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Show HN: Dev atrophy test – Can you still code without AI?

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Show HN: Dev atrophy test – Can you still code without AI?

#1

Post by mrborgen »

Hey HN,

I'm Per from Scrimba (YC S20), the code-learning platform.

There's been a lot of talk lately about whether AI tools are causing skill atrophy amongst developers. We get a front-row seat to this, and we see more and more students struggle with basic concepts, and building apps on their own. This is almost always a consequence of relying too much on ChatGPT and vibe coding tools.

So we built a small side project: https://devatrophy.com

It's a test of your core web dev knowledge — no handholding, no back rubs, no AI autocomplete. Just you, your brain, and 10 questions. There are three levels (Noobie, Le Chad, Hardcore), and the questions cover HTML, CSS, JavaScript, databases, and Node.

You’ll get a score at the end, plus a downloadable certificate for bragging rights (or public shaming).

Would love for you to try it and tell us what you think. And would be curious to hear if you're feeling any signs of "dev atrophy" yourself, or in your team?

PS: Ironically we decided to produce it by vibe coding on V0. Oh the irony.

Re: Show HN: Dev atrophy test – Can you still code without AI?

#6

Post by hailpixel »

Always love a fun quiz, but some of the example answers are just incorrect. Eg: `document.example('example')` to select a HTML button element. Others are to rigid to allow the true breadth of correct answers.

Ya'll might want to switch from V0 to claude code.

Re: Show HN: Dev atrophy test – Can you still code without AI?

#8

Post by rijoja »

being good at software design isn't about memorizing the specific details of a single language or subjects

languages are subject to change

hire people who are good at finding information

not someone who is good at blindly memorizing details of a specific instance of a language or system

someone who memorized every single detail of COBOL will be a worse coder than someone who spent time thinking about abstract thinking and problem solving

you'll want to double check everything anyway

this shows of a fundamental lack of insight into what it means to be a good developer

it's like someone who thinks they are smarter than everyone else because they spent thousands on hours on playing chess

this student who has memorized the full specification of HTML, CSS and Javascript will be useless if you ask them a question about lets say Erlang, and is easily replaced by a book

Re: Show HN: Dev atrophy test – Can you still code without AI?

#10

Post by rijoja »

dakiol wrote: post #7

I don’t see in which context coding without aid is helpful: - at work, nobody cares. They only want shipped features. - at home, I only care about having fun (and that doesn’t necessarily mean to not use tools like ides, llms, autocomplete, etc)

it's helpful for them, because it means they can get a lot of VC money by putting some ugly 4chan meme pictures on a website in order to get attention
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