Is there anything inherently noble about programming if not to solve a real world problem?
If they were doing it for an exam where their skills were being evaluated, that’s one thing. But if they were doing it as a means to an end, does it matter if they found a more efficient way to do it?
Idk about "noble" specifically, but fulfilling and meaningful yes. "Solving" a real world problem isnt the only reason I code. It might be why im paid for it, but I enjoy coding and get fulfillment from it.
I recently interviewed a very pro-ai dev who's last position listed 'architect' and was stunned at how limited their knowledge seemingly was. I didnt have a coding question prepared because i assumed we could have a higher level 'architecture'-oriented chat but they had seemingly nothing to contribute... Thankfully another interviewer had a simple coding challenge prepared, which filtered the candidate out.
Long story short, i wonder if the folks who.genuinely enjoy coding are going to be the only remaining skilled technologists after the rest make themselves obsolete by overly depending on these tools, regardless of how good they supposedly are.
But copying an existing game is not solving a real world problem. You may do it to see if "I can make it", during a learning process, or as a challenge. But when you ask something/someone else to do it for you, what's the purpose?
Why are you trying to shit on the guy and put him down? What's wrong with just having fun and testing it's capabilities? So what if there's a million TD games out there? They wanted to see if it's possible and they enjoyed the experience. Or maybe someone wants to make a personalized version for someone they love, or a million other things.
And what's it matter if someone else made it? Do you make your own bread or milk your own cows? Do you build your own cars?
Like who gives a shit, when the most important thing for 95% of people is, "Can i use this? Can I operate it? What can this do for me? How does this make life easier/better/fun?".
It's also interesting as it shows the reality we're heading towards with hyper-personalized media. Love it or hate it, it's coming.
I asked him because I couldn't see the fun of it. And your examples about milk and car are exactly what I am saying. I don't create them...
About your last example, it's like asking a AI to write Harry Potter but where the character has a different name and be blown away for what I did in a weekend!
Exactly. It's also exciting to see things at the frontier, just because they're new. I wasn't planning to release the game, just get something working for myself. By the way, this was July 2024 shortly after Anthropic introduced Claude Artifacts.
If they were doing it for an exam where their skills were being evaluated, that’s one thing. But if they were doing it as a means to an end, does it matter if they found a more efficient way to do it?