Programming language preferences: a comprehensive survey of developer choices and trends

Abstract

This report presents an empirical examination aimed at uncovering the intricate landscape of programming language trends and their implications for software development. By utilizing statistical methods, this study captures historical behaviors and provides a comprehensive understanding of the constantly evolving preferences among developers. This research delves into the intricacies of programming language choices, shedding light on the dynamic nature of trends in software engineering. Potentially, this research paper conducts a thorough examination of the popularity of programming languages using GitHub data, covering aspects like issues, pull requests, and public repositories. The research examines various aspects such as issues, pull requests, and public repositories, and derives insights from data collected from Kaggle. The paper presents experimental results through visualizations that illustrate the popularity of programming languages over the years. Additionally, it compares the findings with other reputable sources of information, such as Stack Overflow, PYPL, TIOBE, and GitHub's Octoverse, to offer a comprehensive perspective. The discussion critically addresses limitations in the research, with a particular focus on primary programming languages, and suggests potential directions for future investigations. Overall, the study provides significant contributions to our understanding of programming language trends, highlighting the crucial role of GitHub in shaping the developer community's preferences.