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Love or hate it, every programmer has gotten the message — Java is more popular than ever and is not going anywhere anytime soon. Over 90% of Fortune 500 companies are using Java, right from budding startups to elite businesses.
From the reels you watch on TikTok and the queries you make on Google to the movies you watch on Netflix and the products you buy on Amazon, Java is a fraction that makes the whole. This prevailing use among scalable enterprise applications is due to its key benefits like tight security, scalability, and portability. No wonder why expert Java software and web developers remain on-demand even as coding paradigms and trends continue to change.
However, there’s a catch: while Java is a relatively easy programming language, it may seem too challenging for startup business owners, especially those with little or no coding background.
So, is Java worth it? What are the big companies that use Java? We have hand-picked 11 large companies that use Java to set themselves apart, giving the language a good name and showing that it works. But first, let’s address the basics.
What is Java?
Developed in 1995, Java is a platform-independent, high-performing, object-oriented programming language for coding server-side web apps, enterprise software, mobile apps, desktop apps, and big data applications that work on Android, iOS, Windows, Mac, Linux, and other OSs. Suffice it to say you can do pretty much anything with Java because it’s versatile, free to use, and builds modern apps that integrate next-gen technologies like virtual reality or machine learning.
Running on billions of devices, Java works on the principle of WORA — Write Once and Run Anywhere. This means that you can program a Java code once and expect it to run on any Java-compatible system without any adjustments. Tech giants and big companies use Java for its dual function — it serves as both a programming language and a software platform, enhancing its portability.
Having stood the test of time, many programming thought leaders believe that Java is future-proof, thanks to its ability to work with complex data sets and tremendous amounts of real-time data. And as artificial intelligence will play a huge role in most future solutions, Java will remain the leading player because it forms the powerhouse of AI app development, like deep learning and natural language processing.
Why do Companies Use Java?
Companies that care about top-level security use Java-based ERP systems to handle data and operations. Java’s vulnerability score has been constantly dropping over the years, making the language a safe haven for businesses across many industries. If you are wondering which companies use Java, they include finance, e-commerce, real estate, healthcare, education, insurance, manufacturing, energy, and many more industries.
But to every keen observer, the real question is, “Why do they use it?”.
The benefits of Java for app development include:
- Java is Relatively Simple
Unlike complex languages like C and C++, Java’s English-like syntax is pretty straightforward and easy to learn, write, compile, maintain, and debug. Unnecessary and prone to errors features of the C programming series, such as storage classes, explicit pointers concept, tape overloading, and many more, are removed from Java.
- Java is Object-Oriented
In sharp contrast to procedural programming, Java is an object-oriented language that deals with creating objects containing data and methods. It works by binding the functions and data in one single unit, keeping it DRY (Don’t Repeat Yourself). Such a concept allows you to create intuitive, well-structured, and manageable programs.
- Java is Secured
Java doesn’t use explicit pointers that store memory addresses of another value, giving room for unauthorized access to memory. It’s pretty simple — no pointers mean no direct memory manipulation and no risk of memory breach.
Also, each application running on Java has a Security Manager, which determines the access rules for classes. That is, if someone tries any unauthorized actions using Java code, it will act as a gatekeeper restricting certain operations.
- Java is Platform-Independent
When compared to other programming languages that run only on specific hardware, Java is economical to execute and maintain. Java’s byte or compiled code is platform-independent and practically runs on any machine, regardless of its operating system. This is achieved thanks to the Java Virtual Machine (JVM), which transforms written code into a platform-neutral language compatible with any device.
- Java Allows Multithreading
As the name implies, multithreading is a programming concept that takes task execution to another level. It allows developers to create multiple units of thread and execute them in parallel.