[fabricode]

Visual programming may be the future of learning how to build applications, but it's not "the future of computing."

The pattern of visual introduction followed by symbolic mastery occurs again and again:

  1. Learning to count using physical objects
  2. Learning arithmetic using number lines
  3. Learning trigonometry using triangles
  4. Learning geometry with compasses and straight edges
  5. Learning to speak before learning to write
  6. Learning macroeconomics via guns & butter

and on and on...

Visual programming is a great tool, and if we can somehow capture the non-programmer's imagination and guide them to an understanding of controlled flow, subroutines, event handling, multiple threads of execution, etc., then we may get them to the point of converting those notions into written code (the symbolic form of the above). This would be a giant leap forward for empowering users over their individual computing environments.

But let's not fool ourselves and pretend that this is the future of programming for either novices, amateurs, or professionals.