I'll say it again:
If java was brainf&%k and we still got the JVM out of it, it would all be worth it. And I think there's a good chance that Java's successor runs on it.
If java was brainf&%k and we still got the JVM out of it, it would all be worth it. And I think there's a good chance that Java's successor runs on it.
The nice thing about Kotlin is almost perfect compatibility with Java, and an auto-translator that doesn't suck. So you can take an existing Java codebase and auto translate class by class, maintaining compilability the whole time. Also the standard library is mostly a set of extensions to the JDK so your existing library knowledge ports across, except you keep finding useful goodies sprinkled all over the place.
Feature-wise Kotlin has things that I feel would help me write fewer bugs: it has null-safety encoded into the type system, smart casts, extension methods, some good functional programming support, powerful properties and so on. There are features it lacks too, but I hope JetBrains will continue to push it forward for many years.
;)
If you start using the open type system, you end up going through some somewhat slow reflective code to make everything work, and that can be slower.
The biggest problems with Gosu right now are:
- Startup time - Tools support
We are working on both of those and hope to have better tools out over the summer.