[jackblemming]

The subtle disdain I hear from these types of super elite principal distinguished architects about actually writing code amuses me. Of course actually writing code is far too lowly of an activity, they’re more of an “ideas guy”. Fred Brooks had a good laugh about these types decades ago.

[sho_hn]

I have one of those jobs, and I don't contribute a lot of code at work anymore (sometimes, when it makes a difference or I can help save a lot of time).

I still write code almost daily however, e.g. for personal projects or in FOSS. For one, I love it as an activity - writing code is stress-relief for me. If I don't do it for some time I really feel deprived. I also think it's necessary to keep the first-hand knowledge of stacks and tools alive and well, e.g. for effectively communicating with engineers in a way both sides will enjoy.

I also do still make a point to e.g. do a MR regularly at work, partly to make sure I know the processes and their pain points, also so I can use my clout to complain if we make engineers waste time with stupid stuff, as processes also tend to accumulate cruft over time.

And obviously I don't think of writing code as a "lowly activity". Quality and skill matter on every level.

For that matter, you can also encounter quite a lot of "the architects don't know how to code"* stereotypes, so the subtle-disdain thing can go both ways (your comment may be exemplary). I try to prove them wrong by having written more and more different stuff than most :-)

* = https://i.programmerhumor.io/2021/11/programmerhumor-io-prog...

[questionableans]

It’s not necessarily disdain, it’s the fact that writing code is necessary but not sufficient to make a successful software project. To have the most positive impact, sometimes you have to focus on the parts that everyone else finds difficult or uninteresting, yet are still important.

[rixed]

Sure! You mean writing documentation, aligning divs, writing tests, caring for the infrastructure, right?

[questionableans]

If it’s important and it’s not getting done, yes.

Let’s take aligning divs.

What’s the real problem here? The front end looks really bad and it’s causing us to lose potential customers.

Why is that? Maybe we have a shortage of frontend devs. Maybe the frontend code is a mess and people are just hacking in small changes here and there to minimize the time they spend with it. (Maybe both.)

What do you do about it? Fix the alignment now to stop the bleeding. Through that exercise, understand what’s wrong with the front end architecture, get engineering buy-in on an easier approach, and train devs and/or refactor code (efficiently, prioritizing and allocating effort commensurate with the problem), pairing with some devs who have been suffering from the pain and are interested in finally being able to fix it. Advise management on whether we’ll need more frontend talent even after we fix the alignment issue. If so, suggest who might be a good candidate to transition to more frontend work, or else work with sales to lobby for hiring more front end devs even though we have zero headcount budget.

That’s principal level aligning divs.

[rixed]

> That’s principal level aligning divs.

Should be added to "The Evolution of a Programmer"[0]

[0] https://www.ariel.com.au/jokes/The_Evolution_of_a_Programmer...

[shermantanktop]

> While you should still be writing code

Did you miss this?