I typically auto generate about 90% of the code needed for a typical business application without using AI. That still leaves plenty of work for me to specify what is required to be generated by the code generator and translating/negotiating with customers. Customers does not want to talk to an AI.
Thoughts on the Future of Software Development
421–430 of 434 posts
Re: Thoughts on the Future of Software Development
#422Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yeah, that's a good way of looking at it. We gradually remove technical constraints and move to a higher level of abstraction, much closer to the level of the user and the business rather than the individual machine. But what's the endpoint of this? There will probably always be a need for expert-level troubleshooters and optimizers who understand all the layers, but for the rest of us, I'm wondering if the job would…
I'm not sure that there is an endpoint, only a continuation of the transitions we've always been making. What we've seen as we transitioned to higher and higher level languages (e.g., machine code → macro assembly → C → Java → Python) on unimaginably more powerful machines (and clusters of machines) is that we took on more complex applications and got much more work done faster. The complexity we manage shifts from t…
> machine code → macro assembly → C → Java → Python
This made me laugh out loud. Python is not a step up from Java in my opinion. Python is more of a step up from BASIC. It's a different evolutionary path. Like LISP.
Re: Thoughts on the Future of Software Development
#423Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm not sure that there is an endpoint, only a continuation of the transitions we've always been making. What we've seen as we transitioned to higher and higher level languages (e.g., machine code → macro assembly → C → Java → Python) on unimaginably more powerful machines (and clusters of machines) is that we took on more complex applications and got much more work done faster. The complexity we manage shifts from t…
> machine code → macro assembly → C → Java → Python The increase in productivity, we can all agree on, but a non-negligible portion of HN users would say that each one of those new languages made programming progressively less fun.
Python is a step backwards in productivity for me compared with typed languages. So no I don't think we all agree on this. You might be more productive in Python but that's you not me.
Re: Thoughts on the Future of Software Development
#424Earlier quoted context omitted.
The question is not about what AI can do today but what we assume AI will be able to do tomorrow. All of what you wrote in your second paragraph will become something AI will be doing better and faster than you. We never had technology which can write code like this. I prompted ChatGPT to write a very basic java tool which renders an image from an url and makes it bigger on a click. It just did it. Its not hard to th…
Why invent a new lang when it's easier to compile down to machine code and grok that?
It could be that AI is smart enough for this. Nonetheless a language is a compression thing. You rarly use single ASM instructions.
Re: Thoughts on the Future of Software Development
#425Earlier quoted context omitted.
Have you seen devin the ai developer demo? Business already doesn't know what security is, they will jump head first into everything which allows them to get rid of those weird developer dudes which they have to cater to and give a lot of money. I personally would also assume that there might be a new programming language AI will invent. Something faster, more optimized for AI.
Scripted? Did you get access to it? I’ll believe it when I try it hands-on.
I already coded a few times with chatgpt (4). Devin doesn't has to be perfect but its clear (in my opinion) that this will become better and better faster than we think.
GPT-5 will tell us in summer were we at
Re: Thoughts on the Future of Software Development
#426Earlier quoted context omitted.
I remember when people used to say similar things about using ASM, and then about the craft of writing things in C instead of managed languages like Java. At the end of the day most people will only care about how the tool is solving the problem and how cheaply. A cheap, slow, dirty solution today tends to win over a expensive, quick, elegant one next year. Now there are still some people writing ASM, and a lot of th…
Writing code by typing on a keyboard will be just a hobby? Sure, and who is supposed to understand the code written by AI when we retire? Since writing code by typing on a keyboard will apparently cease to exist, who will write prompts for an AI and put the code together? Person: Hey AI, build me a website that does a, b and c. AI: Here you go. Person: Looks like magic to me, what do I do with all this text? AI: Push…
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Re: Thoughts on the Future of Software Development
#427Earlier quoted context omitted.
You will be able to speak what human needs must be fulfilled. Then the code will appear and you'll be able to meet those human needs. You, not a boss, will own the code. And if you have any needs, you will be able to speak the word and those needs will be met. You will no longer need to work at all. Whatever you want to build, you will be able to build it. What about that frightens you?
What if we don’t hit AGI and instead the tools just get pretty good and put lots of people out of work while making the top 0.1% vastly richer? Now you’ve got no prospects, no power, and barely any money.
That's the scenario I'm assuming. Lots of people out of work, then they start working on ai and using it to solve the post-work survival problem.
But this relies on a few assumptions. 1) there will be open source AI that can solve low resource survival problems, 2) civilians will be able to run these AIs on whatever computing resources they're able to scrounge together, 3) the solutions the systems come up with will let civilians survive or revolt without access to high levels of capital, 4) the systems will NOT rise to the level of independent power gaining AGIs
Note that I have specifically assumed that we don't have independent AGIs. If we hit AGI, then I don't think we can assume that anyone will be able to use AI to solve the problems of post work survival. The AGI will do what it wants to do. I'm not sure how civilians should position themselves in that situation.
Re: Thoughts on the Future of Software Development
#428Earlier quoted context omitted.
Caution - lots of people like to talk about this "code archeology" idea as if it's a central driving point of the book, whereas in fact it's mentioned once in passing in the prologue and is never again relevant to the story. Don't get me wrong, it's still a decent book on its own merits - but don't go into it expecting that to be the main point of the book (I did, and disappointed as a result).
I'd argue that while its not a core diving part narrative... It is central to the idea of the book and its sequel. It's a decent sized book with a lot of ideas and the idea of code archeology and the repercussions of it are what the book is about as much as any of the other main ideas. But yes, if you want a book that focused only on that... This is going to disappoint.
> It is central to the idea of the book and its sequel. [..] the idea of code archeology and the repercussions of it are what the book is about as much as any of the other main ideas.
Can't speak to the sequel as I gave up on the series after that, but it's _really_ not relevant to the plot or ideas of the first book at all. All that matters for the plot is that a hostile, powerful, uncontrollable AI arises. In the book, it _happens_ to be because of a code archeologist "delving too greedily and too deep"; but the plot would not be changed one iota if it had simply arisen (and gone off the rails) as a product of general AI development.
Re: Thoughts on the Future of Software Development
#429Earlier quoted context omitted.
> It's worth noting, that it can do things like that because of the large amount of "how to do simple things in java" tutorials there are on the internet. Much like the same points made elsewhere with regard to AI art: It cannot invent. It can remix, recombine, etc. but no AI model we have now is anywhere close to where it could create something entirely new that's not been seen before.
I have not seen crabs made out of food before. What level do you think 'invention' have to be to count as something AI can't do? The only thing AI needs is a feedback loop and a benchmark/cost function. If the cost function is page impressions, thats easy. If its running unit tests based from business requirements, thats easy too.
> The only thing AI needs is a feedback loop and a benchmark/cost function.
You’re forgetting about data. AI needs data. It’s arguably the most important thing any statistical model needs.
That data must come from somewhere.
There’s no free lunch.
Re: Thoughts on the Future of Software Development
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