[lobf]

This is where I’m at. I’ve always been a computer tinkerer but a novice coder at best. I work in the film industry, so I don’t need to know how to code.

Where I’m at when building personal applications for my home / life is: does the code execute and perform the desired task?

If so, what do I care how shitty it is? I’m not publishing these projects (for the most part… I have one joke application up at songshift.reachnick.co) so efficient, clean, secure code are not really a priority for me.

[reactordev]

You are ahead of the curve my friend

[lobf]

How do you mean?

[reactordev]

using AI to write your own personal software whose quality is only concerned by you, the user. If it works for you, it works for you. This will be the norm in the future. SaaS and platforms and the old way of writing software will die when writing software becomes something one does while asleep.

[lobf]

Ah I see. Funny enough I consider myself more of a dinosaur or originalist- the PC was idealized as a device for individuals to write their own programs for their personal use.

The issue before is that coding is not only difficult and time-consuming to learn, but also that I think it requires a particular type of person to fully grasp this new, non-human language.

I see these SOTA LLMs as akin to the digital camera revolution. Suddenly the moat that has kept people from participating in this art form (for film it was the high cost of film stock, processing film, editing the film prior to non-linear editing programs, etc) has disappeared.

Are people producing low-quality video content now because of the cheap and ubiquitous access? Of course, but we’re also exposed to brilliant filmmakers / artists who simply never would have had the opportunity to try their hand.

By the same token, sure there’s lots of garbage code out there now. But it’s also unlocking imaginations by granting access to the mysterious inner workings of a computer to the average person, letting them use their computers more thoroughly than ever before.

I find it exciting. Bummer for the highly-paid SWEs, but such is life. You can only protect a niche to demand high wages for so long.

[reactordev]

Yup, same lens, different revolution. The issue now is it's not just photography that's more accessible. It's all creative endeavours. Writing (including software) included.

[reactordev]

I want to also add something here. This by no way means you should STOP doing these things! It just means that the means of which you make it change, the value is no longer on the tangible, but the execution of it.

For example, you can make AI music, but who will listen? If you form an AI band around AI music and execute an AI marketing strategy like it was a real band, probably thousands, hopefully millions.

If you make AI art, who’s going to look at it? If you make AI art in a very specific style and you can crank out 8x upscaled high resolution versions of it for print, well, you just have a business!

And if you make film, you already know, green screen and chroma key models are far superior, that AI enhancements can help you in the editing room, and that LTX2.3 can fill in the VFX shots when the budget is exhausted.