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> I think over time, we’ll see that what many of us really liked about building software deep down wasn’t coding, but intricately imagining the things computers

> I think over time, we’ll see that what many of us really liked about building software deep down wasn’t coding, but intricately imagining the things computers could do for us and then getting them to do it. Spot on. It's a good time for existential reflection: Who would you have been hundreds or thousands of years ago? Who will you be now that technology is radically changing again? There will always be interesting, creative challenges like programming, whatever form they take.

falcor84 4y ago
>Who would you have been hundreds or thousands of years ago? I'll just use this opportunity to recommend the video game "Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey". It's a game where you start as an early hominid and have to gradually discover how to make and use rudimentary tools in order to take control of your environment, literally evolving in the process. It's weird and unforgiving, and it made me really think.
TeMPOraL 4y ago
> Who would you have been hundreds or thousands of years ago? Given how I grew up ingesting science and science fiction alike, literally attributing half my personality to Star Trek: The Next Generation being on TV during my formative years? It's really hard to tell. I have very little connection to things which were possible before late 19th / early 20th century. In my mind, being thrown back centuries in time, I'd spend my life trying to use everything I remember from present day to give everyone a head start on science and technology. Being thrown back centuries in time, but without the memory of specific things I've learned in present day? That sounds like a particularly sadistic death sentence.
- the_only_law 4y ago
  I was thinking less of “what if I went back in time” and more “what if I was my ancestor” Obviously you won’t be able to tell for sure, but I’d guess that 1000 years ago I’d probably be a serf, and 100 years ago, likely would have fought in a large war and likely doing some form of physical labor or subsistence farming afterwards, based on what my family was doing then.
  - TeMPOraL 4y ago
    Oh, in this sense, yes, I agree. There's only so much agency any human ever has, had, or will have - and the space of possible choices is determined by the overall technological and economic landscape of the time. In this light, sure, the me from 1000 years ago would most likely be a serf, die from malnutrition, war or robbery. Me from 100 years ago would probably be lying dead in the trenches of Verdun, or shot on the streets of Kraków, or otherwise dead in WW1; for military-aged males in Europe, I guess whether or not one got drawn into fighting was a coin flip.
- tizio13 4y ago
  Reading your comment made me think that you would enjoy reading the Magic 2.0 series. First book is Off to be the Wizard.
sharemywin 4y ago
While I think people can adapt I worry about things changing faster than people can adapt. Do you invest in a college education is that field is obliterated by the time you get out. What about your debts if you lose your job and companies aren't hiring because they can just use AI for a 10th the cost in 6 months.
bad_username 4y ago
I often think of legal professionals and law makers as "the programmers of people". I think I would have become a lawyer 100 years ago.

falcor84 4y ago

>Who would you have been hundreds or thousands of years ago? I'll just use this opportunity to recommend the video game "Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey". It's a game where you start as an early hominid and have to gradually discover how to make and use rudimentary tools in order to take control of your environment, literally evolving in the process. It's weird and unforgiving, and it made me really think.

TeMPOraL 4y ago

> Who would you have been hundreds or thousands of years ago? Given how I grew up ingesting science and science fiction alike, literally attributing half my personality to Star Trek: The Next Generation being on TV during my formative years? It's really hard to tell. I have very little connection to things which were possible before late 19th / early 20th century. In my mind, being thrown back centuries in time, I'd spend my life trying to use everything I remember from present day to give everyone a head start on science and technology. Being thrown back centuries in time, but without the memory of specific things I've learned in present day? That sounds like a particularly sadistic death sentence.

the_only_law 4y ago
I was thinking less of “what if I went back in time” and more “what if I was my ancestor” Obviously you won’t be able to tell for sure, but I’d guess that 1000 years ago I’d probably be a serf, and 100 years ago, likely would have fought in a large war and likely doing some form of physical labor or subsistence farming afterwards, based on what my family was doing then.
- TeMPOraL 4y ago
  Oh, in this sense, yes, I agree. There's only so much agency any human ever has, had, or will have - and the space of possible choices is determined by the overall technological and economic landscape of the time. In this light, sure, the me from 1000 years ago would most likely be a serf, die from malnutrition, war or robbery. Me from 100 years ago would probably be lying dead in the trenches of Verdun, or shot on the streets of Kraków, or otherwise dead in WW1; for military-aged males in Europe, I guess whether or not one got drawn into fighting was a coin flip.
tizio13 4y ago
Reading your comment made me think that you would enjoy reading the Magic 2.0 series. First book is Off to be the Wizard.

sharemywin 4y ago

While I think people can adapt I worry about things changing faster than people can adapt. Do you invest in a college education is that field is obliterated by the time you get out. What about your debts if you lose your job and companies aren't hiring because they can just use AI for a 10th the cost in 6 months.

bad_username 4y ago

I often think of legal professionals and law makers as "the programmers of people". I think I would have become a lawyer 100 years ago.