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Objective-C VS Erlang

Compare Objective-C VS Erlang and see what are their differences

Objective-C logo Objective-C

The primary programming language you use when writing software for OS X and iOS

Erlang logo Erlang

A programming language used to build massively scalable soft real-time systems with requirements on high availability
  • Objective-C Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-07-28

We recommend LibHunt Objective-C for discovery and comparisons of trending Objective-C projects.

  • Erlang Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-05-09

We recommend LibHunt Erlang for discovery and comparisons of trending Erlang projects.

Objective-C features and specs

  • Mature Language
    Objective-C has been around since the 1980s, which means it has a long history of use in Apple's ecosystem, leading to a wealth of documentation, resources, and a stable, well-understood language.
  • Dynamic Runtime
    Objective-C's dynamic runtime allows for a high level of flexibility, such as dynamically loading classes and methods, which can be beneficial in certain programming scenarios requiring runtime adjustments.
  • C Compatibility
    Objective-C is a superset of C, which means it retains all functionalities of C, allowing low-level manipulation and the ability to integrate existing C libraries easily.
  • Rich Library Support
    With strong ties to Apple's ecosystem, Objective-C has extensive support for native libraries like Cocoa and Cocoa Touch, enabling efficient iOS and macOS application development.
  • Proven Track Record
    Many successful applications have been built using Objective-C, illustrating its capabilities in handling complex and large-scale applications.

Possible disadvantages of Objective-C

  • Complex Syntax
    The syntax of Objective-C can be verbose and complex compared to modern languages, leading to a steeper learning curve for new developers.
  • Limited Adoption Outside Apple Ecosystem
    Objective-C is primarily used within Apple's ecosystem, limiting its applicability and adoption in other platforms or general software development.
  • Lack of Modern Features
    Compared to newer programming languages like Swift, Objective-C lacks some modern programming features such as type safety, which can lead to more runtime errors.
  • Memory Management
    Although ARC (Automatic Reference Counting) has simplified memory management, developers still have to be conscientious about memory usage compared to simpler garbage-collected environments.
  • Performance Considerations
    The dynamic nature of Objective-C can introduce performance overhead, as dynamic message sending is slower compared to static method calls in languages like Swift.

Erlang features and specs

  • Concurrency
    Erlang is designed for massive concurrency and supports thousands of lightweight processes, making it ideal for applications requiring multiple parallel operations.
  • Fault Tolerance
    Erlang provides robust support for fault tolerance, with built-in mechanisms for process monitoring and error recovery, leading to high system availability.
  • Distributed Computing
    Erlang's architecture facilitates distributed computing with easy support for building scalable, distributed systems across multiple nodes.
  • Hot Code Swapping
    Erlang supports hot code swapping, enabling developers to update code on a live system without requiring a system restart, which is crucial for continuous operation.
  • Functional Programming
    Erlang’s functional programming paradigm leads to simpler code with fewer side effects, improving maintainability.
  • Strong Community
    Erlang has a strong community, with a wealth of resources, libraries, and frameworks that support developers in building efficient systems.

Possible disadvantages of Erlang

  • Learning Curve
    Erlang has a steep learning curve, especially for developers who are not familiar with functional programming or its concurrency model.
  • Syntax
    The syntax of Erlang can be unfamiliar and challenging to new users, which may hinder the initial coding experience.
  • Limited Libraries
    Despite having a strong community, Erlang has fewer libraries and tools compared to more popular languages, which may limit development options for certain applications.
  • Performance Limitations
    While Erlang excels in concurrency, its performance for compute-intensive tasks might not match that of languages specifically optimized for such operations.
  • Niche Use Cases
    Erlang's strengths in certain niches like telecoms and real-time systems might not translate well to more general or varied software development tasks, limiting its adoption.

Objective-C videos

Welcome to Objective-C for Swift Devs!

Erlang videos

Book Review - Erlang in Anger

More videos:

  • Review - Erlang is getting pretty! - Michal Muskala | Code BEAM SF 20

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Objective-C and Erlang)
Programming Language
44 44%
56% 56
OOP
45 45%
55% 55
Generic Programming Language
Development
46 46%
54% 54

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Erlang seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 2 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Objective-C mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Objective-C yet. Tracking of Objective-C recommendations started around Mar 2021.

Erlang mentions (2)

  • Perfect Elixir: Environment Setup
    I’m on MacOS and erlang.org, elixir-lang.org, and postgresql.org all suggest installation via Homebrew, which is a very popular package manager for MacOS. - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • What is Calypso?
    However, as Elixir is inherently tied to the BEAM and Erlang/OTP, it means that it has features like immutable variables (though you can rebind them and have state via process loops, e.g. Agents or GenServers). This also means that OTP is the main "application framework" for Elixir/Erlang. In my opinion, OTP is a pretty good design philosophy for applications, but sometimes it's just kind of hard to set up or wrap... - Source: dev.to / about 4 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Objective-C and Erlang, you can also consider the following products

Perl - Highly capable, feature-rich programming language with over 26 years of development

Go Programming Language - Go, also called golang, is a programming language initially developed at Google in 2007 by Robert...

C++ - Has imperative, object-oriented and generic programming features, while also providing the facilities for low level memory manipulation

Elixir - Dynamic, functional language designed for building scalable and maintainable applications

D (Programming Language) - D is a language with C-like syntax and static typing.

IronPython - Development