Why is D unpopular?

[Ola Fosheim Grøstad]

On Tuesday, 2 November 2021 at 21:08:22 UTC, Dukc wrote:
> We need some real research on human behaviour to base our 
> opinions on, otherwise we're never going to know the real 
> reasons with any meaningful confidence.

You get an idea when you follow the forums for several years 
(where people explain why they quit) and read what people write 
on various social media. Lack of direction seems to be quite a 
common theme.

If we take Rust as an example, then we know that it was growing 
and attracting users before it hit 1.0 and generated lots of 
hype. Rust projected very strong values, both in terms of 
language philosophy and community. Some found it off-putting, but 
if that means that they scared off 50%, it also means that those 
that remain are more likely to pull in the same direction. Which 
is immensely helpful… And they managed to attract a very geeky 
academic subset of the programming population (highly capable 
programmers) which is good for the eco system.

By casting the net wide, D has a population that is pulling in 
all kinds of directions, which is kinda interesting, but not 
really ideal for progress.