> when Java 8 added a lot of (well-needed) new syntax, it felt like that was an ideal opportunity to add ADTs and pattern matching
Well at least Java does now (as of Java 21) have pattern matching (including nested record destructuring) and sealed classes, which let you have decent sum types.
The one issue is that everything is nullable, but that's a wider Java issue.
Yeah, but the annoying part of Java is that people stick with old versions for a long time. Java 21 looks pretty great but most companies are still using Java 17, or even Java 11 still.
Some have even older Java versions in 'prod'. 6 is still alive in some places out there, because management refuses to pay for either upgrade, replacement or dismantling.
I have a mid-sized application I built on 17 that's used to deliver a particular project, really looking forward to finish the project so I get to move to 21 and refactor it with these new features and make it more general.
