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I have a few questions for all who are now reading this blog – Do you understand what I am saying? How do you know what I mean, when I say anything? The answer is simple, it’s because we both are communicating – I am writing, and you are reading – using a single medium i.e. English Language.

Similarly, if there is to be communication between humans and computers/smartphones/tablets, etc, there is a need for a medium. This medium is the Programming language. 

WHAT IS A PROGRAMMING LANGUAGE?

The programming language is thus a formal language made of codes that include a combination of punctuation marks and real words. Together, the punctuations and words of the programming language form a command or code – something which is similar to a sentence. Thus, for performing anything, a computer/ smartphone follows the source code text which a programmer writes in a programming language. 

Thus, programming language allows for communication between humans and computers. Using it, humans are enabled to write programs and develop web applications, mobile applications, etc.

TRENDING PROGRAMMING LANGUAGE

Today in 2020, there are various Trending programming languages including Java, Kotlin, C#, C++, CSS, Python, JavaScript, Swift, Go, Ruby, XML, etc. Thus, these are the Programming languages which are being used for developing various mobile applications, iOS applications, web applications, graphical applications, etc; 

Of all the Programming language mentioned above, Kotlin is currently the most trending Android Development Programming language.

Now you might wonder what an Android is. Well, an Android is an operating system built for Mobile devices (such as phones, tablets, TV, camera, watches, etc.), similar to Windows, which is an operating system built for computers. 

Software development services like our Techasoft who want to develop mobile apps, web apps, graphical apps for their business clients; and also, businesses wanting to develop their own mobile apps, do take note. It gets more interesting ahead, as we begin with Kotlin 101 – the Kotlin Guide for Beginners.

WHAT IS KOTLIN?

Kotlin is an Android Development Programming Language. It was developed initially by JetBrains and is now taken over by Google. Kotlin is a Robust, Open Source, Statically typed, Java Virtual Machine based Programming Language. The best part is that even Java libraries and Java codes can be used within a project of Kotlin. Kotlin has recently shot to fame and is being preferred over java, even Google has recognized it as its preferred Official Language for Android Application Development. So, now that you know What is kotlin?, let’s further take a look at why Kotlin is important? Even more than Java –

WHY KOTLIN OVER JAVA?

Kotlin, which is accepted by Google as the official Mobile development language, focuses on enabling mixed-language projects. It can thus interoperate with Java and use Java Code from already available Java Libraries. Thus, Kotlin has concise abstractions and expressions, so that when used with Java, it decreases the boilerplate code requirements. If roughly translated, 2 to 3 code lines in Kotlin can substitute 50 code lines in Java. Thus, Kotlin is simpler and concise and has more expressive syntax than Java i.e. it simply removes difficult and tedious syntax which is faced by Java Users. Kotlin was born out of the need to improve on existing models of Java, and yes, it makes the developers’ job simpler! 

BEBEFITS OF KOTLIN FOR BUSINESSES:

◈ Reduced App Development Time: As mentioned earlier, Kotlin is much concise, it requires fewer lines of codes. Thus, the time taken to develop the app using Kotlin is also reduced. Also, when it comes to testing, there are fewer lines to read through and modify, thus Kotlin code is easy to maintain too. Undoubtedly, it means saving time. For business, this is the trump card that Kotlin holds.

◈ Reduced Bugs in The App: Code for applications developed using Kotlin is concise. The lesser are the number of lines, the lesser is the scope for bugs to hide. Meaning, bugs can be easily be detected, thus the situations of the crashing of the applications will be reduced. This means there will be fewer failures, and the applications developed using Kotlin will be smoother in working.

KOTLIN GUIDE FOR BEGINNERS - THE TAKEAWAY

◈ Kotlin is an open-source Programming Language developed by JetBrains

◈  In 2017, google recognized it as the second official language for Android Development, next to Java.

◈ In 2019, Google declared it to be its preferred Official Language for Android App Development, surpassing Java.

◈  As compared to Java, Kotlin is clean, lightweight, and less verbose.

◈  Kotlin is interoperable with Java and can thus make use of Java libraries.

◈ Kotlin code is organized, concise, readable, reusable, and has by default all non-nullable variables. 

◈ It uses industry feedback to deal with problems relating to developing software for large enterprises.

◈ In short, Kotlin is the newer emerging Android Development Programming Language which is much more versatile and easy to use.

◈ If you are into Software Development, it’s a language you would want to learn; if you are a business, it’s a language you would want to be used in the development of your mobile application.

Hope this guide was enough to let you know exactly what is Kotlin, what its importance is, and why you would want to use it. Now it remains up to you how to use this information. Adios!