Since 2013, we’ve been metaphorically peering over the shoulders of programmers to create our annual interactive rankings of the most popular programming languages. In practical terms, this means using one—any one—of today’s most popular general purpose programming languages. A single well-written book, like Leo Brodie’s Starting Forth or Brian Kernighan and Dennis Ritchies’ The C Programming Language, could make an enormous difference to a language’s popularity. What’s the future of programming languages? In this scenario, computer science degrees, with their emphasis on fundamentals over the details of programming languages, rise in value over coding boot camps.