In this chapter, you'll gain an understanding of what Kotlin is, how it came about, and why it's quickly gaining popularity. You'll find a high-level overview of key language features, as well as the design principles behind the language itself. Finally, this chapter will lay the foundations for the following chapters' focus on features, patterns, platforms, and best practices for improving your understanding of the Kotlin programming language.
This chapter covers the following topics:
- Creating a modern language for the Java Virtual Machine (JVM)
- Moving beyond the JVM
- Designing Kotlin with best practices in mind
- Checking in on the current state of Kotlin