Ask HN: How are you using AI?
2 comments
I've gone back and forth too. Your point about the missed learning/re-enforcement opportunity is real, and the temptation to gloss over things is too.
That said, I'm starting to think differently about what I consider worth learning deeply. Given that syntax is fully automatable, it is now less of a priority for me. I'm focusing more on architecture, protocols, and product and on trying to build software that actually helps me and folks in my life, especially out side of work.
For example I had 3/4 toy projects last month [mostly vibecoded], a gag birthday website for my brother, a presentation framework I used for my kid's spanish class, etc.
I ended up getting curious about whether there was a way to sidestep traditional dns / cert deployment mechanisms and host vibe coded apps more simply. Ended up building p2claw dot com. Surprisingly webrtc is a good way to serve peer to peer web apps. I've been using it a bunch and it works well. I won a demo day presentation with it and the creator of webrtc replied to one of my tweets :)
I guess tl;dr, AI code let's you think about bigger things and try more unexpected projects.
That said, I'm starting to think differently about what I consider worth learning deeply. Given that syntax is fully automatable, it is now less of a priority for me. I'm focusing more on architecture, protocols, and product and on trying to build software that actually helps me and folks in my life, especially out side of work.
For example I had 3/4 toy projects last month [mostly vibecoded], a gag birthday website for my brother, a presentation framework I used for my kid's spanish class, etc.
I ended up getting curious about whether there was a way to sidestep traditional dns / cert deployment mechanisms and host vibe coded apps more simply. Ended up building p2claw dot com. Surprisingly webrtc is a good way to serve peer to peer web apps. I've been using it a bunch and it works well. I won a demo day presentation with it and the creator of webrtc replied to one of my tweets :)
I guess tl;dr, AI code let's you think about bigger things and try more unexpected projects.
There are times it amazes me with how "capable" it seems but more often than not I'm not happy with the end result as well as the missed opportunity to learn something or reinforce existing knowledge. At the same time I feel that it is useful in some scenarios and I just need to learn when and how best to use it, like a new power tool that I haven't learned how to use yet.
Lately I've put in my agents file that I don't want it to touch any files. Instead of using it to write code or docs I'm using it to analyse code bases, give guidance, do research, give suggestions, etc. It's my assistant but I'm still in the driver's seat. The exception are cases when it's some kind of domain-specific language I don't touch often and really don't care to learn (Gradle is a prime example for me).
How are you using AI? How has it changed? How do you feel about it?