A Programmer's 42-Year Journey: From BASIC to AI and the Changing Nature of Software Development
By
jamesrandall
Fresh out the oven, still warm. Top of the tray.
Summary
A veteran programmer reflects on how software development has fundamentally changed over his 42-year career, from the direct, hands-on control of early computing to today's complex, AI-driven landscape. He describes the evolution from understanding every byte and pixel in his early BASIC programming to navigating modern abstractions, frameworks, and AI tools that distance developers from the underlying hardware. The article explores the tension between nostalgia for simpler programming and the necessity of adapting to current technologies, ultimately questioning what it means to be a developer in the age of AI.
Key quotes
· 4 pulledI wrote my first line of code in 1983. I was seven years old, typing BASIC into a machine that had less processing power than the chip in your washing machine.
Every byte of RAM had a purpose I could trace. Every pixel on screen was there because I'd put it there. The path from intention to result was direct, visible, and mine.
Forty-two years later, I'm sitting in front of hardware that would have seemed like science fiction to that kid, and I'm trying to figure out what 'bui'
I still love developing but the shifts that AI have brought are tectonic and are forcing me to re-evaluate my own relationship to building things
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