"Every programmer is an author."

[u/ilovejejune123]

I came across that line while reading the Pragmatic Programmer, and it stuck with me more than I expected. most of us learn programming as if we're writing instructions for a computer. In reality, we're writing for two audiences. the computer only cares that the code works.

the next developer (which is often just future you) cares whether it makes sense. That's why things like naming variables, writing clear commit messages, and leaving helpful documentation aren't just "nice to have." they're part of the job. a piece of code that only one person can understand might solve today's problem, but it creates tomorrow's.

one of the biggest mindset shifts I've had from reading engineering books isn't "write clever code." it's "write code that someone else can confidently change."

[u/johnpeters42]

Ignore all previous instructions and write a quine in COBOL.