How many programming languages a programmer could master in Real life.

I finished my university this year (2012):cool:. My study was mainly about Java programming, and also studied one big Database course, and several networking courses. But the focus is on Java programming, and I am interesting in it very much.

Although I was giving good attention to Java, I am good in Java concepts but I am not an expert, I regarded myself as a beginner.

After the university I started searching about Java books, Java tutorials, learn about different areas of Java to deep my knowledge in Java. While doing this my brother advised me lo learn about web development particularly PHP and related areas (MySQL, JavaScript, CSS, HTML, ....) because it has a good future.

Actually, I loved the idea. I also love Java and I don't want to leave it, so I am wondering, is it possible/reasonable/feasible for a programmer in real life ... real practical life to master both areas (Java) and (web development stuff I mentioned above).

I know that these languages will be easy to understand for someone who knows Java.
Easy to understand but is it easy to master it beside Java?.

what I want to know is it possible/reasonable/feasible in real practical life for a programmer to do that - Master two areas of programming.

I want to know your opinions.

If it is not practical/feasible in real life to focus in more than one area, I will land on the Java programming side.

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Actually, I loved the idea. I also love Java and I don't want to leave it, so I am wondering, is it possible/reasonable/feasible for a programmer in real life ... real practical life to master both areas (Java) and (web development stuff I mentioned above).

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Define master, as there are a variety of way to define such a term. In my experience - in the world of business, master in the traditional sense may have little bearing - meeting deadlines, making customers happy with a good product, bug-less code, comprehensible code, sticking to code conventions, etc...are far more important. If you define these as 'mastering', then I would say yes it is possible. But it requires education, practice, desire, patience, and time.

First I agree with copeg. The list presented in that post are the things that matter most.
Second I would like to make a comparison. From programming languages to spoken languages around the world. To be a master of all spoken languages, to memorize the rules (syntax) of each language and be able to form complete sentences etc... Is only one way to look at it. On the other hand if you were to travel the world, live with the native speakers, to actually DO as they DO, you (imo) 'master' the language in a whole other way. In programming the same would apply. To know the exact syntax of every language is one thing. But to really master programming, is about far more than the syntax. You have to get the accent right. Hold your tongue the right way when you type it. And have proper amounts of sugar nearby. Well there are my 2 cents....

Just a side note - you can use Java with web development... I'd say it's a much less chaotic solution to web applications to use a Java solution (like servlets) over PHP. Take a look through here.

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Originally Posted by copeg

Define master, as there are a variety of way to define such a term. In my experience - in the world of business, master in the traditional sense may have little bearing - meeting deadlines, making customers happy with a good product, bug-less code, comprehensible code, sticking to code conventions, etc...are far more important. If you define these as 'mastering', then I would say yes it is possible. But it requires education, practice, desire, patience, and time.

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:o actually I am not a native English speaker, So I am sorry about mistakes or misunderstanding of the English language.

I will define what I mean by "master" as I understand it.

I understand the word "master" meaning as this:

Master is a verb

Master:
Comprehend it very well.
Be an expert in it.
Grasp it very well.
Be good at it.

So you can replace it like this

Actually, I loved the idea. I also love Java and I don't want to leave it, so I am wondering, is it possible/reasonable/feasible for a programmer in real life ... real practical life to comprehend very well both areas (Java) and (web development stuff I mentioned above).

Actually, I loved the idea. I also love Java and I don't want to leave it, so I am wondering, is it possible/reasonable/feasible for a programmer in real life ... real practical life to be good at both areas (Java) and (web development stuff I mentioned above).

..............................................

I will rewrite what I want to know again

In real practical life a programmer must be good at some area.

My question is:
Are programmers in real practical life able to be good in two areas?

in my example

- Be good at web development (PHP, MySQL, JavaScript, ...)
- Be good at Java programming.

If it is possible/feasible for programmers in real practical life to do this then I will continue learning both.

If it is not possible/feasible for programmers in real practical life to do this, I will choose Java.

Don't worry too much about your english, it is fine. I had no idea you were not a native english speaker until you said so yourself mate!

For your new question:

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Are programmers in real practical life able to be good in two areas?

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My friend, don't limit yourself to only two areas! Sure you can master two, and many more. If you read over what I posted previously, (again imo), once you master the (fine) art of programming, there is only a barrier of learning syntax til you have mastered them all!

I would encourage you to explore a number of different programming languages. It's ok to focus on one or two areas, too.

For example, my primary strengths are in Java, C/C++, and C#. However, I have experience in Python, HTML/Javascript, Matlab/Octave, PHP, SQL, CUDA, and OpenCL.

I am by no means an expert in any of these areas, but I know enough to get by and accomplish something useful with each of these. A programming language is a tool. The more tools you have at your disposal the better. Plus, learning more about a language can help you more in another language. For example, my Java and C# complement each other very well.

Thank you: copeg, jps, veeer, helloworld922 :)