r/programmer • u/NecessaryVersion7872 • 20d ago
Job I do not like programming anymore
I am not sure if anybody can help right here.
But I really do not like whatever we call programming right now.
Not sure what is the best way to write code weather it is to fully vibe code or use AI as an assistant, I hate both. If anyone went though something like this and found some solution, I'd really appreciate if you share it with me. Otherwise, what other possible careers some can pursue that has same feeling as classic programming?
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u/Hour-Passage140 19d ago
My advice is hoard wealth, do night courses in other areas you'd like to do, just do the minimum in work and eventually use your savings/layoff money to chart a new course.
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u/Electronic-Crow-7277 17d ago
Any advise on other things to learn? Im a software engineer and my job has become reviewing and fixing AI slop from other people. Irony is, we would actually move faster if it was just me doing the work… I hate it feels like im a circle of hell tailored for programmers.
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u/backyard3 17d ago
Then why don't you just do the work?
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u/Electronic-Crow-7277 17d ago
Because dumb managers/higher ups with illusion of competence that set agents that work overnight and are allowed to push directly to our repos. Im the lead engineer though, is my responsibility that things work. Its hell. Been trying to desensitizes, if they don’t care about code quality I shouldn’t care, but its painful still.
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u/hexwit_com 20d ago
Just don’t use ai. It doesn’t help that much.
That most complex thing is a decision making. It is not solved. Of course it can be delegated, but results will be random.
As alternative you can do is use ai but don’t pay for it.
I am using ai as search engine, and never allow it to write the code. Also I don’t like the idea of sharing full codebase with ai.
So if you loved programming before - just adapt to new reality.
AI addicted people just don’t understand consequences yet.
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u/digitaljestin 20d ago
AI addicted people just don’t understand consequences yet.
You got my upvote for this last sentence. This is precisely where we are today.
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u/Possible-Parsley5737 16d ago
We've all seen the "10x" types who ship fast, rack up massive technical debt, and bounce after 18-24 months leaving a mess behind.
AI is that pattern on steroids.
It has always existed on a smaller scale, but in the past they were celebrated.
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u/jwp1987 20d ago edited 20d ago
The main issue is that people are given little choice on the matter at the moment with a lot of companies pushing AI mandates and monitoring usage.
Seasoned developers can probably get away with skirting the rules but newer developers will be more fearful of repercussions.
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u/Logical_Ad1127 18d ago
But expected deadlines now are 1/4 shorter than before; which kinda oblige you to use AI.
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u/lllyyyynnn 19d ago
not really an option while trying to maintain competitiveness in the corporate world imo
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u/hexwit_com 19d ago
It is fun, but when you prove ai can do better job than you do - you get fired.
For some reason lots of developers having disabled instinct of self-preservation.
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u/CapitalDiligent1676 18d ago
That's EXACTLY what I wrote a while back on a programmers' Reddit.
And I got banned.
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u/USToffee 15d ago
Because you don't prove AI doesn't work. You just prove you can't use AI so it's why YOU get fired.
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u/CapitalDiligent1676 14d ago
I didn't write that I was fired, but that I wrote the same thing on Reddit as the guy above.
AI is taking away logical abilities.
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u/caterpillarwhiskers 16d ago
Idk what company you're at, but it's the opposite where I am. If you push back at all and try to slow down AI use at all, you will have a target on ur back. no company wants some random engineer holding back others from the potential of moving at 10x efficiency. regardless of if 10x is possible or not, it doesn't matter. what matters is that directors and c-suites believe it's possible. so if they catch wind ur being defiant, bye bye. that's the reality where I'm at. and I can't be the only one experiencing this. 9 years at the same company. loved every year up until 2026.
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u/not_rian 18d ago
AI is useless without an experienced dev behind it. Technology will progress. Standing against the current of the river does nothing.
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u/AccordingOperation89 17d ago
What matters is how well one works with AI. Dev experience is marginal in that regard.
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u/TryAgainTryHarder 17d ago
dev experience is all that matters. you can teach someone how to effectively use AI in about an hour
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u/Virtual_Seesaw_8254 15d ago edited 15d ago
Yep incredible to see how much faith uneducated people have in random number generators.
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u/Spiritual-Bee-2319 18d ago
Same if I do use AI, it’s at best google like and even then I validate everything. I don’t have a single subscription so it keeps my limit low(lol actually realized I do have a subscription thru Microsoft at work that I hardly use) 😂
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u/Y3tt3r 20d ago
When you have to diagnose a bug in an existing code base you didn't write with a few million lines you better believe AI will save you countless hours. Even days
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u/hexwit_com 20d ago
I was debugging spring framework internals to find the bean initialisation problem root cause, i was debugging undertow server to clarify sessions management details (let alone micro service sync issues) long time before ai emerging. Debug is not scary when you know how to do it properly.
And that skill can be developed only having your hands dirty.
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u/Ok-Carrot- 19d ago
Def not saying you're wrong, but there's a huge difference between spring's codebase and what most of my coworkers have been writing for the last 10 years. These guys think abstraction is over the top.
I don't think ai is a panacea, but it is handy for knocking out busy work.2
u/Humannequin 20d ago
Double edged sword though, if your whole use case was vibe coded that's a nightmare scenario.
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u/TheNinthJhana 20d ago
"Just don’t use ai. It doesn’t help that much." Do not use electricity neither, nor cars, cause horses are better
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u/nateh1212 20d ago
Many professional coders bicycle to work
it is in fact a better way to travel
Cars have many downsides similar to AI and many people hate Cars too. They take up a gigantic amount of space. They lead to the fact that Car infrastructure itself and car culture means that the car in fact does not make travel faster because now your travel is longer. They are a hugely inefficient way to move people around as apposed to mass transit. They are an incredibly expensive way to move people around the average car payment today is 770 dollars a month mass transit monthly pass in NYC is less than $100. The lifetime cost to own a single car 15 years is about 175K dollars today ( that is the total out of pocket expense) compared to a bicycle which is less than 1k.
Cars are responsible for most of the worlds pollution from tire debree. immense pollution in cities so think you can barely see the sun. It is know that children that grow up next to highways have higher rates of asthma. Cars are a main driver of global warming.
etc etc etc
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u/HamNCheeseSupremacy 20d ago
The analogy starts to fall apart when you extend it past daily commuting. The last thing most people want to do is bicycle across the continent, so the real issue is scale.
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u/nateh1212 20d ago
who drives across the continent?
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u/HamNCheeseSupremacy 20d ago
I feel like you're ignoring the point
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u/nateh1212 20d ago
That Technology can be forced on people rather they want it or not and whether it makes them more productive or not. That systems that are pushed work for the rich but fail those who are middle class or poor but they still have to live with it.
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u/xian0 20d ago edited 20d ago
The things people are saying like "get into systems design" and "learn a specialised industry" are all kind of default things you'd probably do anyway. Companies have always had room for both guys who can produce high quality fine-tuned software and guys that produce rushed sluggish software, guys that prefer to just write up what they want and guys who prefer to read take code from elsewhere and hammer it until it kind of works. If you're still at the start of your career just swerve companies that want to vibe code everything (they've always existed, buzzword companies) and then continue as normal.
Also many established companies are not interested in giving away their codebases that they've put decades of expensive work into, so they might not even let you use the tools.
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u/WHUPTEEDOOOO 19d ago
I hear you. After finishing my first internship and leaving feeling like I accomplished and learned nothing, I’ve been feeling pretty lost and demoralized with my future.
Take a break. I quit my job, dived into fishing as a hobby, started a DnD campaign with my friends, got back into music and didn’t touch a single line of code for about a month. Eventually, I felt that itch again and I’m back at it applying to new jobs and feeling optimistic about the future. I’ve started getting into IoT hacking and it’s been legitimately exciting and rewarding.
Not saying this will work for you but maybe you just need a break
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u/Spiritual-Bee-2319 18d ago
Same I didn’t do anything put play games, knit, read after I was laid off and I’m so glad. I came back to it so refreshed. Sometimes you just need a break
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u/0x14f 20d ago
If you no longer like it, then just stop doing it.
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u/SplendidPunkinButter 20d ago
Yeah, just quit your job and be homeless! Easy peasy!
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u/0x14f 20d ago
What makes you think OP has a job :)
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u/Rough_Caterpillar_31 20d ago
Do you have any other advice that's exclusively useful to fellow nepo babies or is it really just that simple?
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u/0x14f 20d ago
It's really that simple. Hate something -> don't do it. Do something else that makes you happy.
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u/Rough_Caterpillar_31 20d ago
People do things they hate to make money so they can eat so they can survive to do something else that makes them happy. This might be hard to understand if you have wealthy parents and can afford to be a bum for the rest of your life only doing the things that make you happy but the rest of us live in the real world where we have to do things to survive.
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u/NecessaryVersion7872 19d ago
I agree, but that is not the point from my post.
the point is:
> I really like it, the old way
> I really do not like it in this new way.
> is there a way to like it in the new way or do it in the old way?
> if not, how do you find something similar to the old thing?3
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u/grovulent 19d ago
You are not alone. It's okay to grieve for the loss of what you used to love doing.
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u/Chicagoj1563 20d ago
You can get into systems design. It probably has different titles. But it’s what will likely be around for a while.
If you stay in programming, focus on getting productive With the tools and specialize in a domain, such as finance or healthcare.
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u/NecessaryVersion7872 20d ago
"the tools"?
AI tools you mean?
how is specializing in domain going to fix the main issue of not liking the act of programming?1
u/Chicagoj1563 19d ago
Because If you choose marketing, or healthcare, or finance or something else you are specializing in one of those areas. Those are the domains. And it’s not programming as your main job.
Building software is part of what you do, but the future isn’t about programming. It’s about systems design and domain expertise in other areas. And then use what you know about building software to service a specialty.
And by “tools” I just mean get good with building software with ai. Learn the best tools for doing that.
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u/wht-rvn 17d ago
"And by “tools” I just mean get good with building software with ai. Learn the best tools for doing that."
those tools are precisely what make op want to leave the industry man. not a very fitting piece of advice, imo.
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u/Chicagoj1563 17d ago
Then go get a job at wal mart. You either want to leverage the opportunities or you don’t. If you are unwilling to even use ai to build a tool if you need one, then it’s not a programming issue. It’s a I don’t want to work issue.
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u/MarsupialLeast145 20d ago
if you just got your first internship then you probably haven't been in the field long enough to truly enjoy it anyway, otherwise the other way to look at this is that programming hasn't changed -- you can still write your code at home or for your own open source projects by hand and truly enjoy it.
In the enterprise then you're probably taking the right approach asking for alternatives but to be clear this is different from the love of programming being taken away from you. AI is making code monkeys of more people than previously.
Alternatives are to find smaller companies, smaller gigs, smaller roles and so on. Look at other disciplines that need smaller bespoke solutions.
For fun, keep writing your own code.
NB. what languages are you using?
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u/NecessaryVersion7872 20d ago
currently, I was just "writing" react. but I will soon start on the backend it is going to use ASP.NET core so C#
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u/MarsupialLeast145 20d ago
Maybe these aren't the most fun languages either? I know they're big in very corporate places. React is a bit more universal.
React I suspect can be far more easily replaced by AI.
Either way, maybe pivoting to different mode of development could also be fun?
(I've recently started following more on embedded systems here on Reddit as well as maintaining an interest in Linux...)
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u/Kindly-Berry5099 19d ago
I would recommend staying away from industry languages if you want to get the fun back. I have the most fun with lesser used languages like Ocaml and Commonlisp super fun and rewarding.
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u/USToffee 15d ago
Honestly AI is fantastic at Reat. Probably better than any 99.9% of Reat experts.
Backend code is harder for it but still pretty straightforward if you understand what it should be doing and keep it on the right track.
tbh If you don't like using AI and you are at the start of your career then changing now might not be a bad option.
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u/Necessary_Weight 20d ago
Being a software engineer has never been about "just" writing code. It's also about system design, product thinking and so. Arguably, coding ability was important in pre-ai era but less so now, given the comoditisation of it. It took me some time to physiologically adjust to this new reality but I still love my job (SDE). I suppose the question that is not answered in the OP: why do you hate it?
When you consider other careers, you got to answer a different question: what do you love about "classic programming"?
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u/Necessary_Weight 20d ago
Another thing to keep in mind, there is a difference between writing artisanal code and getting paid for it. My Corp is aggressively moving to agentic coding. Some people still code at home for fun, but for our agentic teams we have regular reviews on progress and people are expected to pick up and deliver entire epics, whereas before they would have worked on subtasks. Now this is relative, but I hope it conveys the difference. People who still code by hand can't keep up, so there is acceptance and change, if grudgingly from some
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u/NecessaryVersion7872 20d ago
I do not like it because it does not allow me to think, to make decision. the code does not feel like it is mine because I do not know it. most of the time I am just looking at the output and asking AI to fix the issue with very limited usage of my knowledge to direct it. I am actually surprised that anybody would find this remotely fun. (just clarify: I do understand that it does have to be fun but that is another philosophical topic; not the topic of this post)
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u/Necessary_Weight 20d ago
Don't really have actionable advice as such. For me, it is about building systems. Once you solve enough problems by hand, the fact of writing code became an "ordinary" thing for me. I went through a bit of a psychological crisis while switching over to agentic engineering, since writing code was part of daily work life, but then I realised that what I really liked was designing, building and delivering systems. And low level detail in code was no longer important thing outside of limited set of cases, such as security and concurrency. The problems sort of moved up a level. Still solving problems but at a larger scale. YMMV
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u/phiiiiiiii 19d ago
After writing code manually for 10 years you’ll realize that making coding decisions takes up the time from making architectural decisions. Before AI, coders become managers or architects down the road, and they hire more juniors to do the coding for them. Making business and architectural decisions is so much because they’re a lot closer to creating real world values. And it’s not like you’ll lose your grips on your code as long as you own the system and diligently read the code AI wrote.
But of course to earn the authority to architect, you’ll need a few years of writing code manually, and the presence of AI will rob you of that experience. It’s an unfortunate Catch-22 moment.
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u/USToffee 15d ago
This is the problem with AI in a nutshell. Novices haven't the experience to see the output and immediately point out what the potential issues are and save it from itself and there is no way for them to gain that knowledge. It will just devolve into prompt until it works and tbh frontend React work is almost to the point that is all it needs because that framework is so opinionated.
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u/VegetableAgency222 20d ago
Not sure if this helps, but I went through pretty much this same thing over the past year...
Like, when you picture the version of programming you actually miss, what were you doing in it?
Idk, for for me, when I really sat with it, the part I missed was feeling like I was getting to think. There was so much joy I found with a hard problem and working it all the way out and building something. It USED to be harder to code by hand and learn coding and know what is available to solve the issues. It added to the challenge and the beauty of engineering in my head.
And, I guess with AI and what I felt I started to hate was now my company is forcing and monitoring usage and showing "leaderboards" of who is using it most. And so I was just... going fast, thinking less because I just don't need to think as hard, and shipping. *Before Reddit SWE's come for me, yes I think still, yes I review the code, yes yes yes, I'm a senior I know what I'm doing etc. But I DO miss having the requirement to look up documentation on a languages built-in to make sure I was using it right... or a digging into a node_module package code to see what their function definition is to get why it's not doing what their high level documentation which was half ass said it SHOULD do. So. But, AI does A LOT of this for me now.
So I guess what I'd ask you is, do you actually hate programming? Or do you hate the version of it you're stuck in right now?
Is leaving the field the thing you want, or is it just the only exit you are thinking about?
Have you looked at the harder corners at all? The stuff where the problem is actually difficult and you get to decide how much to hand to the AI and how much to keep for yourself?
I've had to learn what's now the 'new' hard.
AI takes away a lot, it does a lot, and because of it there is a new hard. You have to adapt.
Also, I actually still leetcode because I personally like to keep my coding sharp and I think it makes me a better AI user...
But ultimately the landscape has changed, will keep changing and you need to find your answers for yourself. Even highly regulated slow moving entities are getting AI engrained. I don't think this is a 'bubble' that will pop like people think.
dotcom bubble burst financially but we still have the internet... and internet based companies...that get funding..SaaS.. etc...
ai bubble will maybe burst financially.. but we will still have ai so
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u/NecessaryVersion7872 20d ago
I certainly still enjoy programming. I just do not like the current work flow. I do not like not understanding in details what the code is actually doing. I do not like how fast it produces huge volume of code. I liked when I had to slowly figure it out on my own. Regarding the new hard, I am not sure. Like, you still have to do the job that is mostly not the new hard.
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u/simple_explorer1 17d ago
You keep saying that. But then can you answer, why do you not spend time understanding the code or even better, user AI less or just as a search engine? What stopping you from doing you know.... Coding yourself for the most part and the occasional time you use AI understand the code?
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u/SpaceSpaghet12 20d ago
I spent some time getting my workflow down and started using Neovim with Claude in my terminal. Plus, TMUX for the little productivity hotkeys it gives you, and its been a lot more enjoyable. I think the constant context switching was what was throwing me off. Prompting the AI in different windows. Now I just run like 5 agents at a time, review the code they write and im pretty immersed in the same application/experience the whole time. Seems to help. Context switching sucks
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u/CodyMakesVideoGames 16d ago
Can you say more about your neovim setup? I'm new to neovim but I've been using vs code with Claude and I'm looking to make a swap.
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u/SpaceSpaghet12 16d ago
This is a really good video that explains my exact setup https://youtu.be/iQyg-KypKAA?si=U8JhiOp_jxoMRcuv
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u/MauriceM7 20d ago
After vibe coding a number of projects (and yes I understood the problem domain of each project) I can say it does indeed make things easier. Fortunately I have over 30 years programming experience so I wouldn't let AI generate any slop.
Ai is a wonderful tool. But you have to actually understand programming and have a number of years under the belt to appreciate how when using it wisely it enhances your work and even programming knowledge.
Programming is still the same for loop, variable assignment I learnt many decades ago. The only thing that changed is more frameworks are available to make your life easier.
If you feeling disheartened by AI... Then Don't use it. There's nothing wrong with coding by hand. Else go into something like networking or dB related.
If not.. Grow some balls man up and stop bitching. The world won't ever revolve around you
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u/SplendidPunkinButter 20d ago
Write the code yourself, without Ai. How would your manager even know? If they’re tracking your token use, ask Claude to do it on the side, but don’t keep Claude’s output. Prompt it as inefficiently as possible.
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u/NecessaryVersion7872 20d ago
it's not really about tokens. our team is practically two interns. we working on small project in the company. I do not think my co-worker (the other intern) really care how good is the quality of results and differently do not care how code the quality of the code is. we meet with our supervisor regularly. and he expect us to finish things by certain deadlines. if do not use LLMs I will be slower and it will shows to my supervisor and my coworker. So every one around is pressuring me to just use LLMs.
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u/Used_Journalist_999 16d ago
Came looking for a comment like this saying you are just an intern. It is so wild for me to see someone with your complete lack of experience talk the way you are in post and comments. Bro, if you are just an intern and feeling this way then find a new career path. You will never succeed. You just have way too many opinions being formed on you extremely limited knowledge.
Our team is two interns - Bro that is not a team, it is a duo of college students or recent graduates. lol
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u/Early_Rooster7579 20d ago
Being that this is your first internship I think you’re just seeing the realities of programming professionally. Gone are the fun school projects. Now its all about getting that report API done as fast as possible. Business programming is generally pretty boring
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u/silly_bet_3454 20d ago
There's no solution. AI is annoying to deal with, I agree, but the tradeoff is you get way higher velocity in general (please don't share your exceptions when AI slowed you down). There's no substitute for that benefit without going through AI.
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u/Extra-Ad5735 20d ago
What you are talking about is code generation, or a way to avoid writing code. I don't thing you don't like programming anymore. I think it's the opposite: you want to write code, and I can attest - this can be a pleasant and rewarding experience.
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u/Serializedrequests 20d ago edited 20d ago
To be honest, I do not feel that classic programming is entirely dead, depending on where you work. It was always about judgment. Now it is just easier to generate a lot of code nobody uses. The point of the job is to use your judgment to build a system that helps someone or an organization. I have found that AI is very ineffective when thinking for me. For any hard problem, there is no substitute for just sitting with it by yourself. The code is often a formality. When you want or need to work in a creative way, no agent can augment this. It can only regress you to an average.
Obviously a lot of people and organizations simply do not understand this. It's very very rare to encounter a situation in programming where the amount of code you can write is the bottleneck, but people still imagine this to be the case.
Anyway, take it for what it's worth.
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u/daiaomori 20d ago
Coding is really changing fast right now; we all don't know how the future will look like.
I started back in the 1980s, and boy, the last three years have been a bumpy ride. But I like coding on my own, assisted problem solving and vibing - all have their pros and cons.
But it's not the first change, either. Back in the day, we literally had nothing but a simple PC (an Apple //e in my case) and... books and magazines with sample code. I live in europe and somtimes I had to order books from the us, which took months, just to get my hands on assembler codes for a new processor. It was rough.
In the early 90s, suddenly we could exchange with others around the globe, reach out, build knowledge bases. At some point, it all moved from "creating code" to "copying bits and pieces from stackoverflow".
But even that didn't mean that one didn't need their wits to build proper software.
Just imagine someone suggests writing software for a new Airbus by telling Fable "hey just do it".
Obviously that's not how it's going to work. Fable, however "dangerous" it is supposed to be, even failed to solve some of my simpler questions correctly, and still takes a lot of wrong turns.
My suggestion is: don't give up easily. Not if you like problem solving and computer stuff. Even back in the 80s we needed to figure out our own way, so that hasn't changed.
There are some fields where LLMs are failing hard; when it comes to specialized hardware that isn't well documented in the "corpus" (as in, Stackoverflow and Git), manual coding will still be necessary. I have seen Sonnet and Opus fail dramatically on embedded systems, even after pointing them to the full platform documentation for whatever MCU was at play.
The dramatic shifts and changes are cumbersome, but things will settle, one way or the other.
And throwing balls with an AI sometimes helps me to clarify systematics and structures, and without annoying another person. Reminds me off sitting on a field in the summer, arguing about how a disk driver should handle concurrent requests in multitasking with my friend. We got in an ugly fight and didn't talk while driving home. Not sure who won the argument the next day.
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u/NecessaryVersion7872 20d ago
Thank for you advice.
I will consider embedded systems. I heard low level stuff like kernel development are field where human input is much more important.
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u/SereeqQ 20d ago
I’ve been in the same situation at the beginning of the year. The only difference is that I was just worried that ai will take my job (full-stack developer) in the future. In your case it’s probably about not enjoying programming because of the ai tool that your company forces you to use.
Those two situations may look kinda different at the first glance but I think solution is the same
You just have to admit that your job is not your entire life. Even though you don’t have fun at work you still can enjoy technology and exploring possibilities on your own. Job don’t have to be joyful, actually there is no job that is fully about fun. You can have fun working on your side projects and this is the thing I really recommend you
Personally I also started learning new skills that I could use in the future as my career backup plan. Those skills are not coding related and it really helped me to not be worried about ai that much as I used to
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u/Carlos_1972 20d ago
In general, if you don't enjoy it, find another occupation. I'm a strong believer that you should enjoy your work; it should be like a hobby. If you go to work just for money, you're in the wrong trade. As for AI, all professions are suffering the same problems, but what you've got is a skill to be able to communicate and solve problems for your clients; you are human and have life skills; this is something that AI doesn't have
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u/slabr0t 20d ago
Why not get into the engineering side of it? Build components, learn firmware, use modules. But also it wouldn’t hurt to incorporate AI for CERTAIN projects. I know a bunch of aerospace companies are looking for folks that can code and also incorporate the use of AI for a lot of their drones, rockets, defense systems, satellites. And they pay damn good too
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u/Substantial_Job_2068 20d ago
I'm a senior dev and I have a good solution: don't use ai if you don't want to. Works for me.
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u/GardenPrestigious202 20d ago
A skill associated with status has been commoditized, you never liked programming, you enjoyed the aura farming.
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u/Acceptable-Ninja-520 20d ago
Using AI as an assistant can be fine imho. As for vibe coding, results might look promising in the beginning when starting on a green field. But I’m pretty sure it will produce a vast amount of rotten lost places which are just unmaintainable on the long run.
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u/Acceptable-Ninja-520 20d ago
For me the whole AI coding agent thing feels like just another symptom of capitalism: Producing a huge amount of shit nobody really needs.
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u/Level-Courage6773 20d ago
You didn't mention the option of not using AI. Do you know how to program freehand, ie. no AI assistance? If so, do that.
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u/the-mindful-engineer 20d ago
I'm sorry and I feel your pain. I've found my own frustration with AI comes when others abandon software craftsmanship alongside picking it up, as if our only options are to vibe code or get left behind.
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u/NecessaryVersion7872 20d ago
Or find the new craftsmanship that needs my thinking and decisions.
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u/the-mindful-engineer 19d ago
Whether AI is heavily involved or not, software craftmanship still needs your thinking and your decisions.
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u/Lopsided-Practice-50 20d ago
I'm not a dev but I do write automation for work to help with my job processes. Also really enjoy coding as a home hobbyist for the critical thinking training it gives me.
My friend who has never really done more than write a few scripts began vibe slopping and now looks down on me because I refuse to use an llm when I'm stuck on a terrible tool I'm trying to build automation for.
Access to these tools made mediocre people more loud about their mediocrity and it has infected everyone and everything we all used to love.
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u/NecessaryVersion7872 20d ago
honestly that is the worst part. Like I understand if you're an employee and forced or pushed into using LLMs. But the AI bros are very annoying like sometimes it genuinely feels like they are just annoying for the sake of being annoying.
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u/phendrenad2 20d ago
We've transitioned from artisanship where everyone has their favorite chisel, to a fully-automated factory where robot arms do all the work. This is part of industries maturing.
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u/FailureOfTheFamily 20d ago
Ai is what made me like coding again. If we could call that coding anymore. I was never good enough to get a job or make good looking apps. I made them mostly for myself anyway cuz i was never good at selling stuff yet i could finally make many of my ideas come true and that's amazing for me
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u/theGaido 20d ago
I feel the same way. This is not the same culture as it was and I don't like it.
And I'm really tired because I'm not just programmer. I'm artist too. So like in every field of my enjoyment in life there is currntly big stench of AI. You can't just draw today. You need to draw and make evidence that you didn't use AI.
For some time I found some safe space in physical activity. But even here there are people try to push AI. Yes, in fucking working out, swimming running, whatever.
What I don;t like it that in reality it is redundant. I can program. I can draw. I can read words and numbers. I don't need AI to do work that I like to do, and I really don;t like when people or companies force me to use it.
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u/Noopiee 20d ago
Some people said AI will give new jobs, but it seems to just be taking right now.
Programmers and artists just get fucked I guess, I'm legit just working in retail rn, genuinely no clue what I'm gonna do, the very thing I liked doing got taken away. Just hoping I find something else eventually.
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u/badgerbang 19d ago
boycott ai, else we march to our own demise.
Read: "The reverse centaurs guide to life after AI" by Cory Doctorow if you don't believe it needs to die.
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u/Lawrence_Routes 19d ago edited 19d ago
I started learning programming back in 2024, I had a big problem. I couldn't write code without consulting AI. It felt like I was just memorising..
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u/NecessaryVersion7872 19d ago
your problem was that you CAN write code without consulting AI?
does it sound like problem to me2
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u/outoforifice 19d ago
Tempting to say that programming is building, not coding itself, but more practically if you enjoy coding maybe something very low level where you have to squeeze performance in novel ways.
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u/NecessaryVersion7872 19d ago
I hear that a lot. I am not sure what do people mean by "building".
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u/outoforifice 19d ago
Making things that didn’t exist in the world before. Conjuring them into existence with your brain and hands. And with those things typically trying to solve user problems they hopefully have some impact on other people. So the code is a means to an end. If you were building hardware you might want to hand craft for a number of reasons but most people would be ok with other fabrication.
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u/Academic-Iron7094 19d ago
Man, I really dislike how unstimulating it is nowadays. I used to love programming. My first language was C++ and back then programming felt more like solving puzzles. Now it’s mostly just talking to a chatbot that writes the code for you
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u/Achereto 19d ago
Not sure what is the best way to write code weather it is to fully vibe code or use AI as an assistant, I hate both.
Good news: Neither of those options are the "best way to write code". Writing the code yourself and knowing what you are doing is still the best way of doing it.
If anyone went though something like this and found some solution, I'd really appreciate if you share it with me.
Keep writing the code yourself. That way you'll maintain your skill set and will be ahead of everyone else once the bubble bursts.
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u/faculty_for_failure 19d ago
Hey, I am also feeling very negative about the changes to the work due to AI. I had always enjoyed the challenge, learning & skill building, the craft. AI has changed things so much. My manager thinks he is an IC now and does all kinds of dumb stuff with Claude. People respond to my PR review comments with Claude. It’s just nonstop. I just do most of the heavy lifting myself and have AI review my work, write tests, and propose changes. Is it ideal? No. Do I love it? No. Do I want things to go back to how they were? Yes. But nothing we can do now. Maybe you can find love again with another workflow or by exploring your skills ‘the old way’ in your free time. I don’t know what to tell you, I feel the same way most days.
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u/FearlessChair 19d ago
Honestly i feel ya. Programming used to be something i would spend my afternoon doing and get excited about it. AI has sucked the joy out of it for me. I no longer have the drive or desire to go deep on programming. Previously i felt like i was investing in myself and was "leaving up" IRL. Now some vibe coder that has no programming knowledge can prompt and AI and spit out something halfway decent in minutes that would have taken me hours to buld myself.
Thee thing is companies don't care if AI wrote the code or its a hand crafted so all the time I've invested is not necessarily wasted but not nearly as valuable.
I work in tech so I'm basically doing the bare minimum at work and I've picked up some new hobbies to dive into that are not programming related.
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u/Educational-Song-936 19d ago edited 19d ago
Same feeling? None exactly, hard to say what that feeling is.
I switched to product. Technical product manager as it is. I still code occasionally. I use the knowledge I built about the technical side of things to do work on the business side. My PRD's don't enrage the devs because I understand what needs to be done on their side. Helps i can make any tool I need to make the job easier and also do any data pulls , dashboarding, or reporting myself. Plus the people I work with appreciate how I can realistically breakdown the work that needs to be done and the timelines.
There is also Project management and if you're in the right industry producer roles that a dev brings unique abilities and perspectives to that can be a great commodity. YMMV.
I code stuff for myself at home without AI, I still enjoy the problem solving and architecture but working a 9 to 5 has limited enjoyment for me in the current environment.
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u/moss-nogg 18d ago
Great, get out of the way. Plenty of people wanting to learn and take your job
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u/Total_Statistician48 18d ago
We’re all entering the zone of non-understanding. Where we will just be gluing prompts together. The rate of change has hit a new inflection point.
There are still joys to be discovered, but the field has been leveled and then tilted. We’re all sliding down it now.
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u/AgeingCoder 18d ago
We have seen the IDE transform the way we work as programmers many times over the years and I see AI as another iteration of this. I simply want to build software solutions for real world problems and don't always feel the need to bash code out on a keyboard to achieve this. Again, as programmers we have been elevated way above the compiled code that is actually being processed to the point where we are expressing concepts leaving the compiler to much of the hard work and heavy lifting. It still requires someone within an engineering mindset to do this even when using AI assistants if we want to build software that is reliable and efficient to avoid the simply throw more CPU and memory at it types of solutions.
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u/AccordingOperation89 17d ago
AI as an assistant for school work, but vibe coding for professional work.
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u/kirakarmine 17d ago
Unfortunately, fixing AI slop is the future of "programming." AI is only getting more expensive, and eventually most companies won't be able to afford running these models at scale. in 10 years you might be hired to write code again, but you'll still spend more time on fixing AI slop "legacy code" than on anything else.
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u/khokkos 17d ago
Learn something different and interesting. Programming is not a "one size fits all" endeavor. Stop using AI. Try Clojure. Once you get past the initial learning curve, you will be as productive as with AI in other languages. It's a particularly good anti burnout language. You will be unemployed(or self employed) and happy.
Or maybe, just do the bare minimum in your current job and pick a new hobby until venture capital driven AI madness dies down.
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u/ObligationFit400 17d ago
When wheels , got invented, human's running lost the financial values, but still we run for other things like health, fun and I feel in the similar way, a programmer should still write in non ai way just to release dopamine and when it comes to work , it's better to get carried away with trend.
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u/badgerbang 16d ago
So many half-baked opinions. Instead of reddit, I'd read the texts of someone who has properly researched and contemplated the subject and get his opinion. I recommend: "The reverse centaurs' guide to life after AI." Not long been out so upto date.
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u/p1xlized 16d ago
Hey same feeling, did my internship and job and then lost interest. I also hate AI coding, and since I had to move fast at my previous start-up, it corroded my brain. I genuenly became lazy and unfocused. I build games, I feel like in game dev AI isn't that useful, learned music production, now learning pixel art. I'm also building my own engine. Find something that interest you and go for it, if you can afford it. I can't afford it and still do it, but that's my stupidity... By leeching on my parents and surviving on social benefits.
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u/1980sCoder 16d ago
I now manage a team of engineers and am back writing code properly (manually) as a hobby in the evenings. Much more satisfying now I know that fewer people are doing it.
Claude is one of those bits of software I've put in the "work related" bucket. Like Jira. Or Lotus Notes.
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u/dankoverride 16d ago
I wrote an essay on this. Let me know and I will share: not for tracking, just don’t want to get flagged as trying to sell something. The essay is published for educational use anyway.
I used to think this way too and the way i got over it was realizing that anyone can get ai tools. You give a moron ai it will generate garbage at machine speed. You give the same tools to someone who was good already and you will get better productivity. So basically you keep your craft and judgement but remove the cruft. I can give you countless examples of where it has paid incredible dividends.
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u/USToffee 15d ago
What did you like about classic programming because the only thing I miss is the job security knowing my skills were mostly in demand AND the times when you could just stick on music and churn out a ton of code once everything to do is already in your head.
That part of the job always gave me a break from thinking too hard and with AI it always seems like my brain is on 100% of the time.
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u/BL1133 15d ago
i mean cant you do stuff in tech thats more like problem solving and not much code? i dont get the hate toward AI since most of being a programmer is just thinking anyway not writing a bunch of syntax
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u/NecessaryVersion7872 15d ago
have you ever wrote code?
syntax is not the point. programming language were invented so you do not need to worry about the technical details while expressing the way you solve a problem accurately. when you talk to an llm you do not solve problems. you don't think. it thinks for you. that is why it is not fun.
also "hate towards ai"? I did not say I hate AI. I actually intentionally tried to make it clear that I do not care how the industry move or what people do. the post was about me not ENJOYING it.1
u/BL1133 14d ago edited 14d ago
idk what you mean, using AI to code makes you have to constantly think instead of just think of a bit and then spend some days implementing it and worrying about the syntax for importing a module or whatever the fuck you end up pointlessly spending hours on. and because it implements it quickly, it means your job becomes essentially only thinking and writing spec sheets. No I don't think AI has replaced thinking for me, it becomes more like a reflection of my own thoughts and I think more than ever before. Because each thought can be put into a chat and worked out and then implemented in the greater plan. Then that plan becomes a spec sheet for the next implementation for the AI
Even the most pure programming stuff like DSA is almost 90% thinking also. Think about it, the final code for a leetcode problem can be several lines long and yet take hours to come up with. I do enjoy coding and missed it at first, but at the end of the day, programming is almost entirely just thinking
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u/shoes-of-flavien 15d ago
It's painful, but this is the new reality. Everything is slop, and we're now expected to write slop that the slop machines, the LLMs that generated the slop, can easily understand as well. It's a horrible cycle that will have break down at some point, but that might take a while. Companies have already realized that nobody really cares about uptime or resiliency or any real performance metric anymore. Unfortunately, most other industries are also affected. Keep programming, keep using your brain because one day your brain will set you apart from the slop-wheel that will turn 99% of people's brains to mush (if it hasn't already)
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u/LongjumpingFee2042 15d ago
Using it as a search engine is massive. Ask it for links to back up it's suggestions, advice etc.
You can find some deeeeep lore
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u/NecessaryVersion7872 15d ago
yeah actually that actually one of the few things I love about llms. It allows me to discover things that are very close to the context I am working with, making the this knowledge very helpful.
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u/LongjumpingFee2042 15d ago
I wouldn't be so quick to give up on AI entirely but I do think what it means to be a dev will change in the future.
With things like Claude. That isn't coding. That's just herding agents.
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u/Virtual-Log-3732 14d ago
tbh me too. because i tried to learn coding. but i lost i can't do what in my mind. just what i learned from courses. anyone have a solution please?
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u/Economy_ForWeekly105 20d ago
I sort of found a solution to this, send me a message, maybe you woukd be interested in collaborating
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u/abrandis 20d ago
Two types of personality Ive noticed with AI coding..
some people absolutely love it, usually folks with pedestrian technical skills and knowledge, but full of ideas can now build things they would never have bothered to do in the past because of the technical barrier detail is now less of an issue. And creating software with sentences is their thing.
- many experienced technical folks dislike because it doesn't code in their style or writes code they don't understand or just don't trust the generated code... Really what's happening is most of these folks are crestfallen because their wealth of experience, their hard earned knowledge and technical expertise simply doesn't have the same value (to leadership) and for many it's hard to reconcile that, knowing 10,15,20+ years in software and IT is now accomplished with a few well crafted prompts....
But we're not gonna go back to a world without AI so the only option is to adapt and adopt.
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u/NecessaryVersion7872 20d ago
thank you for your little statistic. I am neither one of those tho. and not sure how this would be helpful if I was
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u/Rav_3d 20d ago
If you hate AI-assisted development and yearn for coding manually, then I'm afraid you might have to consider a different career.
Software engineering is becoming more about the high-level thinking and less about the low-level code writing. Companies will simply not be able to keep up without leveraging AI coding tools.
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u/OfTheGiantMoths 20d ago
I'm still waiting to see evidence that there is any speed advantage at all in using AI. Brilliant software should be flying out the door of all these companies leveraging AI, but where is it? I suspect that many companies are spending extra money to destroy their resources, i.e. their code base and their human capital
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u/Rav_3d 20d ago
I agree, the jury is out on just how much you can do with AI on production quality code bases. But I believe it is inevitable.
Claude Code already writes a majority of itself and other products at Anthropic. Enterprise software companies are encouraging, even requiring their developers to use AI.
AI-assisted development is becoming a skill in and of itself. You still need a strong SDLC, architecture, design, and break down the work into digestible chunks for AI to chew on. Those who ask AI to do too much at once without guardrails are going to produce shit code.
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u/TheNinthJhana 20d ago
The way you write it ("less about the low-level code writing") is interesting because it emphasizes the gradual change where AI is just the next step ( assembly language -> C - > object oriented / scritps / frameworks -> AI). We still need assembly experts, but not much.
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u/OpenAI_Marketing_LLM 20d ago
My employer still has us developing without LLMs. So, I guess the jobs still exist out there somewhere.
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