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Ask HN: Anyone still coding like 2021? Where do you work?

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Ask HN: Anyone still coding like 2021? Where do you work?

#1
I can close an eye on using LLMs for research only.

These days I feel I am the only one that hasn’t changed their way of writing software at all. I’d honestly switch careers rather than manage agents. But I’m currently out of work (contract ended) and wondering if there is still a sane place to work, or is it truly time to pivot to another career.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone still coding like 2021? Where do you work?

#3
> These days I feel I am the only one that hasn’t changed their way of writing software at all.

If you mean using a text editor, a shell, and a makefile, then you're not alone by any stretch of the imagination.

If you mean your skills stagnated 10+ years ago and have not advanced since then, then... yeah, you might be the only one ;).

Re: Ask HN: Anyone still coding like 2021? Where do you work?

#4

Dow/classified projects can still be pretty old school. Our company hasn’t really done much on the AI front yet although I’m pushing hard to change that.

I am deeply envious that you have dodged the slop trenches and get to walk into a somewhat cleaner solution.

The rest of us have to clean up and maintain the slop and it's depressing as hell.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone still coding like 2021? Where do you work?

#5
I do not have an answer to your original question but I do have a comment that I have realized it myself quite recently. May be the analogy is not good enough but here it goes: no one would go back to punch cards etc, we have come a long way. And GenAI is such a tool - there is no going back.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone still coding like 2021? Where do you work?

#7
We still have some product development software teams at my company that have not changed at all in the last year. We develop medical products in the U.S., so it is heavily regulated and processes change very slowly. We also require reviews from our legal team, so it takes a while for any new contract or agreement to be approved.

This is temporary though; other teams are fully embracing AI in their processes, and it's really only a matter of time until all teams use it. We have C-suite instructions to promote AI adoption. AI will slowly creep into software testing, verification, and eventually the requirements management and software development itself. I'm working on some of the pilot projects.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone still coding like 2021? Where do you work?

#9
>I can close an eye on using LLMs for research only.

Yes, this is the only way I use them. As a better search tool for the collective knowledge, and to do arbitrary queries on a complicated code base.

If there are any mechanical changes, like renaming something or such, I might use an LLM for it as well.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone still coding like 2021? Where do you work?

#10

I do not have an answer to your original question but I do have a comment that I have realized it myself quite recently. May be the analogy is not good enough but here it goes: no one would go back to punch cards etc, we have come a long way. And GenAI is such a tool - there is no going back.

Yea, it is easier to use an LLM for search than using a conventional search engine. No one is going back to that if a non-malicious LLM is available at reasonable costs.
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