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I couldn't agree more. A personal anecdote; I used to think about what would be my legacy as software developer? Anything that I write would be obsolete in few

I couldn't agree more. A personal anecdote; I used to think about what would be my legacy as software developer? Anything that I write would be obsolete in few years. Nothing I wrote back then remained working. This thought was depressing me. Then I realized that what I'm actually creating and maintaining is not code. It's the mindset behind the code, and the skillset to convert ideas to working pieces of software. My legacy would be to learn through experimenting, and to help others learn the same.

bonoboTP 6y ago
Who has a legacy anyway and why would a normal person expect to have one? A tailor's clothes get worn out, a farmer's food is eaten, the cook's dish eaten, the hotel cleaner's "output" gets messy again, the architect's apartment block torn down etc. Who has a true legacy outside a small minority of philosophers, artists, scientists and political leaders?
- wintorez 6y ago
  I think even the idea of having a tombstone is a sort of legacy. People made cave-paintings to leave something behind. We all want to cling to existence somehow and want to leave a mark on world when we leave. The simplest way maybe is to have children, so your gene would live on after you.
  - mathgeek 6y ago
    > We all want to cling to existence somehow and want to leave a mark on the world when we leave. Not everyone wishes to leave a mark on the world after we are gone. There are entire philosophical branches dedicated to the idea of embracing mortality and accepting that which makes us human.
    - antepodius 6y ago
      I feel like that's just a way to cope with the horror of death.
      - mathgeek 6y ago
        Naturally, but it's also a way to approach death if you don't consider it a horror.
    - dwaltrip 6y ago
      One can embrace mortality while also wishing to leave a positive mark on the world.
  - AstralStorm 6y ago
    Most of the paintings get lost, even sometimes masterpieces. Bloodlines die out or change enough to not be recognizable.

bonoboTP 6y ago

Who has a legacy anyway and why would a normal person expect to have one? A tailor's clothes get worn out, a farmer's food is eaten, the cook's dish eaten, the hotel cleaner's "output" gets messy again, the architect's apartment block torn down etc. Who has a true legacy outside a small minority of philosophers, artists, scientists and political leaders?

wintorez 6y ago
I think even the idea of having a tombstone is a sort of legacy. People made cave-paintings to leave something behind. We all want to cling to existence somehow and want to leave a mark on world when we leave. The simplest way maybe is to have children, so your gene would live on after you.
- mathgeek 6y ago
  > We all want to cling to existence somehow and want to leave a mark on the world when we leave. Not everyone wishes to leave a mark on the world after we are gone. There are entire philosophical branches dedicated to the idea of embracing mortality and accepting that which makes us human.
  - antepodius 6y ago
    I feel like that's just a way to cope with the horror of death.
    - mathgeek 6y ago
      Naturally, but it's also a way to approach death if you don't consider it a horror.
  - dwaltrip 6y ago
    One can embrace mortality while also wishing to leave a positive mark on the world.
- AstralStorm 6y ago
  Most of the paintings get lost, even sometimes masterpieces. Bloodlines die out or change enough to not be recognizable.