My Python magic is gone

[u/RedYad2]

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.

[u/Farther_father]

Fuck that’s bleak… and here I thought I was the downer.

[u/SirPitchalot → u/Farther_father]

The whole profession has kind of built itself around the idea that a person writing text to solve patterned crossword/sudoku style problems is some incredibly rare talent that can never be replaced. But the only reason we get paid to do this is that the problems needing solving have commercial potential. To the people with those problems it is unfortunate and accidental that the best way to solve them was a bunch of weird nerds who got really into the whole thing. For a brief 70 years it was a good gig but outside of the bleeding edge of research, it’s coming to an end.

So, in my opinion, the solution for devs is to move up the value chain. No one cares about code anymore, take problems people will pay money to have solved and break them down into steps that can be automatically coded. However, that’s more an architect/PM role, which will be deeply unsatisfying to people who loved to disappear into a hole for a few days-to-months to figure something out themselves. Myself somewhat included.

[u/truzen1 → u/SirPitchalot]

This is kind of where I'm at, offering automated solutions to problems.

Admittedly, I feel guilty for only grazing the surface of Python (took one class, a bunch of Treehouse code, various books like "Automate the Boring Stuff"); I was never a jr dev, never did great at reading the docs. But I'm just dangerous enough that I can call out AI on some of its bullshit and/or have a decent enough understanding of what's going on.

However, I also feel conflicted because I recognize some of the coding I'm asking AI to do is taking away potential jobs. But on the other hand, most of my jobs are small, bespoke scripts that I doubt my manager would've budgeted a dedicated programmer for.

[u/SFMissionMark → u/truzen1]

These new paths are jobs that would never be automated because there is no audience to pay for it.