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When looking at my old code my internal dialogue flips between "What an idiot I was for writing this code" and "So brilliant and performant! I could never write

When looking at my old code my internal dialogue flips between "What an idiot I was for writing this code" and "So brilliant and performant! I could never write code like this now."

ljm 4y ago
I imagine it like I'm on my PS5, playing something like Elden Ring, and I'm on a roll. Then I reach a boss and get it down to a sliver of health before I make one fatal mistake and it kills me. On the retry I still have the confidence from the previous attempt but I can barely get a hit before being completely destroyed. How hard could it be? I was one move away from victory last time. But now the challenge is far more apparent. This happens repeatedly as I use trial and improvement to learn the fight I so effortlessly put up in the first instance. It reminds me of just how much is down to chance and what you did in a moment in time. Trying to consciously recreate it, but better, is a Sisyphean task.
- tstrimple 4y ago
  > On the retry I still have the confidence from the previous attempt but I can barely get a hit before being completely destroyed. How hard could it be? I was one move away from victory last time. But now the challenge is far more apparent. One thing I've found with these types of games is getting into a "flow" works so much better than trying to consciously play the game. Unfortunately the only way to develop the muscle memory to be able to enter this flow state is to bash your face against enemies over and over until you're no longer thinking about how to react. I've also found that when I'm struggling with a boss, I'm playing in a much more conscious way which means I'm thinking about my responses instead of just reacting. When I get really close, but don't kill them, I often over focus on the piece which got me killed and which means my attention on the dozens of other things I've used to get to this point slips a bit and I get destroyed. At this point I usually know I'm too much in my own head and go off to areas I'm comfortable with to try to get back into a flow for the boss fight again.
tstrimple 4y ago
We often hear about seeing our old bad code and cringing, but not as many people talk about seeing their old code and being impressed. I've experienced both as well.

When looking at my old code my internal dialogue flips between "What an idiot I was for writing this code" and "So brilliant and performant! I could never write code like this now."

ljm 4y ago

I imagine it like I'm on my PS5, playing something like Elden Ring, and I'm on a roll. Then I reach a boss and get it down to a sliver of health before I make one fatal mistake and it kills me. On the retry I still have the confidence from the previous attempt but I can barely get a hit before being completely destroyed. How hard could it be? I was one move away from victory last time. But now the challenge is far more apparent. This happens repeatedly as I use trial and improvement to learn the fight I so effortlessly put up in the first instance. It reminds me of just how much is down to chance and what you did in a moment in time. Trying to consciously recreate it, but better, is a Sisyphean task.

tstrimple 4y ago
> On the retry I still have the confidence from the previous attempt but I can barely get a hit before being completely destroyed. How hard could it be? I was one move away from victory last time. But now the challenge is far more apparent. One thing I've found with these types of games is getting into a "flow" works so much better than trying to consciously play the game. Unfortunately the only way to develop the muscle memory to be able to enter this flow state is to bash your face against enemies over and over until you're no longer thinking about how to react. I've also found that when I'm struggling with a boss, I'm playing in a much more conscious way which means I'm thinking about my responses instead of just reacting. When I get really close, but don't kill them, I often over focus on the piece which got me killed and which means my attention on the dozens of other things I've used to get to this point slips a bit and I get destroyed. At this point I usually know I'm too much in my own head and go off to areas I'm comfortable with to try to get back into a flow for the boss fight again.

tstrimple 4y ago

We often hear about seeing our old bad code and cringing, but not as many people talk about seeing their old code and being impressed. I've experienced both as well.