Earlier quoted context omitted.
Stock prices down or revenue down? The former would do very little to support your point.
Revenue is all up. And as far as I can see beating expectations.
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Has the cost of building software dropped 90%?
141–150 of 744 posts
Re: Has the cost of building software dropped 90%?
#142> This takes a fairly large mindset shift, but the hard work is the conceptual thinking, not the typing.
But the hard work always was the conceptual thinking? At least at and beyond the Senior level, for me it was always the thinking that's the hard work, not converting the thoughts into code.
Re: Has the cost of building software dropped 90%?
#143I must be holding wrong then because I do use Claude Code all the time and I do think its quite impressive… still I cant see where the productivity gains go nor am I even sure they exist (they might, I just cant tell for sure!)
if you back and forth with the model, and discuss/approve every change it does, that's the problem.
you need to give it a bigish thing so it can work 15 min on it. and in those 15 min you prepare the next one(s)
Re: Has the cost of building software dropped 90%?
#144I contracted briefly on a post-LLM-boom Excel modernization project (which ended up being consulting mainly, because I had to spend all my time explaining key considerations for a long-running software project that would fit their domain).
The company had already tried to push 2 poor data analysts who kind of new Python into the role of vibe coding a Python desktop application that they would then distribute to users. In the best case scenario, these people would have vibe coded an application where the state was held in the UI, with no concept of architectural seperation and no prospects of understanding what the code was doing a couple months from inception (except through the lens of AI sycophancy), all packaged as a desktop application which would generate excel spreadsheets that they would then send to each other via Email (for some reason, this is what they wanted - probably because it is what they know).
You can't blame the business for this, because there are no technical people in these orgs. They were very smart people in this case, doing high-end consultancy work themselves, but they are not technical. If I tried to do vibe chemistry, I'm sure it would be equally disastrous.
The only thing vibe coding unlocks for these orgs by themselves is to run headfirst into an application which does horrendous things with customer data. It doesn't free up time for me as the experienced dev to bring the cost down, because again, there is so much work needed to bring these orgs to the point where they can actually run and own an internal piece of software that I'm not doing much coding anyway.
Re: Has the cost of building software dropped 90%?
#145Earlier quoted context omitted.
Spreadsheets are an incredible tool. They were a key innovation in the history of applications. I love them and use them. But it's very hard to have a large conventional cell-formula spreadsheet that is correct. The programming model / UI are closely coupled, so it's hard to see what's going on once your sheet is above some fairly low complexity. And many workplaces have monstrous sheets that run important things, cu…
It's astounding how useful and intuitive they are, but my biggest gripe is how easy is for anyone to mess calculations, say, SUM( ), by simply adding one row/column/cell. I use Google Worksheets frequently to track new things that fit into lists/tables, and giving someone else editor access without them knowing a few worksheet nuances means I have to recheck and correct them every month or two.
Does anyone make a sanity checker for Excel or Sheets that notices things like that? Would be incredibly helpful!
Re: Has the cost of building software dropped 90%?
#146Had the cost of building custom software dropped 90%, we would be seeing a flurry of low-cost, decent-quality SaaS offering all over the marketplace, possibly undercutting some established players. From where I sit, right now, this does not seem to be the case. This is as if writing down the code is not the biggest problem, or the biggest time sink, of building software.
I mean, we have had the tech to crank out some little app for a long time. The point of the Saas used to be that you had a neck to strangle when things went south. I guess these days that's just impossible anyhow and the prices aren't worth it so we're rediscovering that software can be made instead of bought?
There have been a lot of little blogs about "home cooking" style apps that you make for yourself. Maybe AI is the microwave meal version.
Re: Has the cost of building software dropped 90%?
#147Earlier quoted context omitted.
yeah, in practice: would you like to onboard a Boeing 747 where some of the bugs were patched by some agents, what is the percentage risk of malfunction you are going to accept as a passenger?
>> yeah, in practice: would you like to onboard a Boeing 747 where some of the bugs were patched by some agents, In this case, the traditional human process hasn't gone well either.
human process is the understanding that the mistakes will make people die
Re: Has the cost of building software dropped 90%?
#148I must be holding wrong then because I do use Claude Code all the time and I do think its quite impressive… still I cant see where the productivity gains go nor am I even sure they exist (they might, I just cant tell for sure!)
if you back and forth with the model, and discuss/approve every change it does, that's the problem. you need to give it a bigish thing so it can work 15 min on it. and in those 15 min you prepare the next one(s)
Sure. But am I supposed to still understand that code at some point? Am I supposed to ask other team members to review and approve that code as if I had written it?
I'm still trying to ship quality work by the same standards I had 3 or 5 years ago.
Re: Has the cost of building software dropped 90%?
#149Earlier quoted context omitted.
While this is true, I think some fields like game development may not always have this problem. If your goal is to release a non-upgradable game - fps, arcade, single-player titles, maintenance may be much less important than shipping. edit: typos
I think that is an applicable domain, but the problem is that every gamer I know who is not in the tech industry is vehemently opposed to AI.
Well, they just love complaining. You won't find many who profess to like DLC, yet that sells.
Re: Has the cost of building software dropped 90%?
#150By making up numbers and not supplying any evidence, you can come to any conclusion you like! Then you get to draw a graph with no units on it. Finally, you can say things that are objectively false like "These assertions are rapidly becoming completely false".