The pros and cons of programming in Swift

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Originally Posted On: https://exyte.com/blog/the-pros-and-cons-of-programming-in-swift

Swift is a compiled programming language for iOS, iPad, macOS, watchOS, tvOS, and Linux applications. Here’s what you need to know about Swift.

When selecting a programming language to learn, most programmers usually have to decide where to start or which one is better. There are many programming languages, which might be confusing due to their similar names such as C, C++, Objective-C, and even C#. And what does Swift have to do with all of them?

C is the first programming language of the bunch, and the rest of them were either developed based on C or directly influenced by it. Swift was created by Apple software engineers as a safer language for iOS development, and it is not based on C as the other languages. Since Swift’s introduction in 2014, it has gained a lot of recognition among programmers and iOS developers in particular. This new programming language has numerous advantages, which makes it even more popular than Objective-C.

The Swift language was designed for iOS and other operating systems of Apple devices as well as Linux. This language has an undoubted potential to become the dominant solution for all Apple products in the future. The community of dedicated programmers and fans of Swift is constantly expanding, as there is plenty of room for improvement and research. So, why is Swift so popular?

• Open-source language – this is an open technology for all programmers around the world. Their contribution to this language development has been incredible over the few years of its existence;
• Security – coding in Swift provides consistency and improved safety. Because of added protection measures, the error prevention becomes much easier and readability improves considerably;
• Speed – the idea for this language was to create something with enhanced performance. The language is called Swift and rightfully so, as it is more than two times faster as against Objective-C. If compared to Python, the difference even more drastic – it is 8.5 times quicker;
• Popularity – while Swift is not in the top 10 most popular programming languages yet, it is quickly gaining dedicated fans and constantly improves. The result is clear, as it already ranks higher than Objective-C.

Swift developers say that this language is a perfect combination of effectiveness and reliability inherited from different compiled programming languages and the accessibility of scripted ones. Here are the key advantages of coding for iOS in Swift instead of Objective-C:

• Time-efficient solution – Swift is known for being a quick language to code in, as it usually takes less time to create a program with Swift than with Objective-C. It is much simpler to write in Swift and read the code. In addition, this language is considerably more compact, which means that the tasks are shorter and do not require as much coding;
• Improved scalability – this code allows adding new features and inviting additional programmers easily. Moreover, Apple is gradually paying more and more attention to it, while Objective-C takes the second place. Despite being a relatively your language, Swift has already gone beyond a restricted circle of Apple devices and started to run with Linux as well. There is a bright future ahead of this language, and many developers have already decided to jump in;
• Safety and performance – in addition to being a highly efficient and quick solution, Swift has excellent security. With this new approach to coding, the programmers are able to locate and get rid of bugs very fast and without trouble. This creates clean and readable codes. Its typing interface reduces the possibility of bugs remaining overlooked.

To be completely honest, the following might not be considered as disadvantages and will be probably resolved in the near future. Here are the minor cons of the Swift language:

• Lack of support for earlier iOS versions – while there is a slim chance you will need to work with something earlier than iOS7, the problem remains.
• Relatively small following – despite its number of fans growing, Swift still has a relatively small circle of coders who work with it. Again, as the language grows, more and more developers will start using it.

Information technology evolves rapidly, and Swift remains one of the most promising modern programming languages. It has numerous advantages and only some minor issues, which attracts hundreds of new programmers each day.