While you can go for any programming language to support your application development, some languages take the edge compared to the rest. Go is one such programming language—open-source, simple, reliable, and highly efficient. Google, the name behind Go development, had a strong notion of empowering developers and systems with Golang applications.
Go, also known as Golang, is a versatile programming language that enables you to bring life to servers, cloud infrastructure, web development, and command-line interfaces, among other applications. Being beginner-friendly, Go is easy to remember.
In fact, according to the Stack Overflow Developer Survey 2023, Go is among the top 10 most loved programming languages, with developers praising its performance and simplicity
This blog aims to explore everything about Golang, including its applications in diverse industries, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of using it compared to other languages.
What is Golang? An Overview
Go (also termed as Golang), developed by Google, refers to an open-source programming language. The developers use Go to build networking and cloud services, web applications, and related software types across a range of frameworks and operating systems. Primarily used to manage business logic, backend development, server-side functionalities, and database interactions, Go is popular for its simplicity and efficiency.
Golang is statically typed, which means the variable type is known during compile time and can’t be varied at runtime. Due to its fast startup time, capability to run without a virtual machine, and low runtime overhead, Go has become a highly adopted language to write microservices. Additionally, the language is used to perform concurrent programming—a method to execute multiple tasks simultaneously, in partial order, or even out of order.
Inspired by the simplicity and productivity of Python, Go utilizes lightweight and concurrent functions called Goroutines, along with a collection of packages, to facilitate efficient dependency management. Designed to resolve multiple problems, such as build time issues, uncontrolled dependencies, complexities in writing automatic tools, effort duplication, and cross-language development concerns, Go is great for developers.
In short, Go is ideal because:
- It is easy to learn and an excellent choice for developers.
- It incorporates built-in concurrency and has a robust standard library.
- It has a vast ecosystem of communities, partners, and tools.
History of Golang- How the Language Evolved
Google created Go in 2007 to address its software engineering challenges and provide a superior alternative to the C++ programming language. It required a language with excellent productivity levels, as multicore processors were highly popular at the time.
Go developers sought a programming language that was easy to use yet also possessed characteristics found in other languages, such as Python, C++, and JavaScript. Announced in 2009, Go (Golang) launched as an open-source project that enabled community members to collaborate on code and ideas. It also released version 1.0 in 2012.
After many years, new features and updates were added, like generics in 2022. The language’s popularity surged with its widespread adoption among large companies and multinational corporations, including Google, Dropbox, Cloudflare, MongoDB, Netflix, and Uber.
Key Features of Golang
Language Design
Designers of Golang focused on keeping the language simple yet easy to understand. With Object-Oriented support for the language, few interesting design decisions were made. It was based on a ‘do more with less’ mantra.
Package Management
Go works with the modern developer workflow of managing open-source projects and incorporates this approach into its management of external packages. It provides direct support for external packages in the tooling and publishes your packages using a set of easy-to-use commands.
Strong Standard Library
Golang has a robust library, which is distributed in packages.
Static Typing
Being a statically typed language, Go’s compiler doesn’t just work on successful code compilation, but also ensures type conversions alongside compatibility. Due to this feature, Go eliminates all problems we encounter in dynamically typed languages.
Testing Support
Go offers its unit testing features. This means a simple mechanism for writing unit tests that align with your code, as it allows you to understand your code coverage by running the tests. It can be efficiently utilized for your code documentation generation.
Platform Independent in Nature
Go is similar to Java in terms of platform independence. Since it has a modular design, the code is compiled, after which it gets converted to binary form. This is as small as possible and requires no dependencies. The code can be compiled on any platform or server, and the application you work with.
Why CTOs Prefer Golang?
Go stands as a top choice among CTOs who seek high-performing, scalable, and maintainable software infrastructure. Its efficiency makes it ideal for managing high-performance applications. Goroutines and channels make concurrent programming highly efficient, making it well-suited for modern multi-core processors and distributed systems. Here’s why CTOs prefer Golang:
- Go has a clean, simple, and straightforward syntax, which makes learning and writing code effortless.
- With the standard library, Go provides exclusive packages that enable various tasks without requiring external dependencies.
- Golang’s clear and extensive documentation makes it easy to follow, helping developers learn how to install Go, write effective Go code, and build various applications in the Go language.
- Go has an active and supportive community on Reddit and Slack, always eager to help developers whenever required.
- It features faster development cycles, reduced operational costs through improved resource utilization, enhanced code quality, and a growing developer community, making it easier to hire Golang developers.
- Many large tech companies, including Uber, Google, and Netflix utilize Golang for their infrastructure and applications.
What is Go Language Used For?
Go was created for programs specific to infrastructure and networking. It was proposed to replace well-known high-performance server-side languages such as C++ and Java. Now, what is Go programming language used for? Presently, Go is used for applications like:
Container services
Kubernetes and Docker achieve concurrency and portability using the Go programming language.
Network & Cloud Services
Go’s ecosystem of tools, concurrency features, and APIs makes it ideal for network and cloud services. For example, OpenShift and Terraform use Go for creating high-performance web servers and APIs. Various complex blockchain technologies, including Bitcoin’s Lightning Network, utilize the Go development language.
Web Servers & Server-Side Architectures
The HTTP server built into Go’s standard library makes it perfect for companies like Twitch and Netflix to create web servers and server-side architectures.
Command Line Interfaces
Companies like OpenShift and Terraform utilize simple syntax, a short runtime, open-source code packages, and massive standard libraries for creating CLIs.
Access Servers
Golang launches quickly and easily because of its low compilation needs. This facilitates the ease of redistribution, making Go ideal for creating tools like access servers, for instance, Teleport.
Microservices
Go is popular for writing microservices due to its ease of startup, reduced runtime overhead, and the ability to trigger a run without a Virtual Machine (VM). The companies, namely, BBC and Uber, use Go for this purpose.
Data Science
Due to its concurrency and memory management capabilities, Go is the best choice for data scientists to process and analyze massive datasets simultaneously. Go and its libraries are helpful in machine learning for building predictive models and executing other tasks.
Advantages of Go
Here are the advantages that make Go a go-to language for developers and businesses alike:
- Quick compilation and execution
- Doesn’t require a Virtual Machine (VM)
- Portability
- Concurrency
- Interfaces to enable loosely coupled systems
- Auto-garbage collection
- Memory safety
- Extensive built-in libraries
- Independent error handling
Limitations of Go
Besides the advantages, Go development language also has some drawbacks as follows:
- Go still specializes in readable and simple code over abstract/implicit code, despite the addition of generics
- It lacks runtime safety
- It is incompatible with function overloading
- Go enforces strict rules
- Go isn’t conventionally object-oriented.
Some Popular Applications Developed in Go
Go stands out in terms of infrastructure. Go powers some of the most popular infrastructure tools of today, such as Docker and Kubernetes. Let’s take a look at the applications written in Go:
- Docker: A Set of tools to deploy Linux containers
- OpenShift: Red Hat’s cloud computing platform as a service
- Kubernetes: Effortlessly automated deployment process
- Dropbox: Migrated specific critical components from Python to Go
- Netflix: Used Go for two parts of the server architecture
- InfluxDB: An open-source time series database by InfluxData
- Golang: The entire language is written using Go.
How Does Go Compare with Other Programming Languages?
Go development language has features similar to many programming languages. However, it has a distinct feature: the core design objective of Go is to implement quick compilation, unlike many other programming languages.
Go Vs. C++
Go minimizes the amount of runtime errors and dependencies while improving memory management and memory safety. C++ can’t do all that, as it uses manual memory management. Go uses modern yet simpler syntax compared to C++. It is easier in Go to write parallel and concurrent code due to built-in support for concurrency. However, in C++, it depends on threads and locks. Go has a smaller standard library compared to C++.
Go Vs. Ruby
Compared to Ruby, Go uses a simpler syntax. It utilizes a static typing system, which helps catch errors during compilation. Whereas Ruby needs an interpreter to compile and run code, which means it takes longer to compile. Go utilizes built-in concurrency, but Ruby uses threads and locks, which makes Go ideal for concurrent code. Go has a smaller standard library compared to Ruby.
Go Vs. Java
When compared to Java, Go uses a simpler syntax. Go has a faster runtime and compilation speed than Java, which requires a virtual machine (VM) to run the code. Golang has built-in concurrency while Java needs threads and locks. Go has a smaller standard library compared to Java.
How to Hire a Go Developer?
When you plan to hire Golang Developer, there is always more strenuous work than expected. Whether hiring Golang developers or something entirely else, it demands in-depth technical expertise to determine what you will require for the development project and recognize which developers can offer that.
The best way is to get assistance from a Golang development company, which can help you find the best and vetted Golang developers for hire and start your project effortlessly. Thankfully, NewAgeSysIT offers Golang developers for hire, top Golang development services, and the best consulting services for clients.
Wrapping Up
The above blog is not only an answer to “What is Go language used for?” but also an insightful database to fuel your business’s Golang projects. Since Golang is ideal for any environment that prioritizes networking power and speed, it is highly preferred among many companies.
When you don’t have an in-house team of Golang developers, the most efficient way to utilize the technology is to hire professionals who can help you make it a success. You can also seek the help of a Golang development company and discuss your requirements to get custom Golang development services.
Fortunately, NewAgeSysIT offers both solutions and provides the best consulting services to guide you and help you get started. To learn more about the Golang development services we offer, let’s talk!
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Golang have a future?
Yes, Golang is a robust and reliable programming language that lets you build the best applications for your business. With the increased focus on building high-performing applications, Golang has become a top choice for developing networking and cloud services, web applications, and related software.
Which is better: Golang or Python?
Golang has many advantages over Python in aspects such as raw execution speed. That said, this doesn’t mean Python is slow. Built-in concurrency is yet another feature that makes Golang versatile. However, Golang cannot replace Python; both serve different purposes, making them distinct.
Is Go a functional language?
No. The language is not primarily termed functional. It includes specific features of functional languages, such as support for higher-order functions and first-class functions. But the main design follows an imperative programming style.
What is Golang suitable for?
Golang enables the development of high-performing web applications with relative ease. If you ask, what is Go programming language used for, here is the answer: It is ideal for web development due to its ability to handle multiple requests simultaneously. This is an essential factor for APIs, web servers, and microservices.
Does Golang provide security features?
Yes. Go offers security with built-in features, including encryption, authentication, secure communication, and strong typing. With these features, you can write security code, but you will still need to follow best practices to maintain overall application security.
