I would like collect some data on which teams use which programming language. Naturally I expect LabView to be on top, however it would be nice to have some kind of idea how many teams use the other languages available.
Coded in C++ for the first two years I was on the team, just switched to Java this year. I personally love how much cleaner the IDE we are using is (Netbeans) compared to the older one (WindRiver); perhaps it’s the aesthetics.
Well, not that Netbeans is all flashy, but for some reason, it just looks… appealing. Colours, maybe? Maybe I’m just weird?
Either way, we use Java on the Netbeans IDE now.
C++
LabView babies you too much, and also because I will be looking for a career in the software development field.
Our team uses C++. However, with the new Command-based robot thing, we might as well be coding in Java. We (unfortunately) used Wind River for the past two years but next year, we’re probably switching to Vim and a terminal on Linux :D.
Alex Brinister
I totally disagree.
I work professionally in C (no ++, just C) and we use LabVIEW for our FRC code because of the fantastic development tools.
The biggest disadvantage is library code inefficiency in LabVIEW FRC, but we fixed most of that this year.
LabVIEW is also heavily used in test and industrial automation, especially where complicated software is needed for a one-of-a-kind unit. I know a guy who used to professionally work with LV FPGA to evaluate and test high-speed SPI IMUs and ASICs.
I think LabVIEW is just another way of looking at programming. The only thing I don’t like about it is the clutter that one can accumulate. It’s way too messy.
Alex Brinister
We used LabView in recent years for the driver station visuals so we could put in crosshairs and make things look a lot smoother; we didn’t use it for the actual robot code, though.
It’s only messy if you write it messy.
Like any other language, you have to divide it up into multiple files/functions and design the core architecture well for it to be neat.
You can also use the Clean Up VI tool to auto-organize the block diagram to make it neater. In general, if the VI dosen’t clean up well with the clean tool, it’s too complicated.
We program in java because of AP Computer Science being taught in java. Students come in with a general understanding of the language. We have comp sci 1-4 at Pearce. I’m currently in computer science 4, where we get to do independent study. One of my independent projects was actually programming the robot. They compliment each other quite nicely. It look 2 years of convincing to get the team to switch from Labview 
I program in C++ for computer apps/other micro controllers but for FRC I prefer Labview. The tools supplied are very nice and make debugging quicker as you can look at all the inputs live.
C++. We know how to write it and it has the fastest build+deploy times.
SpaceX uses LabVIEW extensively:
The Ground Software team is about 9 people. We primarily code in LabVIEW. We develop the GUIs used in Mission and Launch control, for engineers and operators to monitor vehicle telemetry and command the rocket, spacecraft, and pad support equipment. We are pushing high bandwidth data around a highly distributed system and implementing complex user interfaces with strict requirements to ensure operators can control and evaluate spacecraft in a timely manner.
Our team uses Java.
Java for everything: Robot and Scouting Programs.
However, for merging scouting data, someone decided to show off some C# knowledge. And don’t get me started on my friends mini-bot that he made for fun, and coded in C++
We use TI-84 basic to program our robot, it’s super effective and we can do it almost anywhere…
Seems legit.
TI-89 basic is far better! One can actually type in code rather than selecting commands from menus.
Anyway, we switched from LabVIEW to Java and love it.
Does anyone use Eclipse to code in java? And if so, how is it better/different from netbeans?
We Write our main robot code in C and do our Dash Board with Lab View
I use it for app development (still ironing out the details, only been at learning for a month or so), but we use Netbeans for our robot. Since I don’t need to get into too many details so far for either one, the only thing I find is that Eclipse has a little bit more of a sleeker feel while Netbeans seems to have a bit more of an organized, structured feel when looking through the classes, commands and subsystems.
I suppose for me it’s aesthetics that are pretty similar, but since I don’t use both for robots, I’d take my statement with a grain of salt.
We use Eclipse. I am not one of the programmers, but I think that they use it because most of them already have it and they have a repository setup with it.
-Mihir Iyer