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Re:A.I. is creating engineers who can't think without it by lukan on Sunday April 26, 2026 @06:37PM (#47915497)
"You can’t treat a prompt like source code because it will give you a different output every time you use it"

But it seems we are heading there. For simple stuff, if I made a very clear spec - I can be almost sure, that every time I give that prompt to a AI, it will work without error, using the same algorithms. So quality of prompt is more valuable, than the generated code

So either way, this is what I focus my thinking on right now, something that always was important and now with AI even more so - crystal clear language describing what the program should do and how.

That requires enough thinking effort.

Re:A.I. is creating engineers who can't think without it by lelanthran on Sunday April 26, 2026 @06:57PM (#47915682)
Didnt work for the prod data that the AI nukes in spite of prompts saying "DON'T FUCKING GUESS", just like that in all caps: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47911524

What makes you think it will work for you?

Re:A.I. is creating engineers who can't think without it by lukan on Sunday April 26, 2026 @07:45PM (#47916079)
That I don't let agents run wild in a production environment?
Re:A.I. is creating engineers who can't think without it by ubertaco on Sunday April 26, 2026 @11:10PM (#47917317)
You let them write code that runs in prod, which is the same thing with extra steps.

Unless you review that code carefully, and then we're back to the point about it not saving you any cognitive overhead.

Re:A.I. is creating engineers who can't think without it by lukan on Monday April 27, 2026 @04:47AM (#47919179)
Of course it saves me overhead by not having to read all the necessary docs etc myself and just check the resulting code and not having to type all myself.
Re:A.I. is creating engineers who can't think without it by lelanthran on Monday April 27, 2026 @11:36AM (#47923016)
> Of course it saves me overhead by not having to read all the necessary docs etc myself and just check the resulting code and not having to type all myself.

That link I posted upthread, the "developer" did not read the docs "because the LLM wrote the code" and hence did not realise that the token they had was a full access token, not a limited access token.

You're now boasting that you also don't have to read the docs because the LLM wrote the code?

I mean, it's literally the cause of their irreversible production deletion, in a link that you replied to, and you state you do the same?

Re:A.I. is creating engineers who can't think without it by lukan on Monday April 27, 2026 @01:32PM (#47924622)
It depends on the project. Anything high stake, I verify myself. But also with simple things it is still way faster having a agent dig through it, quote me relevant sections and me evaluating if it is sound, or not.
Re:A.I. is creating engineers who can't think without it by enraged_camel on Monday April 27, 2026 @07:18AM (#47920139)
>> You let them write code that runs in prod, which is the same thing with extra steps.

The “with extra steps” is doing a lot of work in that sentence.

Re:A.I. is creating engineers who can't think without it by habinero on Sunday April 26, 2026 @09:53PM (#47916879)
> if I made a very clear spec - I can be almost sure

That "almost" is doing a lot of heavy lifting here. This is just "make no mistakes" "you're holding it wrong" magical thinking.

In every project, there is always a gap between what you think you want and what you actually need. Part of the build process is working that out. You can't write better specs to solve this, because you don't know what it is yet.

On top of that, you introduce a _second_ gap of pulling a lever and seeing if you get a sip of juice or an electric shock lol. You can't really spec your way out of that one, either, because you're using a non-deterministic process.

Re:A.I. is creating engineers who can't think without it by lukan on Monday April 27, 2026 @05:20AM (#47919395)
Well, unfortunately it is the same with real humans who happen to be non-deterministic as well. If I give them a task, I can be allmost sure, they will do it. But even humans can have unexpected psychotic breakdowns and do destructive stuff like deleting important databases.

So right now, humans are for sure more reliable. But it is changing. There are things I already trust a LLM more than a random or certain known humans.

Re:A.I. is creating engineers who can't think without it by byzantinegene on Monday April 27, 2026 @04:02AM (#47918918)
your spec is a guideline, not something the LLM has to adhere to. it is definitely not guaranteed to work without error
Re:A.I. is creating engineers who can't think without it by lukan on Monday April 27, 2026 @05:20AM (#47919401)
Are humans guaranteed to work without error?