Is Java Losing its Existence?

Java is a programming language that almost every programmer loves. Java gained its popularity in the mid-1990s and became the top programming language in the early 2000s. Today, Java has its roots everywhere. With such a large market share, the question arises here is “will Java ever become obsolete?”
A general-purpose computer-programming language, Java is concurrent, object-oriented, class-based, and designed to have as lesser implementation dependencies as possible. Java is a “platform independent” language. Once compiled, Java code can run on any machine without recompilation.
Let’s have a look at the use cases of Java:
• Android Applications
• Salesforce
• BigData(Hadoop)
• Server-side processing, Servlet, JSP
• J2ME for mobile phones and PDA’s
• Java Web Applications using Applets
• Software Tools
• Light Weight Java Game Library
• Client Side UI for financial services and banks
Advantages of Java
1) Better garbage collection and memory management than C language
2) Object Oriented
3) Platform Independent
4) Hassle-free access to distributed computing
5) Structured and strongly typed
6) Robust security with concepts like encapsulation
7) Multithreaded
8) A large community of developers
9) Many frameworks get built on the top of Java
However, Java has a few drawbacks over other or modern programming languages. The disadvantages of Java include:
1) Java compromises on performance through the use of JVM (Java Virtual Machine). It is slower than the native languages like C, C++ and more.
2) GUI apps that use Swing and also the JavaFX often have a very basic UI.
3) Java is a single paradigm language. It is a way to write the Java code for some specific output.
4) Not as flexible as other languages like Python.
5) It has a lot of boilerplate code, which means you have to write the code no matter what.
6) Java is not a beginner friendly language. It is challenging to have Java as your first language. It’s better for freshers to learn something like Python.
7) Java is an old and traditional language. Many new languages like Kotlin, Ruby on Rails, R, Scala, Python are more superior than Java in many aspects.
However, Java can’t be replaced that quickly because of the following reasons:
• Large Community - Java is into existence since the mid-90s, and over these years it has been able to gather a significantly large community of developers.
• Established architecture – A plethora of software products get built on top of Java. Replacing Java means replacing all the existing technology.
• Resistance to change - Many parts of the world are reluctant to change their already existing norms.
Conclusion:
Today, our life in many senses is dependent on Java. Java is in use for such a long time, and nearly every existing IT product has a part of Java embedded into it. We can promote new and straightforward languages as an alternative to Java than claiming Java as the most superior. The increasing competition is making the entire community better. However, the custom development of Java applications and the updates to Java are matching the pace with the new technology trends.