5 ms·
The problem is whether people see programming as a zero-sum or positive sum enterprise. In the real world, it acts as a positive sum enterprise: one person's co
by atleastoptimal 2y ago
The problem is whether people see programming as a zero-sum or positive sum enterprise. In the real world, it acts as a positive sum enterprise: one person's contribution benefits themselves and all those who use or learn from the code. However many gatekeeping-type people view it, perhaps instinctively, as zero-sum. They imagine that OpenAI benefitting from this partnership, or any amount of learning via web-scraping their models perform, necessarily harms those who put their content online. This in a nonsensical argument yet has garnered a fair amount of support due to the somewhat reflexive anti-AI sentiment as of late, which is separated from the more nuanced concerns of existential threats due to AI.
- zb3 2y agoPositive-sum rarely exists in this world.. after all, one's wealth determines their influence over others. Both sides might gain but this usually means others lose. In this case, contributors might lose attribution. SO might lose traffic but they'll be compensated. Contributors won't so eventually there might be no reason to contribute anymore..
- jonathankoren 2y agoIt’s simply false that positive sum doesn’t exist the real world. Even the most simplistic trade argument in remedial Econ 101, or even Bio 101 reveals this. What’s rare are zero-sum games.
- zb3 2y agoRising inequality suggests otherwise
- kolinko 2y agoIf I'm not mistaken, the whole society is getting wealthier, it's just some people are getting wealthier faster than the others - so it's still a sum-positive. Here are the source charts: https://ourworldindata.org/happiness-and-income-inequality https://ourworldindata.org/happiness-and-income-inequality
- zb3 2y agoYou only consider those that "make it", there any many who don't because it's getting increasingly harder to be "useful" in the market (ChatGPT is cheaper), innovations usually make it worse. Those "new jobs" are harder and many won't qualify
- kolinko 2y agoDid you check the linked charts? The stats show that people are getting wealthier across the board.
- __MatrixMan__ 2y agoIsn't the existence of wealth in the first place sufficient evidence that wealth is something that gets created? We started out banging rocks together and now we have all of this weird stuff which presumably people like or something.
- zb3 2y agoNow we work harder, and it's getting unbearable for those kn the bottom... Wealth also affects whether you're "useful" and you need to be "useful" to survive.. It's getting harder to be useful
- squigglydonut 2y agoImagine that you spent a lot of time helping people and building a community. Then a company encodes this "help" into text format and put it into a book, and makes a lot of money selling the book. In doing so, this company kills the community. You wouldn't be pissed off about that?