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by MangoToupe 321 days ago
When it puts food on the table.
3 comments

You can put food with barely any knowledge, just automating a few things. More true now with vibe coding, not sure in 3-4 years.
More of an "ai operation" skill than being a good programmer, but yea that works
That's an awfully profit-scoped way to frame human competence and assumes profit as the end goal. What about hobbyists?
My point is not to presume the competence of others (which, frankly, I don't care about outside of like Knuth and "are you making my life harder at work"), but to point out we should establish our own view of whether we're competent enough based on what our goals are. People tell me I'm a good programmer; I don't really see it. This used to bother me. It doesn't anymore because I've found other things to enjoy in life.
Does ramen 7 days/wk count as food on the table?
Absolutely.