What is Google Go?
Google Go, or Go, is an open source programming language initially developed by Google in 2007. It's a statically typed, compiled language that aims to combine the ease of programming of interpreted, dynamically typed languages like Python with the performance and safety of compiled statically typed languages like C++.
Some key features of Go include:
- Statically typed - Variable types are known at compile time which leads to more reliable and scalable programs
- Compiled language - Can be compiled to standalone machine code resulting in fast and efficient programs
- Garbage collected - Automatic memory management helps reduce bugs related to manual memory allocation/deallocation
- Built-in concurrency - Lightweight processes called goroutines and channels help write concurrent programs more easily
- Fast compile times - Programs typically compile extremely quickly, improving programmer productivity
Go was designed at Google for building reliable infrastructure components. It has since become a popular backend language for web services. Key companies that use Go include Docker, Dropbox, Twitch, Uber and CloudFlare. Go is a good choice for building network-based, CPU-intensive backend applications that require high performance and reliability.