| ▲ | preg_match a day ago | |
Because AI removes you from analytical thinking, and the brain is a muscle. The less you think, the less you are able to think. Programming is inherently analytical and logic-driven. It’s a great brain exercise, even if the code has no value. When you use AI, you lose that exercise. What replaces it isn’t the same. I mean, consider. I can solve a crossword, or I can ask AI to solve the crossword. AI will do it perfectly, and faster too. But which one is better for my brain? What was my goal with solving the crossword, anyway? On the surface it was to find a solution to the crossword. But, maybe, deeper down, the goal was to improve myself in some way. People conflate the improvement of products with the improvement of self. Maybe it’s a result of our consumerist mindset. But the truth is the product can improve greatly, and you can be making it, while you yourself degrade. We write better and better code, at a faster rate, but are we better programmers than before? Maybe, maybe not. I’m leaning maybe not. It’s not new or unique. The assembly line is the same. Sure, I can build better furniture faster at the factory than by hand. But what is the goal here? Is it to make the best furniture, or to become the best carpenter? If it’s to make the best furniture, the best product, then I’ve won. If it’s to become the best carpenter, then I’ve lost heavily. | ||
| ▲ | akerl_ a day ago | parent | next [-] | |
The best carpenter obviously doesn't use any power tools. Are they allowed to use hand tools, or do they need to split the wood with their bare hands? It's not clear to me why programming is inherently analytical and logic-driven but prompting and iterating with an AI is not. What about Applescript, where it's programming but in something closer to natural language? The core of this seems to be that there are people who assume that users of AI turn their brains off the moment they open a Claude prompt. There are surely some people who are doing that, but there were also plenty of people who were shipping sloppy code before. There are far more people for whom this another tool in their toolbox. | ||
| ▲ | zahlman a day ago | parent | prev [-] | |
> But, maybe, deeper down, the goal was to improve myself in some way. Or, you know, to pass some time in an enjoyable way. To have fun. | ||