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by kybernetyk 1631 days ago
>People don't just write Rust because it's trendy.

[Citation needed]. Because when your unique selling point is "it's like $otherproduct but written in $language" then well ...

2 comments

Tauri's pitch is something like, "Electron, but lighter weight and more secure," not "written in Rust." If you're skeptical of the value in that, hey, so am I.

I'll cite my own experience:

I learned Rust because I needed a modern systems language in my toolbox. I specifically wanted something that could be used to write firmware. So I chose Rust over alternatives like Go or D, because I couldn't tolerate a garbage collector with those requirements. Trendiness had nothing to do with it; in fact, I was hesitant to pick it up because I was worried it wouldn't have staying power. (Having taken the plunge, I have no regrets.)

Here's your citation: https://insights.stackoverflow.com/survey/2020#most-loved-dr...

Rust is #1 loved language, almost 20 points above the second one.

I can't imagine a better definition of trendy and hyped up than "loved on stack overflow".
Six years in a row is more than just a fleeting thing; obviously we have no way to know for sure what will happen in the next few years, but it seems likely that Rust isn't going anywhere anytime soon.
I don't do anything because it's trendy and I don't use Stack Overflow, but I have used Rust in a project. Its popularity with me is 100% merit-based. In fact, the project failed only because of management not understanding its value and me being unable to communicate to them why Rust is superior.

The language ultimately chosen for the project ended up being 100% a political contest, and that language was not Rust.

Or maybe people just like working with it? Trend and hype bring people to it, sure, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that it’s an incredibly economic language that’s also fast.
Reminds me kinda of the Haskell hype a few years back.