A Brief History of Programming Languages: Part II

You don’t need to be a coding history buff in order to build a lucrative programming career, but as anyone who takes pride in their craft will tell you: it’s only by learning from the past that we can truly understand the future. 

Last month, we took a look at the earliest days of coding. In those times, computer programming was only just getting started and there were no Ruby vs JavaScript discussions or concerns about Ruby on Rails advantages and disadvantages. 

Today, we’ll expand on that article and look at the more recent history of computer languages. We’ll also tell you where in San Diego you can quickly and reliably master JavaScript and some of the other programming languages. Keep reading to learn more. 

Table of Contents:

• When was C++ first created?
• What were the 1990s like for programming languages?
• What was coding like during the 2000s?
• How do I become a coder in San Diego?

When was C++ first created?

Bjarne Stroustrup initially developed the C++ extension of the famous C language in 1983. This is one of the pivotal moments in coding history as C++ has grown to become one of the most popular programming languages of all time. To this day, developers still use C++ in professional-level programs such as Adobe Photoshop and game engines.

What were the 1990s like for programming languages?

The 90s have seen the release and popularization of Windows 3x and Windows 9x series. The intuitive graphical interface of these operating systems and the increased availability of affordable computer hardware had a huge effect on popularizing computer architecture. 

This, in turn, made coding more lucrative and attractive, resulting in the creation of many of the best coding languages that are still used by many software developers today.

These languages include:

• Haskell (1990) is a mostly mathematical scripting programming language used by many industries to perform complex calculations, number-crunching, and records management.
• Python (1991) was unique in how simple it was to read and how few command lines it required in order to get the job done. Today, Python frameworks are widely used in major web applications such as Instagram.
• Visual Basic (1991) was created by Microsoft. Like Windows, it relied on a graphical interface that made it easy to combine premade chunks of code.
• Java (1995) started as a hand-held device and cable box software, but soon evolved to become one of the most popular languages in the world. Today, three BILLION devices run Java. They include anything from phones to computers to parking meters.
• PHP (1995) started as Rasmus Lerdorf’s own personal website management language. It has since grown to become the go-to language for blog and website development. 
• Ruby (1995) was designed by Yukihiro Matsumoto as a sort of a “Frankenstein monster” language. By merging together useful parts of other languages, Matsumoto created a superb all-purpose language that makes it extremely easy to build and run a program.
• JavaScript (1995) was created in only 10 days by Brendan Eich. Today, JavaScript is a front-end development powerhouse that’s used by almost every major site out there. 

What was coding like during the 2000s?

While the ‘00s haven’t given rise to as many first-rate coding languages as the ‘90s have, they’re still a crucial period in development history. 

Coding languages created during the 2000s include:

• C# (2000) combined the intuitiveness of Visual Basic with the computing power of C++. It has many similarities with Java and is used in Microsoft application development. 
• Groovy (2003) is a new programming language derived from Java. Its goal is to boost developer productivity by being more concise and fairly easy to learn.
• Go (2009) was made by Google as a way to deal with issues that occur in big software systems. This computer programming language makes it easier for coders to read, write, and maintain these systems.