/golang thread agree that in 2023 Go is still relevant, although there are cases in which they would not choose this language.

Reddit users in r/golang thread | TurnKey

How Does Go Compare With Other Programming Languages?

Unlike some of the older languages, Go was designed with modern needs in mind. It’s no wonder that so many leading companies have adopted it as their language of choice.

Elixir, Matlab, and Python are other programming languages that are often compared with each other and can be called popular programming languages that offer different features to suit your product needs. Here are their biggest key differences below:

  • Python is a high-level scripting language with an easy-to-understand syntax and lots of built-in libraries for data analysis and machine learning.
  • Matlab is great for scientific computation tasks, providing Numerical Computing Tools, Data Analysis functions, and Application Development Toolboxes.
  • Elixir is a dynamic functional language ideal for building distributed systems due to its fast compile time and low memory footprint.
  • Go is a statically typed language designed for scalability, speed, and reliability.

In a nutshell, Go brings a fresh approach to programming and packs a punch in terms of versatility and utility.

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Golang's Applications

Go has a wide range of applications, including web development, cloud infrastructure, server-side applications, systems programming, network programming, DevOps, databases, and more. Many unicorns, including Google, Uber, Netflix, Dropbox, Monzo, and SoundCloud, have adopted the language for various use cases.

Here are a few more specific examples of Golang’s applications:

  • Blockchain and cryptocurrency: Speed and efficiency make it a good fit for building blockchain and cryptocurrency applications. Many popular blockchain projects, such as Ethereum, Tendermint, and Cosmos, are written in Golang.
  • Data science and machine learning: Ability to handle large amounts of data makes it suitable for data science and machine learning applications. The Gonum library, for example, provides a set of tools for numerical computations and machine learning.
  • Gaming industry: Low-level control and high performance make it ideal for building games and game engines. The Mango engine is a popular Golang-based game engine.
  • Internet of Things (IoT): Small memory footprint and fast startup time make it a good choice for building IoT applications. Gobot is a popular Golang-based framework for building IoT applications.
  • Popular DevOps tools are written in Go: Whether you're looking for a continuous integration tool like Jenkins, a container orchestration platform like Kubernetes, Docker and Istio or a monitoring tool like Prometheus, chances are it's been written in Go.

With big players in various industries turning to Go, it’s clear that the language has some serious benefits worth exploring:

How to Hire Golang Developers?

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What is Golang used for?

Go, also referred to as Golang or Go language is a free coding language developed by Google. Software development companies can use Go for various operating system and frameworks for Web application development and cloud and network services.

Does Golang have a future?

Golang language) are Open Source programming languages for general use in programming languages. Golang is an emerging and highly-demanding programming language. In 2022 learning Golang will help improve our software development process.

What is the main advantage of Golang?

It runs faster, more easily compiling, is easily maintainable and supportable, and allows for short software development cycles. Golang can be compiled directly into machine code because it uses Virtual Machines, which also provides a faster speed advantage.

May 11, 2023

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