[geebee]

Would playing piano be harder if you had to make your own piano? If the level of playing expected of you remains unchanged then yes, certainly.

That to me sums up the difference. It is now vastly easier to write and run a program. But that doesn't tell the whole story. Programming careers realty do have a red queen race quality to them.

I really couldn't compare it to fields I haven't worked in. But I do think that programming certainly can reach hellacious levels of stress and complexity.