Hi Aleks,

I agree that the language has changed a lot and that Java is not that far behind.

However, the declining interest in learning Java when compared to other languages seems to indicate that the value of Java is not resonating/clicking with the majority of junior software engineers. Which is a danger to Java’s long-term future.

I feel the statement that Java is the best choice for mission critical development is one I hear a lot, but the why part of it is often not properly elaborated. Performance and throughput are highly use-case dependent and Java does not have a monopoly on type safety. There’s plenty of other languages used in big open source projects that power many mission-critical systems.

I don’t know if you remember the industry catch phrase “Nobody ever got fired for buying IBM”. When it comes to language choices, Java is a similar story. Using Java in the enterprise space won’t raise eyebrows, but that doesn’t make it the only choice.