Social networking site Facebook has brought out a new programming language, known as Hack. The name may confuse you but don't be baffled, as its a developmental tool. Some experts claim that Hack is a new version of PHP language, the one used by Mark Zuckerberg for developing Facebook.
This new programming language, designed by Facebook will provide programmers a platform to build complex websites and other software faster, with lesser flaws. According to a news report, Bryan O'Sullivan, the Facebook engineer who is the lead brain behind Hack, said, "We can say with complete assurance that this has been as battle-tested as it can possibly be," in a statement.
Earlier, Facebook co-founder Zuckerberg used PHP to build the social network for nearly a decade. It is said that the need to develop this new language originated due to the heavy growth of Facebook. Since with PHP, the set up required large computer servers to run the site, as compared to other languages. The difficulty in managing all the complex codes with bugs-free environment led the company to build the new programming tool that targets specifically at easing complex sites and compound software.
"You edit a file and you reload a web page and you immediately get the feedback. You get both safety and speed," added O'Sullivan. Hack's benefits come without slowing down the developer, as can run without compiling.
However, the new language also runs on the Hip Hop Virtual Machine, but it allows coders and programmers the liberty to use both dynamic typing and static typing.
The Facebook Inc. engineers say that there’s a deep connection between Hack and PHP and that most PHP files are already valid for Hack. They added static typing and made type checking incremental so that not all of the code in a single file must be converted to Hack. They call Hack a “gradually typed” language in which “dynamically typed code interoperates seamlessly with statically typed code.”
 |
| A sample code of HACK Programming Language. |
Earlier, Facebook co-founder Zuckerberg used PHP to build the social network for nearly a decade. It is said that the need to develop this new language originated due to the heavy growth of Facebook. Since with PHP, the set up required large computer servers to run the site, as compared to other languages. The difficulty in managing all the complex codes with bugs-free environment led the company to build the new programming tool that targets specifically at easing complex sites and compound software.
"You edit a file and you reload a web page and you immediately get the feedback. You get both safety and speed," added O'Sullivan. Hack's benefits come without slowing down the developer, as can run without compiling.
However, the new language also runs on the Hip Hop Virtual Machine, but it allows coders and programmers the liberty to use both dynamic typing and static typing.
The Facebook Inc. engineers say that there’s a deep connection between Hack and PHP and that most PHP files are already valid for Hack. They added static typing and made type checking incremental so that not all of the code in a single file must be converted to Hack. They call Hack a “gradually typed” language in which “dynamically typed code interoperates seamlessly with statically typed code.”
0 comments