
Ask HN: Why are sub-optimal computer languages the most popular in the world? - okareaman
How did sub-optimal languages like Python and JavaScript get to be the most popular languages in the world? Saying because they were widely available doesn&#x27;t make sense to me, because vendors early on could see them becoming popular and fixed them or come up with a replacement before they got so entrenched.
======
PaulHoule
When PHP came out it was a big hit because of deployability. Cheap web hosts
could install it and hack out quick scripts, or more important, install
WordPress.

There were a few subtle points in how it was built that meant you could write
bad scripts and not crash the server. There were commercial alternatives, some
pretty spiffy, but they were expensive and risky (you could test PHP for
yourself or you go up the chain of command to pay $5000 for a Cold Fusion
license then be stuck with it if you don't like it.)

Other communities working on blub languages thought that the good properties
of PHP were not important. They might have been minimal but they were not
viable.

------
the_hoser
For JavaScript, the answer is pretty obvious: there simply weren't (and still
aren't, really) any alternatives.

For Python, it's really a phenomenon of trends. It's got all the right pieces
(easy to learn and use, good community, good library ecosystem), but lots of
languages have that. Like so many other things... It became more popular
because it was popular.

Runtime performance is only one factor in the programming language game. Many
other equally important factors are purely emotional. We are human, after all.

------
gshdg
Because for the vast majority of purposes, ease of developer use far outweighs
performance.

Also, JavaScript has long had a monopoly on the worlds most popular deployment
platform.

------
asplake
No language is optimal in every dimension. Choosing a language is choosing
(subjectively as well as objectively) which dimensions you care about.

------
SlowOnTheUptake
What do you mean by term "sub-optimal"?

