Why do developers compare PHP and Node.js? (Spoiler: One is a language, the other is a magician’s hat)
And why most people don’t actually know what a programming language is.
Let’s set the scene. You are in a job interview, or perhaps a Reddit thread, and someone asks, “Which is better for the backend? PHP or NodeJS?”
You brace yourself for the usual fanboy war—talk of performance, syntax, and frameworks. But if you stop and think about it, this question is linguistically nonsensical. It’s like asking, “Which is better for breakfast? Eggs or the oven?”
Yet, this comparison happens every single day. The reason isn't stupidity; it’s a fundamental misunderstanding of what makes a programming language a language.
