Learning Classical Latin and Ancient Greek is also worthwhile.
Like learning a programming language, these activities stretch your mind in different ways.
And expose you to a different kind of beauty and a very different world.
Learning to code is still worthwhile
221–230 of 326 posts
Re: Learning to code is still worthwhile
#222Learning Classical Latin and Ancient Greek is also worthwhile. Like learning a programming language, these activities stretch your mind in different ways. And expose you to a different kind of beauty and a very different world.
> Learning Classical Latin and Ancient Greek is also worthwhile.
In what sense?
From this perspective everything is worthwhile.
If "worthwhile" is relative to learning other skills then Classical Latin and Ancient Greek is near the bottom of that pile, and you probably know what which is why you cited them.
So then the question is where coding sits on that hierarchy, and if someone should learn to code vs acquiring other skills.
Personally I'd not advise anyone to learn to code today. It's not just that I'm not convinced of the utility of the skill going forward, but I also think it's very hard to actually learn to code competently for someone starting out today. I had the luxury of spending decades coding without LLMs professionally. No one learning today is realistically going to have the opportunity to compete with old school coders with decades of experience writing code by hand, even if we assume the skill will be worth anything.
Re: Learning to code is still worthwhile
#223Earlier quoted context omitted.
The non-determinism is one of the relevant features of this layer of abstraction! And one can learn to validate that the translation is being done properly. Some of the tools you have include writing extremely detailed specs, generating visualizations of the internals of the tool, or (perhaps) reading the code, though that becomes less feasible with volume. Basically it turns out that code is full of incidental detai…
Writing Specs that are thousands of lines wrong without formalism, type and correctness checking is a major PITA. Wish we had a..compiler that can check our code..err I mean spec.
Oh, are you still handwriting your specs? How Q2 2026. Handcrafted artisan specs are obsolete and you will be left behind in the dust if you still insist on them.
Re: Learning to code is still worthwhile
#224Nothing is worthwhile if we all die in the end...
Re: Learning to code is still worthwhile
#225[dead]
Re: Learning to code is still worthwhile
#226Learning Classical Latin and Ancient Greek is also worthwhile. Like learning a programming language, these activities stretch your mind in different ways. And expose you to a different kind of beauty and a very different world.
> Learning Classical Latin and Ancient Greek is also worthwhile. In what sense? From this perspective everything is worthwhile. If "worthwhile" is relative to learning other skills then Classical Latin and Ancient Greek is near the bottom of that pile, and you probably know what which is why you cited them. So then the question is where coding sits on that hierarchy, and if someone should learn to code vs acquiring o…
Surely you're capable of understanding that the term "worthwhile" has multiple meanings.
Re: Learning to code is still worthwhile
#227Learning Classical Latin and Ancient Greek is also worthwhile. Like learning a programming language, these activities stretch your mind in different ways. And expose you to a different kind of beauty and a very different world.
> Learning Classical Latin and Ancient Greek is also worthwhile. In what sense? From this perspective everything is worthwhile. If "worthwhile" is relative to learning other skills then Classical Latin and Ancient Greek is near the bottom of that pile, and you probably know what which is why you cited them. So then the question is where coding sits on that hierarchy, and if someone should learn to code vs acquiring o…
Latin and Greek were taught at grammar schools: part of upper class status signalling. But also deeply foundational to many languages, literature and history, if you think those topics are useful.
I'm a Dilbert, yet today I asked AI why т (\tau) was being used by Huawei for their latest chip design and I specifically asked about the meaning in Mandarin.
The choice of the character “韬” (tāo) [1] has a deliberate second meaning: In classical Chinese, it means to conceal, or to sheathe a weapon. It implies keeping one's sharpest edges hidden while quietly building up inner strength. The naming directly references the famous Chinese idiom “韬光养晦” (tāo guāng yǎng huì), which means "to hide one's light and bide one's time."
[1] AFAIK tāo has nothing to do with the philosophical "tao" commonly referenced in English like Tao of Pooh. Different characters and completely different meanings. See https://technode.com/2026/07/06/huawei-mate-90-series-report...
Re: Learning to code is still worthwhile
#228> Code is a beautiful form of creative expression, as rich as literature or music I think this is overstating it and makes me wonder how familiar the author is with literature and music. Most programming is closer to plumbing. We come in, gripe about the guy who did the prior job, and solve a puzzle with some unique constraints. The reason LLMs are good at coding is because with coding we want boring, banal code.
Looks like you two are on opposite sides of the same fence. The demo scene exists it's programming for fun and creative expression. Also the ioccc. That's the equivalent of a creatively written novel. Then there's writing for just a job like writing knowledge bases. That would be programming for plumbing aka crud and cloud.
The demo scene — as cool as it is — is an obscure hobby for a particular kind of nerd.
The business side of programming puts food on the table for tens of millions of people.
Re: Learning to code is still worthwhile
#229Earlier quoted context omitted.
To be clear: I don't envision a scenario where people who are completely unable to code will come out of nowhere, and make a career out of prompting claude to write software without ever learning to code. What I am saying is that the threshold of what constitutes "good enough" coding skill has shifted down, and those people who already knew how to code now have a certain multiplier on the outcomes they deliver. (this…
> make the proposition of learning to code right now uneconomical I disagree with this part. The bar of skill you need to write complex now is much lower now, so a new person might very quickly learn just enough to be able to build cool products. Maybe not operating systems, but useful web apps, browser plugins, productivity tools, programs that solve business needs outside of IT, ETC. Edit; but if you mean learning…
One might argue that these people will not understand the code they write if they use LLMs. I would counter that with my observation that plenty didn’t understand the code they wrote before LLMs too.
Re: Learning to code is still worthwhile
#230The arguments put forward are very weak, in my opinion. It made me depressed, not hopeful, as in: if this is all we have left, things are becoming desperate indeed.
To elaborate, if coding is like art, it's the worst art there is. It's far closer to something like legos and the satisfaction you get from completing a noteworthy build. Maybe that's the writer's point - yes it's still worthwhile, in a purely hobbyist sort of way.
I find the "coding helps math" argument to be similarly weak. Yes, it certainly helps with algebra, but overall I would argue the coding flavor of math largely helps more coding type of math. It's a strange type of math with loops and rules and conditionals that wouldn't be mainstream if software wasn't so mainstream to begin with. When you pull back the covers, the argument sounds more circular than something with true meat on the bones.