Programming Still Sucks • Hacker News Board

Re: Programming Still Sucks

#261

Post by stevenlangbroek » Thu, May 07, 2026, 2:49 PM UTC

dwd wrote: post #254

msie wrote: post #175

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"I wrote my first batch scripts when I was 6 years old." - Wow, that's pretty amazing. What did you write when you were 10? Really curious.

I'm guessing an AUTOEXEC.BAT file to configure DOS settings for different games.

haha close! i saw my mom get frustrated not remembering where her programs were located, so I wrote a little numerical menu for her with her programs listed in order of use. each number was secretly another .bat script that would then go to the right directory and run, for example, WordPerfect for her.

Re: Programming Still Sucks

#262

Post by stevenlangbroek » Thu, May 07, 2026, 2:50 PM UTC

maxehmookau wrote: post #229

One of the best things I've read this year. Also one of the worst things I've read this year, actually. But also, I enjoyed reading it.

Thanks man, that means a lot <3

Re: Programming Still Sucks

#263

Post by farmerbb » Thu, May 07, 2026, 3:10 PM UTC

stevenlangbroek wrote: post #173

redfloatplane wrote: post #152

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’s funny you say that as about halfway through I was beginning to wonder if this was at least Claude-edited. Absolutely no shade to the author meant, I think it’s a thoughtful article, but I _did_ feel the sheen of AI co-authorship. It raises the question of how much text I have read that I did not realise was LLM-generated. I think I have a decent nose for it but I’m not perfect, there must be false negatives (and…

Hey! I'm not insulted at all. My position is that of a Luddite: I think technology is neutral, but deployment is not. My critique is structural, and I don't blame people in or out of tech for adopting AI to be able to survive. No AIs were harmed in the writing of this post, either physically or by the sharing of earlier (cringe) drafts.

Thank you for writing this piece, resonated a lot with me. Looking forward to reading more from you in the future.

Re: Programming Still Sucks

#264

Post by munksbeer » Thu, May 07, 2026, 3:14 PM UTC

Ygg2 wrote: post #252

munksbeer wrote: post #171

Earlier quoted context omitted.

World GDP and standard of living has never been higher.

If two trillionaires bounce a 4 trillion dollar IOU, the GDP could be the greatest in the universe, even though nothing would substantially change.

Living standards for the median person in the world improve every year, and have done for decades.

Re: Programming Still Sucks

#265

Post by munksbeer » Thu, May 07, 2026, 3:15 PM UTC

esseph wrote: post #251

munksbeer wrote: post #248

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The thing is, the option you want is available today. There are communities all around the world that live much simpler lives. Some just because that is how they are, others because they've formed communities to escape all the things you don't like. Genuine question, have you ever investigated these options? If so, why did you dismiss them?

> The thing is, the option you want is available today. Disagree Removing yourself from the computing environment does not remove the impact it has on the world and around you. That is the equivalent of sticking one's head in the sand.

The option is still available to you though. Sticking your head in the sand could be a great strategy if it improves your happiness and wellbeing.

Re: Programming Still Sucks

#266

Post by lopsotronic » Thu, May 07, 2026, 3:15 PM UTC

canelonesdeverd wrote: post #244

larodi wrote: post #199

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How come is anyone "entitled" to a decent living? I don't think this holds evolutionary, nor from historical perspective. It is commendable for a person to want to think that everyone deserves it, but I don't see it follow from anything or manifest in general in a fair way. There are plenty of examples that people are very likely going to be deprived of even whatever they deserved by means of struggling to get it.

> How come is anyone "entitled" to a decent living? kind of the point of living in a civilized society i reckon

Yeah once payback goes below subsistence[1] - even when it gets near it- things get unstable and extremely dangerous. Ancient people understood this very quickly and built up institutions to keep the baseline above subsistence for urban civilizations.

It's been so long since we've seen actual bread riots I fear we forgot how nasty those are.

I think the notion is that with new automated systems of violence and control, some of them built onto the people themselves, our "future civilization" can dial back the worker's compensation to below subsistence. There was a big zillionaire conference where they talked about slave collars, for example, or humanoid AI workers. I'm always a little distressed when the masters of industry fall back on science fiction in order to build a machine that needs to function in the, well, in the present.

[1] One person's output in terms of agriculture

Re: Programming Still Sucks

#267

Post by esseph » Thu, May 07, 2026, 3:19 PM UTC

munksbeer wrote: post #265

esseph wrote: post #251

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The thing is, the option you want is available today. Disagree Removing yourself from the computing environment does not remove the impact it has on the world and around you. That is the equivalent of sticking one's head in the sand.

The option is still available to you though. Sticking your head in the sand could be a great strategy if it improves your happiness and wellbeing.

> The option is still available to you though. Sticking your head in the sand could be a great strategy if it improves your happiness and wellbeing.

Right now I am picturing the dog drinking coffee in the burning room meme.

Re: Programming Still Sucks

#268

Post by vinceguidry » Thu, May 07, 2026, 3:22 PM UTC

munksbeer wrote: post #230

coldtea wrote: post #212

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd take the 90s, 80s, 70s or 60s anytime, just gimme that magic time travel option. You know what, even the 00s would be fine.

Yes, recency bias.

Please. Covid destroyed everything in my life that I loved.

Re: Programming Still Sucks

#269

Post by jamauro » Thu, May 07, 2026, 3:43 PM UTC

keybored wrote: post #258

jamauro wrote: post #256

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is this Gen AI or did you write it?

Don’t insult me.

Haha I genuinely couldn't tell. I liked it which made me think that it was actually created by a human but had me a bit concerned that my detector is losing calibration.

Re: Programming Still Sucks

#270

Post by stego-tech » Thu, May 07, 2026, 3:48 PM UTC

Damn. Phenomenal read. Just a really excellent piece of prose in its own right, topic be damned.

Yet the topic is also what makes it so good. It's written by someone who has also seen the vastness of impact technology has had, who has a firm grasp of the difference between technology and industry. Someone who knows the technology didn't get people addicted to social media and short-form videos and click-bait headlines and microtransactions, it was the industry that consciously chose greed and harm.

I love technology, and I'll keep wielding and mastering it until I'm dead in the ground. It's the industry aspect that I'm increasingly dissatisfied and disillusioned with.