Actually, for a few years now, Java and C# have scored better than C++ in most every speed benchmark. The idea that java is slow simply is a myth. If you don't believe it, feel free to Google some speed comparisons.
Well, yeah, even a beginner's Java code can be faster then a very badly written C++ code. The idea is that Java is a (very) high level programming language while C++ is relatively low level. That means that while Java must relay on the "Java Virtual Machine" to work, and has little (read as: almost no) ways to access the system's inner core and the computer's inner working in order to make things work faster, C++ can easily do that since it was created in the 70's.
Think of it like this:
High level language (like Java) - Much more portable and easier to code, but on the other hand it's also usually slower
Low level language (like Assembly) - Gives the programmer a direct access to the computer's CPU, with absolutely nothing between the two. That mean that a good programmer can make VERY fast apps thanks to the ability to directly control the CPU. But it also means that the program relays on the hardware inside the programmer's computer, and therefor it's very not portable. It's also much harder to write a low level code.
Medium level language (that's how i call C, and to some degree C++) - Something in the middle. It combines the good and the bad from both worlds. It's portable, but requires extra work, and although it's hard to code in these languages it's still easier then low level one.
C, although officially is called a high level language actually has many many features and coding style from lower level ones, and that's why i like to call it a "medium level" one.
C++ IS a high level language but it still has many many C features in it, which mean that if a programmer want to "get closer" to the computer's hardware he can do that at any point.
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Well, yeah, even a beginner's Java code can be faster then a very badly written C++ code. The idea is that Java is a (very) high level programming language while C++ is relatively low level. That means that while Java must relay on the "Java Virtual Machine" to work, and has little (read as: almost no) ways to access the system's inner core and the computer's inner working in order to make things work faster, C++ can easily do that since it was created in the 70's.
Think of it like this:
High level language (like Java) - Much more portable and easier to code, but on the other hand it's also usually slower
Low level language (like Assembly) - Gives the programmer a direct access to the computer's CPU, with absolutely nothing between the two. That mean that a good programmer can make VERY fast apps thanks to the ability to directly control the CPU. But it also means that the program relays on the hardware inside the programmer's computer, and therefor it's very not portable. It's also much harder to write a low level code.
Medium level language (that's how i call C, and to some degree C++) - Something in the middle. It combines the good and the bad from both worlds. It's portable, but requires extra work, and although it's hard to code in these languages it's still easier then low level one.
C, although officially is called a high level language actually has many many features and coding style from lower level ones, and that's why i like to call it a "medium level" one.
C++ IS a high level language but it still has many many C features in it, which mean that if a programmer want to "get closer" to the computer's hardware he can do that at any point.
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Please don't ruin this community with gay 4Chan memes and poor spelling. Thank you.
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Also, a great piece of software! It managed to load my 20 MB world in mere seconds!