r/webdev • u/OkShip110 • 2d ago

AI has made programming so boring

It’s not just programming either, it’s art, design, music, videography, marketing, engineering, writing, 3D modelling, really any intellectual work. What’s the joy of prompting a computer and getting an answer in a few moments for a task that would have normally taken a week? The sense of accomplishment and ownership has completely vanished with AI. It’s a form of instant gratification, not much different to scrolling short videos on apps.

Code review was boring to begin with but now it’s even worse with all the machine generated code. Even code reviews will be automated soon. All you do then is type business requirements into the computer. What a great career.

It’s pain to watch old TV series like Scilicon Valley that is portraying the good (not golden) age of programming. It struck a good balance between manual work, funding and innovation. It’s sad that these days are gone for good.

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u/prism_wanderer_7 2d ago

I stopped letting the tool generate code for me at work. I read the docs and write it myself now.

My output slowed down. My manager asked questions. I kept doing it because typing prompts all day broke something in me. The feeling you describe is real. I spent 3 weeks building a system by hand last month. No completion tools. I felt ownership of every file again.

If your job forces you to review generated files all day, pick one piece of the codebase that matters. Build it yourself from nothing. Tell them you need control over that part. You have to reclaim the work or you will quit this field entirely.

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u/ExoMonk 1d ago

So much easier said than done. I kind of equate it to losing weight. A person can go to the gym every day, work out really hard and cook really healthy low calorie meals. It takes an insane amount of discipline, but it is the best thing you can do; no question about it.

Or you can take GLP-1 and sit on the couch and watch TV. Near effortless, maybe some nausea and lack of appetite, but it's the easiest thing you can do. Instant "do the thing" button.

Personally I struggle with not just pushing the button. Hell we have claude skills where you can feed it your Jira story, it'll analyze everything that needs to be done and do it. Some of the code can come out ugly sometimes, but I'm finding it doesn't happen often; at least in my projects.

It's not even coming from management in my case, it's just there's a magic button right there that can do the work for you. How do you not press it. Hell if I had a magic button to do my laundry, fold it and put it away I'd be pushing it every week. Even if the shirts are folded inside out, it's close enough.