To celebrate the commencement of Oktoberfest festivities in Munich this weekend (and because it’s always fun to think about alcohol), we’re bringing you a handy-dandy guide to see how your programming languages match up to your favorite drinks. It’s important to be prepared – If all the programming languages were to suddenly turn into drinks, we should know what sort of world we’d be getting (besides a very drunk one)!
C – Tequila. It gets the job done quickly, but using it isn’t usually that great of an experience. Everybody uses it at some point, but not too many stick with it unless there’s no other choice, or they need it to do its thing fast. And if you don’t use it exactly right, chances are things are going to go horribly wrong.
Ruby – Scotch. You can use it for years, and still discover strange new undertones you hadn’t noticed before. And then you add a dash of water and discover everything is changed. But it’s easy to ruin the magic if you don’t know what you’re doing.
Python – Irish Whiskey. When first starting, you have two main options – Bushmills or Jameson? Python 2 or 3? But once you choose one and go with it, it’s remarkably smooth. There’s not a huge amount of subtlety, but it’s pretty easy to get into and use.
Java – Vodka. It’s everywhere. It can be used in pretty much any situation, and most people are willing to use it when it’s the most convenient thing on hand. But excluding a group of really dedicated fans, it’s not generally people’s first choice. It just doesn’t have the same elegance as some of the alternatives. But it can be mixed with other things pretty easily, for those who can’t stand using it straight.