What is generic programming?
The word generic comes from Latin (genus - genus, gender) and basically describes different properties of an existing object. Sets, classes or genera of different types are also used here. Generic programming, which is used in software libraries, is about designing functions in the general area. The aim here is to create different data structures and types of data.
Fundamental
The integration of various programming languages is done through templates or generic types. One consequence is that programming languages are created that are dynamically designed. The algorithms used here are not created specifically for certain types of data, but only place specific functional requirements on the data types.
Many people also use the term parametric polymorphism in this context. This can be clearly explained and seen in a standard library of the C++ programming language. There, the structures of data and the algorithms used are treated separately from each other, as well as possible, of course, because they are supposed to work independently.
C# Programming language
In the area of generic programming, the C# programming language is also used, which uses templates similar to those found in C++. Among other things, classes and commands are used that are already known, including list, dictionary or hashset. It should also be mentioned that in C++, brackets are always used, which are pointed. The aim is to highlight a declaration of classes and make it visible.
Java
In Java, generic programming has been offered and used since version 1.5. The idea here is to implement one or the other new variable for existing types and data. When classes are used, for example, concretised types in turn replace other variables. One could also see it as a kind of new creation. In this way, programming that is type-specific should usually be made possible.
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence and generic programming are always interrelated and thus mutually dependent. Neural networks, broadly speaking, mimic the human brain and copy the behaviours and executions of their biological counterparts. In the creation of neural networks, generic programming is always given a raison d'être. Various commands, classes and structures are necessary alongside algorithms to create an artificial intelligence. The more extensive and diverse an artificial intelligence is to be, the more detailed and sophisticated generic programming becomes.
Future viability
Technological progress in the course of advancing globalisation is unstoppable. Due to growing demands, for example in the economic sector, on the stock exchange or in industry, new solutions must be found again and again. In this context, generic programming is becoming more and more complex, but also more error-prone, unless software and hardware are constantly updated.
In principle, the IT sector is one of the few where jobs will be secure in the future, as specialists in the field will always be needed. Further education in generic programming as well as training in this field is becoming more and more important. This is also important in order to be able to keep up and compete with other industrialised nations worldwide in the future.
