What are the biggest challenges when developing new programming languages?

Totaly agree, As you said, a good language design should balance simplicity, clarity, expressiveness, and consistency in both syntax and semantics. However, there are also other factors that influence the design of a programming language, such as: The purpose of the language: what kind of problems or domains does it aim to solve or support? For example, Python is a general-purpose language that supports multiple paradigms, while SQL is a domain-specific language for querying relational databases.

In my opinion, syntax, and semantics do play a role in initial learning of using a programming language. We stand at a time when there exist thoughtfully crafted programming languages like Golang, where most aspects of syntax/semantics being most practical are covered, so it's best to design the new language syntax & and semantics closer to a widely used diverse programming language, like Go. There can be context at play, for example, programming languages suitable to a particular usage, like database query language OR programming languages built for usage closer to actual servers / machines, context can be taken in consideration for syntax decisions.

Creating a clear and expressive syntax that is both easy to understand for developers and allows efficient expression of algorithms and concepts. Building a parser to correctly interpret the language's syntax and a compiler or interpreter to convert the code into machine-executable instructions. Ensuring the language is performant and optimizing compilers to generate efficient machine code. Developing a robust set of libraries, frameworks, and tools that support the language, which is crucial for adoption and developer productivity. Gaining traction and fostering a community around the language, which is essential for its growth and longevity.

In my experience syntax and semantics play an important part into how widely they are adopted. There are programing languages like brainf**k which are fun to work with but cannot be easily learned. Considering some *new* popular languages like python, and go lang, the syntax to existing languages played a huge role. People like consistency and adaptability. My preference is to make the syntax as close as to an existing one and even use similar inbuilt method names to do similar tasks. eg: printf print etc or for - for for loops

As a developer, I understand the importance of defining the syntax and semantics of a programming language. It is essential to strike a balance between simplicity, clarity, expressiveness, and consistency in both syntax and semantics. However, achieving this balance can be challenging, as different users may have different preferences, expectations, and backgrounds. For instance, some languages use indentation to indicate code blocks, while others use braces or keywords. Some languages are strongly typed, while others are dynamically typed. Some languages are imperative, while others are functional or declarative. Therefore, it is crucial to consider the needs of the users and design a language that meets their requirements.

These are some crucial point, we've to consider for the performance : - Diverse Implementation Methods: New programming languages involve implementing through compiling, interpreting, or using virtual machines, each with unique trade-offs in speed, security, and resource usage. - Performance Focus: Language performance evaluates speed, resource consumption, and error handling for high efficiency and low overhead while supporting language features. - Optimal Implementation: A successful language implementation balances high performance, low overhead, and robust support for language features and semantics.

- Modern applications rely on high performance and low memory usage. This means that while the uncompiled versions may be complex, it should be easily breakable and itteratable. - security updates, memory leaks, dump cleanups etc are also taken for granted. These must be in the core function

Developing a new programming language is a challenging task that requires careful consideration of various factors. One of the significant challenges is to implement the language and optimize its performance. Implementation refers to the process of translating the language into executable code that can run on a target platform. There are different ways to implement a language, such as compiling, interpreting, or using a virtual machine. Each method has its own advantages and disadvantages, such as speed, portability, security, and memory usage.

- a well documented language comes with many examples. Take Go lang for instance. The syntax is similar to c and the documentation and examples on the official websites are numerous thereby giving an easy learning curve. Documentation must be in simple terms, easily translatable by machine and the examples must be build for copy paste with means to simulate it online so that developers may learn it easily.

Standardization involves tradeoffs. A formal spec can sacrifice language development velocity by creating inertia and adding friction to making changes to implementations of the language. In the case of Rust, unlike languages like C++ or Javascript, there is no external standard that defines a formal specification for the language. The implementation is the specification. While a GNU compiler for Rust is being worked on, the official LLVM-based compiler is the source of truth for what defines the language's syntax and semantics. This has allowed Rust to develop new features and make changes faster than languages that follow a spec defined by a centralized committee.

Standardization and documentation are crucial components of the development process. Standardization ensures that the language is consistent and reliable, while documentation enables users to learn and utilize the language effectively. However, standardization and documentation can be challenging to achieve, as they require collaboration and agreement among developers, users, and other stakeholders. Developers must ensure that the language is easily integratable with existing codebases and ecosystems, while also being flexible enough to support new and innovative use cases.

Developing a new programming language can be challenging, but ensuring its compatibility and interoperability with other languages and systems is a crucial factor for its success. Compatibility refers to the ability of the language to run on different platforms and architectures, such as operating systems, processors, browsers, and devices. This is essential for increasing the reach and accessibility of the language, and reducing the dependency and lock-in of specific vendors or technologies. Interoperability, on the other hand, refers to the ability of the language to communicate and integrate with other languages and frameworks, such as databases, web services, APIs, and libraries.

- Interoperability is of key essence. While the world may be divided into unix and windows, there must be means to be able to port the compiled data into any future OS

- Community changes and recommendations must be respected by the development team and reason for breaking changes must be explained and must be minimal.

Programming languages can be complex systems of features that interact in sometimes unexpected ways. Decisions to add or remove features are always a trade-off between increased capabilities and increased complexity. Different languages prioritize different sides of this dichotomy. Go is designed to be a simple language that can be learned and compiled in a short time, but it lacks some of the features that other languages take for granted, like macros. Rust, on the other hand, prioritizes runtime performance and safety at the expense of a steeper learning curve and longer compile times.

Evolution helps to improve the quality, usability, and relevance of the language, and to address its limitations and issues. On the other hand, maintenance refers to the process of fixing, testing, and updating the language implementation and documentation, to ensure its correctness, security, and performance. Maintenance helps to preserve the functionality and reliability of the language, and to prevent or resolve bugs and errors Evolution and maintenance are both essential for the long-term success of a programming language. It requires a balance between innovation and stability, and a willingness to listen to and collaborate with the community of users and developers.

- What does the new language better than the already existing competitors. - What is your business model, provided the user gets it for free. - If it takes off, how can you escape the support workload in the case that you need to earn something.

Error handling is a great part of developing a new programming language. Error messages that provides insight and helps to narrow causes of problems saves engineers a great deal of time when troubleshooting. Proper error handling and detailed error messaging should not be trivialized when developing a new programming language

First ask yourself, "What types of solutions are hard to write in any other existing language?" A new language is only valuable if it helps developers write their solutions in code more elegantly/concisely. Remember, programming languages are tools for writing solutions to computational problems. So, before considering syntax, identify types of solutions you to express in code more easily.

The first and possibly biggest challenge is defining the VALUE of your language. Do you even want it to be anything more than a learning exercise? What will it facilitate that isn't covered by other, far more mature languages? How will it gain adoption when it's up against huge pre-existing communities? Why should someone invest the time to learn it? If you do get adoption, how will it generate either the goodwill or the money to ensure ongoing maintenance and development? Twice in my career I've struggled to look after a chaotic homebrew, unique to the company, where the originators clearly had given little thought to those questions.