Thirteen Criteria for Evaluating a Programming Language

Most language choices are made for bad reasons. The last project used it, a conference talk was persuasive, the job description said so, or someone liked the syntax. A language outlasts the frameworks built with it, and often the manager who introduced it. A decision with that lifespan deserves a checklist.

What follows is that checklist, in the order I work through it. The criteria pull against each other, so the real work is deciding which costs fit the project.