Kotlin Tutorial (Part 1) - Introduction

Kotlin is a statically-typed programming language that is designed and developed by JetBrains. It is a cross-platform language that targets the JVM, Android, JavaScript, and Native.

Features

Less Code (compared to Java)

Kotlin compare to Java is more concise, and you need to write fewer lines of code, which helps to increase the readability.

Interoperable with Java

Kotlin is completely interoperable with Java. It means that it is possible to call Kotlin code from Java, and vice versa. In other words, there is no need to migrate the whole code to Kotlin, in case of using Kotlin along with the Java.

Code safety

The Kotlin code is more reliable with fewer errors. It has some features such as null safety which can help to catch the errors at compile-time. Also, it is a statically-typed language that helps to catch more errors.

Multi-platform

It is possible to develop code in multi-platforms. First, it is the official language of Android development. In addition, it is possible the code for the back-end developments using JVM using existing frameworks such as Spring Boot, vert.x, or JSF, and also there is a specific framework named Ktor. Also, by using Kotlin/Js it is possible to develop in JavaScript for the client-side of websites. Moreover, by using Kotlin/Native it is possible to develop codes without VM.

Integrated development environments (IDEs)

IntelliJ IDEA

It is an IDE that is developed by JetBrains for Kotlin development in different platforms.

Android Studio

It is the official IDE for the development of Android apps.

Next Part: Kotlin Tutorial (Part 2) — IDE