Why doesn't Golang have generics?

Golang is an open source programming language that supports concurrency, object-oriented and system-level programming, designed by Google. Although Golang is a very powerful programming language, it has always lacked one important feature: generics. Generics is a programming language feature that allows programmers to use type parameters when writing code, making the code more versatile and flexible and can handle multiple data types.

Compared with other programming languages, there are no generics in Golang, which is also a major flaw of Golang. In Golang, type parameters must be hard-coded in functions or data structures, which makes it very cumbersome when dealing with different types of data. This is one of the reasons why many programmers feel confused and dissatisfied in Golang.

So, why doesn’t Golang have generics? The reason is that the designers of Golang believe that generics will make the code more complex, increase programming difficulty, and hinder compiler optimization. However, as Golang continues to develop, more and more programmers have begun to realize the importance of generics, and they have begun to seek a way to implement generics in Golang.

In Golang 1.18 version, Golang finally launched the generics feature, which means that programmers can now use generics to improve code reusability and maintainability. The launch of generics is a major milestone for both the Golang community and the Golang ecosystem.

By using Golang's generic features, programmers can more easily write universal code without having to write a lot of repetitive code when dealing with different types of data. By using generics, programmers can write more abstract and clear code and avoid a lot of duplication of code in different blocks of code.

Golang’s generic features are implemented by using type parameters in functions, interfaces, and data structures. Type parameters are defined using generic types, and specific code will be generated at compile time based on the generic type used.

For example, the following is a function implemented using generics:

func findIndex[T any](slice []T, value T) int {
    for i, v := range slice {
        if v == value {
            return i
        }
    }
    return -1
}

In this example, the type parameter T is used to represent the data type and is used in the parameters and return types. Functions can process slices of any type and look for values ​​of the same type in them. By using type parameters, we can use one function to handle different types of slices, thus avoiding duplication of code.

Although generics can improve the flexibility and reusability of code, we also need to pay attention to some issues when using generics. First, the implementation of generics is usually more complex than the implementation of ordinary functions, which increases compilation time and code size. Secondly, the use of generics requires programmers to have higher abstract thinking skills, otherwise it may make the code difficult to understand and maintain.

In short, although Golang has lacked generic features for a long time, with the development and progress of Golang, Golang finally launched generic features. Generics allow programmers to write more general, reusable, and abstract code, thereby improving code quality and efficiency. When using generics, we need to carefully weigh the pros and cons, make full use of the advantages of generics, and avoid the disadvantages of generics as much as possible.

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