Introduction

We live in interesting times. We are witnessing an amazing revolution. Over the last decade or so, two dominant platforms have emerged: Java and .NET. During their rise to power, promises of productivity were made and realized. Yet even with all the advancements in development tools, compilers, and virtual machine performance, and the multitude of frameworks available, developers began seeking the next level of productivity that the agile movement had introduced. Java and .NET developers began noticing that their counterparts who were using dynamic languages like Ruby, Python, and PHP were becoming increasingly productive, and these developers became jealous. The ever-moving technology pendulum began to swing back toward dynamic languages. ....