In the current era of technology, a huge number of programming languages are getting released every year. Many programmers are switching their projects from one language to another so that they can enjoy better features and functionalities. Out of various languages, there is a constant battle between Ruby and Python.
Ruby
Rubyis commonly known as Ruby on Rails or RoR or Rails, is an open-source, server-side web application framework written in Ruby. Yukihiro Matsumoto built the Ruby language in the 1990s. The Ruby on Rails was introduced to the world by David Heinemeier Hanson in 2004. The framework is among the best options out there for individuals to readily build and deploy functioning full-stack web applications and websites. Ruby is a programming language whereas Ruby on Rails is a web application framework.
Python
Python is a high-level, full-fledged, and object-oriented programming language. It was released by Guido van Rossum in 1991 and has been around for close to 30 years. It consists of many tons of libraries, APIs, and ancillary tools. It is conducive to various programming paradigms, and it is extensively used for business applications.
Its libraries and supporting platforms are far-reaching due to its versatility and work efficiently on different cross-platform operating systems. It is an ideal programming language for many businesses which build applications for various and often uncorrelated use cases.
Ruby Vs Python
Here is a detailed and important difference between Ruby and Python depending on the different aspects:
· Learning
Python is considered among the easiest ones when compared to the other that are currently available in the market. It has an organized syntax, which is very quick to read, learn as well as understand even for beginners. This is the main reason many people begin their coding journey with Python.
Ruby on Rails is quite challenging to learn due to its independent concepts. This is mostly suitable for those developers who have years of experience.
· Flexibility
Python works on the principle of simplicity and is much better in complexity. In Python, there is only a single way to do a specific task. It makes the code less flexible, but it can be readable for any new programmer.
Whereas, Ruby on Rails, on the other side performs tasks according to Perl’s approach which states that there is more than a single way to do a specific task.
Based on this, one can say that Ruby programming language is highly flexible as there are multiple ways to do a task.
· Language
Python is developed in the scientific community as a high-level programming language, which can be translated into C++ in case the prototype worked. It follows a direct approach to programming. The main purpose of Python is to show things as it is.
Ruby on Rails is mainly a web application framework that originated from the Ruby programming language. Rails also give different short tricks, which are usually present in the various advanced web frameworks. Rails also might lead to unexpected hidden errors, which usually consume a lot of time to resolve.
· Speed and performance
While assessing a programming language or environment the speed and performance are considered most essential as they are helpful for scaling an application as well as for reducing the operating costs.
Python’s innate architecture prohibits multithreading and is a problem in this factor. It slows down the processing speed as processes don’t run in parallel. Though Python’s syntax is easy to learn and execute, it is not optimized for speed and performance for applications, which usually recall data from the webserver.
Ruby language has an interpreted tool and garbage collection, which slowdowns RoR application under certain circumstances. But these instances only happen in rare cases like usually when the traffic scales significantly. And also most performance issues occur due to improper database management.
Ruby on Rails can develop efficient web applications with better performance in most cases. It gives a bit slower run-time speed when compared to some of the other backend frameworks.
· Popular apps
Google and Facebook are one of the popular and largest technology-talent consumers, which use Python to build technologies.
Reddit also uses Python. Reddit was initially written in Lisp, but in 2005 the entire platform was changed and was re-written with Python. All thanks to Python’s extensive list of features and libraries.
Globally, many data science training courses use Python as the default language taught to students.
GitHub, Basecamp, Airbnb, SlideShare, and Bloomberg are a few popular platforms that use Ruby on Rails.
Basecamp is a well-known project management tool and also the first application which was developed using Ruby on Rails.
To sum up
Choosing between Ruby and Python can be tricky. Both are extensively used programming languages for developing applications. Lastly, if you want to build social networking platforms that can support heavy traffic or a SaaS platform with a whole lot of APIs and automation then should go with Ruby on Rails. And if you want to develop a data-heavy application, then choose Python.
