Java Faster Than C++? No Way!
Ever since 1995, the Java world has been fascinated with talks and benchmarks which shows why Java should be/could be/would be/is faster than C++.
At first it was the JIT:
When Java gets a JIT, it would be faster than C++.
Then it was the HotSpot:
When the HotSpot is done, Java would be faster than C++.
Now it is the benchmarks:
Professor So-and-so did a benchmark, and guess what, Java is faster than C++.
And the well-argued theories:
The garbage collector is faster than hand collection for the same amount of garbage.
But my experience tells me that Java is slower than C++:
- My Java based "Hello, World." program is slower than my C++ "Hello, World." program.
- My Java based Java compiler is slower than my C++ based Java compiler.
- My Java based IDE (wonderful as it is) is slower than my C++ based IDE.
- My Java based JavaScript interpreter is slower than my C++ based JavaScript interpreter.
Java has many advantages over C++. Performance is not one of them.
The good news is that the Moore's Law and cheaper memories has done a lot more to boost Java's performance than anything else. Java is the appropriate technology in more and more applications.