What is the Difference Between Ruby and Python?
🆚 Go to Comparative Table 🆚Ruby and Python are both popular, powerful, and relatively easy-to-learn programming languages used for developing web applications. However, there are several key differences between the two:
- Usage: Python is often better for educational use or for people who want to build quick programs, while Ruby is better for commercial web applications. Python is mainly used for academic, AI, machine learning, and scientific programming, whereas Ruby is used for web development and functional programming.
- Object-Oriented Programming: Python is not a fully object-oriented programming language, while Ruby is.
- Inheritance: Python supports multiple inheritance, while Ruby supports single inheritance.
- Web Frameworks: Python has the Django framework, while Ruby has the Ruby on Rails framework.
- Libraries: Python has a larger range of libraries, while Ruby has a smaller library.
- Syntax: Python's syntax is generally considered simpler and more explicit, making it easier to read and debug. Ruby's syntax can be more difficult to debug at times.
- Popularity: Both languages have a large community and are widely used, but Python has a more valuable ecosystem for data science and machine learning, while Ruby has a better ecosystem for web development and database libraries.
Ultimately, the choice between Ruby and Python depends on your needs and preferences. If you are interested in web development and functional programming, Ruby might be a better choice. On the other hand, if you want to work with AI, academic, or scientific programming, Python could be more suitable.
Comparative Table: Ruby vs Python
Here is a table comparing the differences between Ruby and Python:
| Feature | Ruby | Python |
|---|---|---|
| Created By | Yukihiro Matsumoto | Guido van Rossum |
| Year Created | 1995 | 1991 |
| Object-Oriented Programming | Fully object-oriented | Not fully object-oriented |
| Inheritance | Supports single inheritance | Supports multiple inheritance |
| Popular Frameworks | Ruby on Rails | Django |
| Data Types | Array, Hash | List, Dictionary |
| File Extension | .rb | .py |
| Mixins | Supports mixins | Can't use mixins |
| Advantages | Elegant and readable, suitable for web development | Easy to learn, powerful, and suitable for academic and scientific programming |
| Disadvantages | Hard to debug, limited documentation, fewer use cases outside web development | More errors at runtime, less support for mixins |
Ruby is a fully object-oriented programming language, while Python is not. Python supports multiple inheritance, whereas Ruby supports single inheritance. Ruby is primarily used for web development and functional programming, while Python is used for academic, AI, machine learning, and scientific programming.
In Ruby, data is typically stored in either an array or a hash, while in Python, data is stored in a list or a dictionary. Mixins can be used in Ruby, but not in Python. Both languages are high-level, server-side scripting languages that work on multiple platforms and have clean, easily readable syntax.