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That's true, but I still worry because it feels like we are reaching some kind of inflection point. For instance, Vercel's latest product (https://v0.dev https:

That's true, but I still worry because it feels like we are reaching some kind of inflection point. For instance, Vercel's latest product (https://v0.dev https://v0.dev) makes me nervous about the impact to front-end development.

sho_hn 3y ago
What's interesting about seeing these conversations on Hacker News is that 10 minutes ago, our profession was putting thousands out of work on a daily basis without even a second thought. Ever stopped at one of those self-checkout registers at the grocery store that didn't exist in your childhood and wondered what happened to the cashier who used to be there? A lot of people mumble something about "jobs not worth doing", but I'm not sure if web front-end development (how many unique, differentiated, worthwhile websites exist? how much of that code is glue and boilerplate, and people solving the same problem in parallel every day?) fares much better in that gauntlet. Software developers right now are, for the first time in their lives, experiencing a little backlash to their privilege -- for hundreds of millions, they've been riding that rollercoaster all their lives.
- astrange 3y ago
  > Ever stopped at one of those self-checkout registers at the grocery store that didn't exist in your childhood and wondered what happened to the cashier who used to be there? They're still there, they're restocking shelves. Similarly, the invention of ATM machines increased the number of bank tellers.
  - nvm0n2 3y ago
    My local supermarket normally seems to be staffed by maybe two or three people total. They stock shelves until someone needs them to fix the machines, do an age check or temporarily use the old checkout line. I remember supermarkets of that size used to have several people stacking shelves and then the same number again on the tills. So I think it has reduced the number of those jobs.
- danielvaughn 3y ago
  I feel embarrassed to admit that I've never thought about it from that perspective. Totally agree.
- orangecat 3y ago
  You're right, and I'll gladly bite that bullet and say that the changes you describe are good. It's almost always a net positive to be able to produce more output with less human effort.

sho_hn 3y ago

What's interesting about seeing these conversations on Hacker News is that 10 minutes ago, our profession was putting thousands out of work on a daily basis without even a second thought. Ever stopped at one of those self-checkout registers at the grocery store that didn't exist in your childhood and wondered what happened to the cashier who used to be there? A lot of people mumble something about "jobs not worth doing", but I'm not sure if web front-end development (how many unique, differentiated, worthwhile websites exist? how much of that code is glue and boilerplate, and people solving the same problem in parallel every day?) fares much better in that gauntlet. Software developers right now are, for the first time in their lives, experiencing a little backlash to their privilege -- for hundreds of millions, they've been riding that rollercoaster all their lives.

astrange 3y ago
> Ever stopped at one of those self-checkout registers at the grocery store that didn't exist in your childhood and wondered what happened to the cashier who used to be there? They're still there, they're restocking shelves. Similarly, the invention of ATM machines increased the number of bank tellers.
- nvm0n2 3y ago
  My local supermarket normally seems to be staffed by maybe two or three people total. They stock shelves until someone needs them to fix the machines, do an age check or temporarily use the old checkout line. I remember supermarkets of that size used to have several people stacking shelves and then the same number again on the tills. So I think it has reduced the number of those jobs.
danielvaughn 3y ago
I feel embarrassed to admit that I've never thought about it from that perspective. Totally agree.
orangecat 3y ago
You're right, and I'll gladly bite that bullet and say that the changes you describe are good. It's almost always a net positive to be able to produce more output with less human effort.