[Answer] If You Want to Build a Search Engine, Which Languages Should You Learn—C++, PHP, or Java?

[Answer] If You Want to Build a Search Engine, Which Languages Should You Learn—C++, PHP, or Java?

In the current environment, using C or C++ for this is generally not recommended. This is not to say that C++ cannot be used to build a search engine, but rather that the language’s strengths are not really in this area. As the predecessors of most popular modern languages, C and C++ do indeed have significant advantages in runtime efficiency. However, the functions supported by their standard libraries are mainly focused on more fundamental, low-level implementations.

By contrast, modern languages such as Python and Java come with a large number of rich third-party libraries. In programming, there is a common principle: do not reinvent the wheel. Since useful libraries—the “wheels”—have already been provided by others, starting everything again from scratch yourself usually reduces both efficiency and reliability. Therefore, from a productivity perspective, using Python or similar languages to design a search engine may be faster and easier.

Returning to the original question, there is a book called Building a Search Engine Yourself (apparently written by a Japanese author), which can help address the technical roadmap for creating a search engine.