AI/Coding/Concept/Balancing Agentic and DIY
AI Development Phases and Building the Coding Engine
- While working on AI/Coding/Technique/Phased Planning/ai-coding dir, had a thought about AI Software Engineering
- Feels like building an engine—a coding engine. Software/Engineering is now the act of building and tuning a specific coding engine, tailored to a specific domain or problem.
- The engine consists of prompts meant to be invoked at specific phases in the software development lifecycle.
- If done well, it could function like a checklist.
- This could increase quality and consistency. Book/The Checklist Manifesto.
Traversal and Resolution in Learning
- Driving everywhere limits the ability of the traveler to notice details in the landscape.
- Slower traversals increase the resolution of time, life, and awareness.
- Agentic coding feels like driving—accelerated but less granular.
- Before motor cars became common, people walked and biked more.
- After cars, personal exploration of the landscape diminished.
- Coding is approaching a similar shift, where implementation is rapid but potentially less thoughtful.
What is the right ratio of AI:DIY coding?
- Implementing something from scratch yields a more detailed mental map.
- Classical Software Engineering fosters struggle, which often leads to better abstractions and simplifications.
- Without this struggle or the signal of felt pain, one may not recognize patterns that lead to cleaner designs.
- It's not a fixed thing. It changes with the season, the repo, the project, the issue.
- Cultivate mindfulness to tune into the signal of when the fulcrum needs to shift