4 ms·

Is it bad for your skills to rot if you don't need them anymore? I also don't know how to make fire without a lighter or a matchstick.

spookie 3y ago
Yes, it's bad to lose any skill.
- hu3 3y ago
  I can drive a car but I can't ride a horse. Somewhere along my family tree we didn't pass this skill forward and it was lost.
  - x3n0ph3n3 3y ago
    _You_ can't lose a skill if you never had it.
- Tade0 3y ago
  It happens all the time because as humans we are limited. Personally I see it as a rite of passage for a senior developer to take note of and embrace their own limits.
arjonagelhout 3y ago
You’ll grow dependent on a technology that might not be sustainable to run on the long term, or will increase in price. Once the product seizes to be affordable, you’d need to switch away and relearn how you did certain things. A similar thing happened with me using Adobe products at a student discount, only to realize its hefty $60 per month price tag was not something I was willing to spend. And if the gained productivity is only marginal at best, it’s better to not grow dependent on these technologies.
- legulere 3y ago
  Isn't it way more likely that the technology will become more available and cheaper/for free? It doesn't really have a lock-in effect like a UI that you learn.
jstarfish 3y ago
Your lighter or matchstick aren't going to change their algorithms; they always work in predictable ways and you know the conditions under which they won't work (wet). So you can safely forget how to find and use flint for firestarting. This puts you closer to institutionalized domestic violence. Give up your existing career and become dependent on [service provider]; you won't ever need to be able to provide for yourself because my behavior will never change for the worse, right? No provider has ever decided to become withholding, vindictive or capricious, right? Your lighter won't do this to you.
cj 3y ago
Will you need to demonstrate the skill in an interview during your next job search? ^ I'd say that's a pretty good litmus test of whether you should let the skill rot.

spookie 3y ago

Yes, it's bad to lose any skill.

hu3 3y ago
I can drive a car but I can't ride a horse. Somewhere along my family tree we didn't pass this skill forward and it was lost.
- x3n0ph3n3 3y ago
  _You_ can't lose a skill if you never had it.
Tade0 3y ago
It happens all the time because as humans we are limited. Personally I see it as a rite of passage for a senior developer to take note of and embrace their own limits.

arjonagelhout 3y ago

You’ll grow dependent on a technology that might not be sustainable to run on the long term, or will increase in price. Once the product seizes to be affordable, you’d need to switch away and relearn how you did certain things. A similar thing happened with me using Adobe products at a student discount, only to realize its hefty $60 per month price tag was not something I was willing to spend. And if the gained productivity is only marginal at best, it’s better to not grow dependent on these technologies.

legulere 3y ago
Isn't it way more likely that the technology will become more available and cheaper/for free? It doesn't really have a lock-in effect like a UI that you learn.

jstarfish 3y ago

Your lighter or matchstick aren't going to change their algorithms; they always work in predictable ways and you know the conditions under which they won't work (wet). So you can safely forget how to find and use flint for firestarting. This puts you closer to institutionalized domestic violence. Give up your existing career and become dependent on [service provider]; you won't ever need to be able to provide for yourself because my behavior will never change for the worse, right? No provider has ever decided to become withholding, vindictive or capricious, right? Your lighter won't do this to you.

cj 3y ago

Will you need to demonstrate the skill in an interview during your next job search? ^ I'd say that's a pretty good litmus test of whether you should let the skill rot.