I was recently asked what I use to develop software and websites. I mostly use DotNet Technologies as it is often interchangeable between websites, web applications and desktop applications. I can often use the same data access classes and business logic between multiple platforms. I find that DotNet allows me to easier structure objects visually and logically. I prefer to develop using C-Sharp, but I get requests to use VB.NET and J-Sharp on a regular basis.
When I went to college, I had learned C, Pascal, COBOL and some Mainframe language that I cannot remember. Upon graduating I taught myself VisualBasic 3, RPG. My first programming job was Visual COBOL. I had created a company in the Caribbean Islands programming public utility and insurance software in RPG. I can honestly say since I sold my shares of the company, I cannot foresee myself developing in RPG again.
Why don’t I use PHP? Well I do use PHP, but for specific purposes and upon request by a customer. A specific purpose is when I create a WordPress site or other content driven sites. I will not often create a website or web application from scratch using PHP as Microsoft made ASP.NET easy for rapid development.
Do I use JAVA? Yes; I do believe there are cases where JAVA is still relevant. JAVA is still a good tight platform for developing small single purpose applications. I have used JAVA 3 times in the past 2 years for applications that I believe fit the bill well.
Now, I am curious; What do you use and why?