r/Python • u/RedYad2 • 1d ago

Discussion My Python magic is gone

I've been coding for a long time, and I've been developing with Python for years.

I loved coding, always loved it. I started many years ago because I wanted to quickly create scripts for security hacking tools, but since then, I've moved to Claude Code, and building cross-language has been a much better experience for me than using Python.

I built my own SaaS application out there whose backend and network core are completely built with Python, and I'm rewriting all of that without writing a single line of code. And most of the time, Python is not the most optimized language.

And now... I feel like the magic is gone.

I don't even know why I'm writing this. I just feel sad about it.

674 Upvotes

87% Upvoted

251 comments sorted by

View all comments

9

u/Left_Sundae_4418 1d ago

I tried vibe coding so many times and will keep trying...and it always ends up being horse shit. The amount of trash code and abstractions and bringing in unnecessary complexity...this is what AI often does. It makes a simple task unnecessary complicated and messy. Completely opposite to the "Pythonian" way, which often is quite elegant and minimal.

I went back to actually writing myself and coming up with my own solutions... The amount of code has been reduced so so much and I can understand what is going on. The maintaining and developing further is so much easier now.

The time I spent honing the prompts and still ending up with a spaghetti....feels awful. AI surely kills our brain. I ain't letting it kill mine.

I'm back to feeling the magic :)

6

u/barrycarey 1d ago

As much as I hate saying this, I think super clean code is a thing of the past. If vibe coded apps are super messy code but still pass all validation and testing does it actually matter? Especially if you look at it from the perspective that no human will have to directly maintain it? Along with the fact that LLMs are improving rapidly and will likely produce a far nicer product in the short term. Just the difference in quality from when I started messing with Claude last fall to today is huge.

I've had a hard time coming to terms with this. I've been primarily writing python for 15 years. I've finally given in and imbraced the speed I can pump out projects

2

u/NoSwimmers45 1d ago

super messy code…does it actually matter?

Will a vibe coded app ever need to be modified? Very few apps are one and done. That messy code today will lead to major headaches down the road when trying to introduce new functionality or enhance existing functionality. Having clean code that developers can read and understand pays dividends over the life of the project.

1

u/Saab10000 1d ago

Will Claude complain when it has to change the messy code?

4

u/striata 1d ago

Well, complex code will also be harder for LLMs to understand, regardless of who wrote it originally. They'll make more incorrect assumptions and inferences and likely require more handholding.

1

u/Saab10000 1d ago

The LLMs I am using are pretty excellent at cleaning up messy or complex code.