Java vs JavaScript: Which is the best choice for 2020?

Many people assume that as JavaScript has “Java” in its name they both are somehow related. While many coders groan at this coupling and many even feel that this naming confusion is just a part of a marketing gimmick, the history of these two popular programming languages did intersect for a very brief moment in time during the early days of Netscape.

The evolution of the two programming languages took such different paths from that point forward that there is a common joke that Java is to JavaScript as ham is to a hamster. But if you are reading this article, you are probably interested in a more useful explanation of these two popular languages, so let me compare the two.

If we travelled back in time for about 5 years, there would be a simple comparison like Java is a general-purpose coding language, and JavaScript is used on the web applications to make them interactive and animated. Now that JS has “grown-up,” the comparison is much more complicated here.

First of all, have a look at some interesting facts and stats about Java and JavaScript:

The primary name of Java was “Oak” and it was changed to Java by the marketing department of Sun’s to “Java” when they already found that name was registered for some computer company.

Java programming language was created by an accident. Around 1992, James Gosling was working at the Sun Labs. He along with his team was building a set-top box and which was started by “cleaning up” the C++ language and they all wound up with a new programming language called Java or at that time: Oak.

Java is the second most popular programming language and is very popular among web developers .

. Java programming language is free from the concept of Pointer as adding pointers to the Java programming language would compromise security and robustness, making this programming language even more complex.

In Java, the actual meaning of the Final keyword is not final. It has different meanings in Java. It can be the Final method, Final class, Final variable or Final field.

Nowadays, Java is used by 95 percent of the enterprises as their primary programming language. It is much more than C and other programming languages.

In a single year, Java gets downloaded for about one billion times.

Today, Java runs on over 1 billion as Google’s Android operating system uses Java APIs.

A Small Introduction

JavaScript

In the early days of the Internet, around 1990, Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator were the two most popular web browsers used by the general public. In just 10 days, a developer named Brendan Eich at Netscape, Inc. was able to create a programming language that could instruct a computer to interact with the user upon receiving user input. He called this language “LiveScript” and integrated it directly into the navigator.

This meant that the browser was literally interpreting the user’s commands; The code did not have to be compiled, and plug-ins were not required. Another programming language, Java, was gaining popularity around the same time, even though Java required a separate plug-in for the function. Netscape saw the opportunity and named its language “JavaScript”. JavaScript was unavoidable in the early days of the Internet.

Java

Java is a programming language invented by James Gosling and developed by Sun Microsystems. It took a little over 10 days to develop — it was close to four years old. In 1991, a group of Sun Microsystem engineers worked the “Green Team” day and night to create Java. It was first released in 1995, and many new versions have been launched since then. Today’s Internet is absolutely saturated with Java-based programming, and we have Java to thank for the many applications that make day-to-day life easier. Java is currently owned by Oracle.

Let us see some of their differences as well as similarities from a web app development perspective:

Major Similarities

As they separate, there are some top-level similarities, which are worth considering, especially if you are looking at web app development when comparing Java to JavaScript.

Object-Oriented Programming (OOP). Both languages ​​require the developer to code objects and their relationships in the context of each other. By extension, it gives both languages ​​access to technologies such as inheritance, encapsulation, and polymorphism.

Front-end development. Both languages ​​can be used in aspects of front-end development. JavaScript can be embedded directly into HTML, which is implemented as a framework or library; Java can be used as a Java applet.

Back-end development. Both languages ​​can be used on the server-side. Java has long been used to power back-end technologies such as Apache, JBoss, and WebSphere. Node.js has become a launchpad for JavaScript-powered servers.

Difference Between Java and JavaScript

Java is an OOP (object-oriented programming) language that came into use in the year 1995. Java was developed at Sun Microsystems which was later acquired by Oracle company. Those programs or applications developed in the Java programming language will execute in a JVM (Java Virtual Machine), by which we can run the same program on different platforms and systems or devices etc. JS is an object-oriented scripting language from which you can create dynamic HTML pages. Interactive effects within a web page. JS was available in the browser until Google Chrome released its node engine as “node.js”.

Both JavaScript and Java are assembled, written and executed differently, and each has a dramatic difference when it comes to what it’s capable of.

Java is used in many places, including credit card programming, Android applications, and the creation of desktop applications and enterprise-level applications. By comparison, JavaScript is primarily used to make web app pages more interactive. It can be used as an alternative to Flash, although most web developers and programmers will tell you that JavaScript is more popular and has more functionality than Flash. JavaScript can be used to do monotonous things like creating animation in HTML.

In short, when it comes to how each programming language is used, Java is typically used for all server-side development, while creating client-side scripts for tasks such as JS validation and interactivity is reserved for.

Some other crucial differences are:

JavaScript code is all-text and Java code must be compiled. Each language needs different plug-ins. JS code is run on a browser only, whereas Java creates web applications that run in a browser or virtual machine. Java is an object-oriented programming language (OOP), and JS is specifically an object-oriented scripting language.

A new student of programming will learn that both JavaScript and Java are meaningful programming languages ​​to add to their coding repertoire. In fact, many coders say that learning these two programming languages ​​quickly is a very wise move for a new programmer. Without a doubt, JavaScript and Java being under a belt will provide more employment to a coder and create more lucrative opportunities for employment down the road.

Comparison Table: Java vs JavaScript

Should I Use Javascript or Java for My Next Project?

As with all programming languages, the choice really boils down to what you’re prepared for and what you are doing to create your resources. JS is still very much a web technology, whereas Java is a general-purpose programming language that can create anything.

#Additional Information

Hourly rates of Java and JavaScript developers

When you hire dedicated developers, their hourly rates depend on a number of factors such as project complexity, seniority level, and complexity of the workspace, geographical location and, of course, the type of programming language they work with. In this regard, JavaScript and Java are quite similar to the hourly rates for both languages vary between $ 61 and $ 80 globally (see chart).

However, if you need to hire software developers for Java or JavaScript, it is not enough to look at average rates worldwide. Because a junior software engineer in the United States may charge more as a senior programmer in Eastern Europe. But, as you might have guessed, they both have a different level of domain expertise. This is why while selecting a dedicated development team for your project we strongly encourage you to consider it as afield as well.

Let us take a closer look at it.

The US

Obviously, the United States is the most expensive country in terms of software development services. For instance, the average annual Java developer salary here is $ 104,663, on the other hand, JavaScript developers receive approximately $ 105,744 per year. Hence, the hourly rate varies between $ 50 and $ 150. The service quality is usually on the higher side. But even then project costs are not always reasonable as there are more budget-friendly options.

Europe

When you hire Java app developers or Javascript developers in Europe, their hourly rates differ in Western and Eastern Europe. Formerly, coders charge many in the United States and other positions are very similar (ie work approach, quality, level of English, etc.), so we’ll not focus on them in this article.

However, the situation in Eastern Europe is completely different. For instance, the rates charged by Ukrainian app developers (both JavaScript and Java) are between $ 25 and $ 50 per hour. As you may have noticed, the number is slightly lower than that of average rates worldwide. If you decide to hire web developers for Java or JavaScript from Ukraine, you will not pay much. Neither would you compromise on quality because programmers from Eastern Europe have a reputation for good expertise and excellent work approach.

Asia

Coders in Asia are considered the “cheapest”, meaning they charge the lowest rate for their work. For instance, a JavaScript or Java developer from Pakistan may cost you around $ 8–10 per hour. However, such a low price is spent on quality usually. We especially recommend you be cautious if you decide to look for a coding team in Asia. There is a risk that you will end up with non-working product development and need to start everything from starting.

Bottom Line

I hope that this article will be your definitive guide on how JavaScript and Java are separated. Now, if you are tired of researching/reading about web app development and short on time, I recommend you go through this article, which I hope will save you precious time. Nowadays, software development companies in India and the rest of the world are using both of this programming language to create secure, scalable and feature-packed applications keeping in mind the requirements of businesses.