

People Who Think Programming Is Shit Are Missing The Point - tomse
http://e2open.org/people-who-think-programming-is-shit-are-missing-the-point/

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tokenizer
I think that the point of the article is half true. You can definitely create
code that doesn't save you time, and in fact, over the long run, taxes your
project with bugs and other issues.

But I agree with the general sentiment. No one who's automated a task using
applied math and the power of some sort of environment, be it windows office,
ios, or the web, can understand the feeling of power and understanding one
gets from it.

Not only am I completely understanding a flow, a process including most if not
all of it's edge cases, I'm fixing/completing a process while writing code.

I remember when going to school, everyone talked about coding as a chore for
real computer science, but I always viewed it as a craft, one which takes
dedication and practice, and one that can have tangible effects, like
carpentry or painting. I'd also like to add that IMO any science based in the
realm of computers need some form of applied math scripting for any tangible
results. You can't just wish things to happen!

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Dystopian
I'm young (just a recent University graduate), so I expect my viewpoint to
change over the next few years after I get into the shit and start getting run
down by large companies grinding away at me (it's happened a couple times
already - had to decompress for a few weeks after finishing my contract on
both occasions).

I cannot think of anything more rewarding than what I'm currently doing
though. I'm quite literally creating things that people will be using. It's
quite possibly the most amazing form of artwork because users will actually be
interacting with systems I'm creating.

The only analogy I can think of is that it's like combining a Monet with a can
opener. A can opener is something that's incredibly useful, used by everyone,
with many thinking "why didn't I think of that". A Monet on the other hand is
respected as an art that most believe is far outside the realm of their
possibilities of ever creating. Programming is quite literally being the
impasse between the two - something that not everyone can do, but is useful to
everyone.

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ziadbc
Saying that programming is 'spending all dap tapping in code' is like saying
drawing is 'spending all day holding a pencil.' That isn't a perfect analogy,
but programming can be equally about what is being created as it is the code
itself.

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borplk
I agree completely. You can make anything sound awful with that kind of
analogy. And some people use it to devalue the things they don't like or
understand. There should be a name for this behaviour.

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jcmhn
> Programming is an information technology, and being a technology facilitates
> greater efficiency.

Which is not always a good thing. Sometimes the fact that a task is tedious or
confusing should cause us to re-think the necessity of doing the task. Thanks
to IT we can wind up doing something stupid really well, rather than realizing
that maybe we shouldn't do it in the first place.

(I love programming, but I sometimes despair at how useless most of what I do
really is)

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greggman
I always like to think of programming has being able to play with an unlimited
supply of legos that can actually do stuff.

Your friend thinks programming sucks? Guess he doesn't like video games,
action movies, smartphones or anything else programming makes possible.

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zem
the second bit is bad logic - programming may make a lot of great things
possible while itself being a sucky but necessary part of the process.

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codgercoder
I find programming very intellectually satisfying, and have for many years. I
now find myself in competition with people from all over the world, making it
much more difficult to maintain the income I came to depend on. I have some
anecdotal evidence that many of these "programmers" don't really like the job,
and view it only as a stepping stone in their careers. I wish only Programmers
programmed; as software users, we might all be better off.

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drivingmenuts
Programming is not a job I think I will ever be able to retire from. I might
_have_ to retire, but I don't think it will be willingly.

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gatordan
I'm not at all convinced that popular sentiment in the world we currently live
is that "programming is shit".

There was no About page on this blog so I couldn't tell if the author is just
very young or if this is dated. Either way the post was half baked, with the
author ultimately coming to the thoughtless conclusion: "That’s a crock of
shit! ... It’s not programmers that are wasting life , it’s the non-
programers!"

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i_s
Agree with author's main point. But:

>>It’s like anyone who programs is essentially, at heart, a mental masticator,
happy to forgo “real life” in order to do what could have been done “by a real
person” in the same time.

Mental masticator? Does he mean masochist?

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halis
meanwhile your friend is scratching his balls and saying ding tots are done...

