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by clktmr 8 days ago
You knew exactly what you wanted, since you already built it. All decisions were already made, all tradeoffs reached. LLMs are definitely helpful, but try exploring something new with them and you'll slow down significantly.
4 comments

Its surprising, how this key insight is lacking, even in the best of developers.

It happened fast, as you prompted it just the right way. Another person, who doesn't have all that context in the mind, would fail quickly.

For example I have decades of Software experience, but wont know where to even begin what OP did.

Most of my time these days is learning about domains, not technical skills. I keep programming books around for references, but the books I read most are books that go deep into some domain, either technical like operating systems or network, or soft skills like planning, design and communication.

It’s kinda the old saying about $900/hr expert that only taps with an hammer. The price is not about tapping, it’s about knowing where to tap.

> For example I have decades of Software experience, but wont know where to even begin what OP did.

Simple, you start by asking LLM for more info.

Not to mention the poster understands what the output is, what it's supposed to do, and can judge that it is the thing that they intended to build.

But this has always been a developer's work, it's understanding what is needed, translating it to working software, and judging the result, and doing so at scale, over time, and with other people.

Yes, and that's also why I'm really effective at using AI when the context is one I'm comfortable with. Still - it doesn't feel like I'm actually doing anything. The product was never the goal for me. The craft was. I feel like someone who always loved to be a blacksmith who is now in charge of a production line of 10 CNC mills that produce coat hooks. The fact that I know what makes a good coat hook doesn't really help make it a job I don't really enjoy.
no matter how good AI gets, i think it will never reach human-level in our ability to move goalposts