Ask HN: I got duped into working on legacy code, should I leave?

I think you could interpret the situation as your employer being dishonest (it sounds like it, and that is troubling) or you could say they have will to do things with tech like React or TS, which could be an opportunity for you.

This could be stating the obvious, but legacy code does not necessarily correlate to age. A really bad situation is where your team is actively writing legacy code: written today, needs to be replaced tomorrow.

I have been involved with a greenfield project which replaced a legacy system which was actively being used. My team's decision was to scrap the old and start from scratch. This resulted in a massive delay before we were able to start adding value for our users. While we spent over a year using (learning) newer tech to build a system from scratch, they were stuck using the old system. And of course the new release was buggy.

A much better approach would have been to incrementally introduce the new tech were possible until it replaces the entire system. I think the pattern is called strangler vine.

Working Effectively with Legacy Code by Michael Feathers is a classic. It might be helpful or get you more interested if you are not already familiar.

I think you get a free "this job didn't work out" card every couple of years. If you really hate it, then find a new job. As a hiring manager, I would accept your story as a valid reason for leaving. If your resume has several months-long stints, then I'd start seeing red flags and get concerned. However, if your work history was previously stable and now you make a quick hop, I personally would not pass too much judgment here.

My advice:

1) if you can, do whatever you can to start porting to a new system with React/Typescript ASAP. Do it on the sly or something, maybe, but get it to the point where the higher ups are like "Oh, this isn't as big a deal as we thought it would be". Especially if you can do the transition in a piecemeal fashion. If you can single-handedly demonstrate the benefits of the new system and the ease of transition, then not only will you look good to the rest of the company, but that's a huge win to put on your resume and a great story to tell when you interview at future jobs.

2) Deal with the legacy system. It's also a huge plus to be able to go to an employer and say "I'm a React/Typescript expert, but I've also gone blind into a codebase and mastered it in X amount of time." Use your free time to write React/Typescript projects, especially (again) if you can transform those into new products at the office.

3) If you can't do #1 or #2 and you absolutely can't stand this job anymore, find a new one. Don't worry too much about the "i've only been here for a few months" thing. Sticking it out is almost never the right decision, in my experience.

4) IMO, happiness is paramount. Being miserable at work leads to being miserable when you're not at work, and life's too short to be miserable. Do whatever you can to make yourself happy, whether that means any of the options above or something else I haven't thought of yet.

The problem is the business thinking he is buying value when he's really getting in debt.