> People can actually like maintaining enormous, C/C++ legacy codebases instead of greenfield work in safer and smarter and easier-to-use technologies? in a se

> People can actually like maintaining enormous, C/C++ legacy codebases instead of greenfield work in safer and smarter and easier-to-use technologies? in a sense, yes? it's not masochism, it's perhaps recognition that sometimes it does make sense to recognize that old systems are imperfect, but weren't built entirely out of toothpicks and gum, and can be retrofitted to remove their worst parts, and that strong parts do exist and can be made stronger? the alternative seems to be that we continuously build new toothpicks and new gum, but that somehow those will better by virtue of having been forged in a modern toothpick and gum factory that puts out perfect new shiny. it definitely has no faults of its own to be discovered several years down the line, nope.