A Zero-sum game is a situation where for one contestant to win or gain, the other contestants must lose or have a loss. Thus for contestant A to have a +5 then contestant B must have a -5, resulting in a sum of 0.
Programming languages, and the battle for supremacy, is not such a contest. Many developers know more than one programming language, and they use different languages for different situations. Different languages influence each other; Delphi heavily influenced C#, and then C# influenced Delphi. Even when one language doesn’t change another, knowing one influences how we use the others.
Liking one language does not mean all other languages are garbage. Celebrating the benefits or advantages does not discount strengths of other languages. Not all languages are equal. They all have strengths and weaknesses, advantages and disadvantages, and that is what makes it great to have so many languages to choose from.
I used to prescribe to the idea of “we are the best because everyone else sucks,” but not anymore. What makes us the best is the progress we make and the projects we complete. Celebrating the success of others doesn’t diminish our success, nor does it keep us from competing or innovating.
Anders Hejlsberg is frequently quoted as saying “we all stand on the shoulders of giants” when talking about the influences of different programming languages on each other. If we don’t strive as developers to be bigger and better, then we are no longer giants with shoulders to stand on. We do a disservice to not compete and grow and do the best we can. It is when we innovate and build on others that we make the world a better place.
Embarcadero offers a lot of great tools for many different languages, including Delphi, C++Builder and HTML5 Builder (PHP & JavaScript). Pick the one you like best, or learn something new. You can even grab RAD Studio and get all those tools for one price (and a special promotion!) Then lets celebrate your victories together!
