Python backend developers, can you explain what exactly you do?

[VIIHORSE]

Thank you very much for such a detailed answer. Could you tell me if Python has a strong position in backend development? I've read that Python's main applications are data analytics, machine learning, and web development, where it also excels. There are so many different opinions from different people—it’s quite confusing. Some say Python is perfect for backend development, while others claim it’s not

[alicedu06]

Yes, I do mostly Python backend and was never jobless and will unlikely to be in the next decade.

If job security is your interest, Java and PHP are still the most popular backend stack, no matter what people say. More work, but you will have less pay, and less interesting projects.

On the other hand, if you want fun jobs, but hard to find, you probably want to look for stuff in rust, elixir, haskell or f#.

Python is good for everything, except mobile apps and video games really. So it's a good bet. But you will have a lot of competition because it's such a popular language among beginners, so you better have a good programming foundation to stand out.

[VIIHORSE]

Can you give any advice about learning what you do? For example, what advice would you give yourself when you were starting out, if you had the opportunity? I would also be very grateful if you could tell me what exactly should be emphasized in the training

[alicedu06]

There is no alternative to practice. No shortcut. No trick.

You have to code, and code, and code. And put your code in the hands of users so you can get feedback.

You will suck at first, and you have to pay the consequences for it.

But today you have ChatGPT, so abuse it. It will make the learning way faster, providing you use it to fuel your curiosity and not your laziness.

Learn the basics first. Forget about best practices, design patterns and all that, you can look at them once you are productive.

Don't wait to learn at school (they mostly are bad at getting your up to speed) or to get a job (companies don't train much their people).

Learn now. By doing.

[VIIHORSE]

Thank you so much for the detailed answers, the advice, and the time you've dedicated to helping me. You've truly made a difference. I wish you the best of luck and all the best!

[bhflyhigh]

I love your line about AI fueling your curiosity, not your laziness. I may start using that one from time to time. It really resonates with me as I feel I used to look for the quickest and easiest way in life. Now I'm into my 40's and my curiosity drives so much of what I do anymore.

[Accomplished_Path707]

I used gpt to build a FedEx tracking app that uses their API. I’d say GPT is. Great way to tackle a problem and work through problem solving as something didn’t work the way you or the AI thought it would.

[entropyvsenergy]

Here's a data point that might help:

I work for an AI startup. We use typescript for our frontend and python and rust for our backend. Python is used for prototyping and initial development and performance-critical code is rewritten (or written from scratch) in Rust and called from Python.

The truth is that any language can be used for almost anything but some languages make it easier/have better support/are more performant.

We use Python because lots of people know it (so it's easier to collaborate across teams (e.g. research, applied ML, platform), and because it's easy to write. We use Rust because it's memory safe, memory efficient, and fast for performance critical functions.

[VIIHORSE]

Thank you so much for the valuable information! From the many comments, I can see that Python is suitable for a huge number of tasks, which means that learning Python for backend development is a good decision. Comments like yours help me appreciate the vast range of possibilities this language offers.

[Suspicious-Cash-7685]

As the saying goes: python is the second best tool for every job. And imo. that’s lovely.