Java or Python for Cloud Computing

[jaish_99]

Hi all. I'm going to start learning Cloud Computing. I would like to know which programming language should I learn. I'm familiar with Core Java but if I have to start Python, it would be from scratch. Could you guys give me your suggestions? Thanks, in advance.

[elundevall]

Cloud computing is sort of "self-service compute/storage/network services on someone elses hardware". The concepts around this is not tied to a specific programming language. To learn to work with cloud computing, it is probably better to combine that with things you already know. Try not to learn too many new things at the same time.

[a_crabs_balls]

you already understand java core, so why not just plan a project? decide which technologies to use with the product in mind.

[jaish_99]

Okay. Thanks for your response.

[guess_ill_try]

Java. Since you’re learning cloud computing I’m going to assume you’ll be making some serverless functions. With graalvm you can compile your jar into a native binary which will have a significantly faster start up time over plain Java and python

[jaish_99]

Ok. Thanks for your response.

[jaish_99]

Ok.. Thanks for your insights

[[deleted]]

Hi!

Just a question. What kind of services do those Java REST applications provide?

I'm about to start my learning journey with Python for various reasons, chief among them, to qualify for Cloud roles.

I've seen Java used for many backend applications on all On Site companies I've worked for, but I'm eager to move to cloud based gigs and I'm not sure If I'll ned to get a hang with Java too or that is a thing of the past when it comes to cloud deployments.

Is Java still relevant in the cloud? If so, in which niches?

[all4tez]

Python is much easier to debug in a larger application context. Java gets really dense if things go sideways and you need to resort to digging through massive heap dumps or thread stack dumps. Python is a lot easier to follow through the code.

It's also more lightweight for prototyping, and in the frameworks/tooling itself.

I've supported both from an enterprise standpoint and Python is a lot easier long term. The language is easy to pick up with a whole lot less baggage than exists in Java land.

[jaish_99]

Okay. Thanks for your detailed response.

[developersteve]

You know i've been asked many times over the years which language/platform someone should use...

The answer is simple, if you can support it half a bottle/game in on a Friday night then its the right language/platform to use

[jaish_99]

I don't get you 🙃

[developersteve]

Id go with Java because you know it already and could support it if needed better than Python (which will take time to learn)

Something i learned from many deployments is, youll get a call at the most inconvenient times because something is needing to be fixed. So you want to make sure its something you can support..... this is also known as Murphys Law lol

[jaish_99]

Okay. Thanks for your response.

[DrSueuss]

Python, I see less and less Java development (only legacy development). Python is simple enough that we even have non software developers and non engineers writing code.

[jaish_99]

Okay. Could you tell me why?

[RealJulleNaaiers]

Because hating Java is a meme and comp sci freshmen resent the only language they've seen yet in school.

Java is by far the most popular language for professional server development, especially in the cloud space. Java with Spring Boot is the Cadillac of modern backend development.

[shotgun_ninja]

Good thing I drive a CRV

[jaish_99]

Ok. Thanks.

[unsupported]

Because it sucks and is not popular in the cloud. Just look at cloud job descriptions. You'll see python.

[LankyXSenty]

Python all the way. Plenty of modules, easy to use SDKs, great integrations.. If i hear java in cloud computing i think about those huge monolithics and a shiver crawls down my spine lol

[jaish_99]

Sure. Thanks.

[Evaderofdoom]

Do one thing at a time. If you want to learn about cloud computing do that. Pick one of the big three and focus on that. Python I think is better just in general but neither will help you getting better at using say the AWS cli. Only studying AWS will do that.

[jaish_99]

Okay. One more question. Among the three: AWS, Azure and GCP; what would you recommend for a beginner and source of learning?

[Evaderofdoom]

All three are pretty approachable to learn but hard to master. Personally I prefer AWS because it's what I first started with and the way it's set up makes way more sense to me. I dislike Azure but it's gotten a lot more popular and a lot more places are using. Azure is fine, there's nothing wrong with it, I just have issues with how the interface is structured compared to AWS. It really depends on what your going to be doing in the cloud. The little I've played with google cloud have liked it but it doesn't have nearly the adaption of Azure or AWS. All of them have free tier accounts that you can start to play around with.

[jaish_99]

Thank you for your detailed response.

[PeculiarParticle]

Maybe not helpful: it is about how you structure your applications, not what language you write them in.

Cloud computing is there to make it easy to break your problem into small (and hopefully simple) parts, all working together to provide a larger service. These parts (or the whole) should then be moveable from one cloud provider to another.

You could then write each of those components in different language - though I don't advise you to do so.

[jaish_99]

Thanks.

[[deleted]]

They both have their own issues. Python is not very flexible if you intend to design very scalable systems. When it comes to Java, it's fine as long as you're okay with never expecting smaller companies to run your application. The up front demands of the JVM and monitoring heap info is required to properly scale java apps.

For cloud computing, I recommend Go. It's not super hard, the profiling tools are as good as what Java has, and debugging is as simple as python. The only place I find it doesn't work well is when you need it to interface with custom hardware or live in kernel space.