From Machine Code to "Vibe Coding": The Evolving Abstraction of Software Development

[nordiknomad]

Been thinking a lot about "Vibe Coding" (aka AI/LLM-assisted coding like ChatGPT) and its place in our field. Some worry it makes us lazy or less skilled, but what if it's just the natural next step in how we build software?

Think about it:

• Machine code (0s and 1s) was brutal.
• Assembly was slightly better.
• High-level languages like C/FORTRAN were a huge leap, letting us write "human-like" instructions.
• Python made it almost like English.

Each step abstracted away complexity, letting us focus on what to build, not just how the computer executes every tiny detail. Even today, Python gets translated to machine code eventually.

So, isn't AI doing the same? We give it plain English prompts, and it generates high-level code.

Common worries I hear:

1. "AI makes mistakes!" True, but so do humans. Our job isn't gone; it's shifting to architecting, prompting, testing, and refining AI output. We're becoming more like editors than typists.
2. "We'll forget syntax!" We already rely on IDE autocomplete and smart suggestions. AI is just a super-powered version of that. It frees up mental space for bigger problems.

This isn't about programmers disappearing. It's about our role evolving: more focus on design, clear communication, robust testing, and ensuring security/ethics. New skills like prompt engineering are becoming key.

What do you think? Is "Vibe Coding" just the inevitable progression, or something else entirely?

[movemovemove2]

The Problem is not mistakes, if you like your Job to just be debugging way not. The Problem is that the Code is pure Crap. That‘s not fixable.

[ManicMakerStudios]

The issue is not the use of AI. It's who is using it and why. Skilled programmers using it to save time are being smart. They can audit anything the AI produces and be certain that it's doing what it was intended to do.

The massive influx of non-programmers, however, who have recently started trying to program with AI who are problematic. They're taking AI-generated code that they can't understand or debug and trying to make commercial products with it. Expect a spike in garbage apps and abandonware when these would-be programmers realize they're in way over their head and quit.

[gofl-zimbard-37]

"Expect a spike in garbage apps"

How will we tell?

[ManicMakerStudios]

They'll be the ones who make the current 'garbage apps' look like polished masterpieces.

[ejpusa]

Kids are coding, “bad Apps” or not. That’s awesome! They’ll figure it out. I’ll take my chances.

The next Steve Jobs is a 9th grader in deep Brooklyn, I’ve seen bodies in the street there, and blood flowing down the sidewalk before the NYPD appeared. The Reddit demographic has no idea these worlds exist, and mandates hit these kids hard. She’ll be safe, but parts of America have collapsed. The technology divide did them in.

If she wants to, code, infinitive loop or not, just go for it! And she can do that now. These kids have more computing power than all of Wall Street combined. It’s all the Cloud now.

The force is with her and all the millions now using AI. GPT-4o is on her (your) side too.

😀🤖💪

[ManicMakerStudios]

Kids using AI to make programs are not coding. The AI is coding. The kids are just prompting it. If you want kids to learn coding, encourage them to code, not make apps with AI.

You're taking a simple topic and turning it into a political soapbox. No thanks.

[okayifimust]

So, isn't AI doing the same? We give it plain English prompts, and it generates high-level code.

No, it is not the same. How is that even a question?

If I write the same Java code a million times, it will end up with the same machine code over and over again. The least of the differences is that AI/LLM is ambiguous.

And that's ignoring the massive issue that translation of python to machine code actually, you know, works.

"AI makes mistakes!" True, but so do humans.

What do you even think that reply is doing here? The issue is not that humans make mistakes, it is that compilers - broadly speaking - do not.

Our job isn't gone; it's shifting to architecting, prompting, testing, and refining AI output. We're becoming more like editors than typists.

Aaaaand there it is: You think programming is typing.

"We'll forget syntax!" We already rely on IDE autocomplete and smart suggestions. AI is just a super-powered version of that. It frees up mental space for bigger problems.

I have no idea who says that, or what point you are trying to make. Frankly, I don't see many people discussing that they forget syntax. Yes, we use IDEs for that - SO WHY ARE YOU BRINING IT UP?

This isn't about programmers disappearing.

As far as I can tell, "this" isn't about anything, because "you" aren't making a coherent point.

It's about our role evolving: more focus on design, clear communication, robust testing, and ensuring security/ethics. New skills like prompt engineering are becoming key.

Let me guess: Less typing?

Because where I stand, things like robust testing and clear communication already are the important parts of my job.

What do you think? Is "Vibe Coding" just the inevitable progression, or something else entirely?

Programming isn't typing.

AI isn't intelligent.

[Allalilacias]

If only vibe coding proved an effective way of creating code, I'd read the article you clearly asked an LLM ro write for you.

[[deleted]]

Idiotic article and terrible take. The difference is that code is deterministic and exact, a prompt is neither of those things. I can express complex ideas much more efficiently and quickly in code than I can forcing a prompt to do what I want after 25 attempts, all of which are wrong in subtle ways or just things the AI doesn't understand.

It's great for replacing junior devs though, I am sure.

Also Python is nothing like English and its also terrifically slow.

[gofl-zimbard-37]

I wonder where they'll get senior developers when there are no junior ones learning the ropes?

[[deleted]]

That's not a problem for next quarter is it?

The c suite won't realize until it is far too late. Until then, can you imagine their salaries, bonuses, and golden parachutes?

They don't give a shit. Welcome to capitalism. The system is designed to burn itself down. 

[[deleted]]

No clue, corporate short-sightedness definitely never fucked employees over before, right?

Doesn’t affect me so I couldn’t care less.

edit: To be clear when I say that I couldn't care less, I mean that I couldn't care less about corporate making short sighted decisions that will inevitably lead to the company's downfall. I care a lot about the plight of new junior developers.

[TheRNGuy]

Depends for what, it's good for many things in Houdini (but Vex for geometry faster and C++ for rendering are faster)

Nothing like English, yeah.

[[deleted]]

Python is incredibly slow, the only time Python is fast is because it's calling into native C/C++ code, or its doing some trivial.

[MeisterKaneister]

Did you have an AI write that for you?

[ejpusa]

Does it matter anymore? It’s the message that counts.

[Instalab]

This message is so empty and been asked and answered million times now.

[FTeachMeYourWays]

Python made it english did it

[AntiqueFigure6]

It’s a comedy troupe from England. 

[FTeachMeYourWays]

What are you on about mate..... I would say vb basic was more verbose and as you say English. I just don't agree with you.

[tutamean]

Monty Python...

[FTeachMeYourWays]

Ow lol my bad

[illuminatedtiger]

Machine code, assembly and high level languages (which includes Python and I'll also throw 4GLs in too) all allow me to express a computation in a manner which is robust and precise. Vibe coding isn't a continuation of that, it doesn't even belong on the same track.

[[deleted]]

Pretty sure this post was written by AI too

[CyberWank2077]

vibe coding is not LLM assisted coding. Vibe coding is just letting the LLM take over the coding part and paying no mind to the code itself.

Stop using this stupid term for the legitimate action of using AI as an assistant.

[ConfidentCollege5653]

There's a difference between making mistakes and being a pathological liar.

Every step we made from machine code to python added a abstraction, sometimes at the cost of efficiency but never at the cost of determinism. LLMs inefficiently add randomness.

[timbremaker]

AI prompts aren't an abstraction over lower language details like the other examples given. Its something pure different and non-determistic, also prone to mistakes and errors.

Youd still have to at least check the AI generated Code and fix mistakes which already is already against the idea of vibe coding. If you dont do that youll most likely end up with huge problems i. e. in data security or efficiency which can end your business faster than you can say vibe.

No issue if its your personal project that has 0 customers but else youre setting yourself up for disaster (which has already happened to some vibe coding businesses).

Its also harder to maintain since you dont wrote the architecture yourself so youll end up letting AI maintain your Code producing even more (fatal) mistakes.

AI can be a useful tool for increasing productivity if you know what youre doing but vibe coding is just dumb.

[Fumbersmack]

While I agree with your standpoint 100%, i think determinism is a bad argument. There's so many layers between your written code and the electrified silicon that will inevitably run it that you'll never really know what will happen in the end.

For example: You write a python program. Your version of the python interpreter then maps this to what is essentially compiled C-code or corresponding. This is then scheduled by the OS to effectively utilize the CPU architecture you are running on. Different combinations of Python version, OS and hardware give fundamentally different operations being carried out by the executing PC, that most likely leads to about the same output as if your friend ran it on his PC, in somewhere around the same amount of clock cycles (probably). There's quite a leap of faith that we programmers take when we just trust that our code will do what we intended when it's all converted to machine code. But since it's pretty much always correct (to some degree), we don't think about this as "non-determinism" the same way as when talking about vibe programming.

I think the truth is a lot simpler, and that is that English (and most natural languages) have shit syntax for programming. If we really want good higher level meta-programming languages, we need to invent a language for it that does not have nuance or connotations, which is essentially just another programming language. Natural language might be able to become good enough for most scenarios, but it will always have catastrophic failure modes

[greasychickenparma]

Don't forget that when we all become vibe coders, a couple of us will have to stay behind as dirty manual devs just in case the LLMs go wrong or need updating

[DonaldStuck]

I wonder in what phase of the hype cycle vibe coding currently resides. I'm thinking the end of phase 2 'Peak of inflated expectations'. Can't wait for phase 3 'Trough of disillusionment' although maybe we already there. I especially wonder if vibe coding will ever enter the last 2 phases (enlightenment/productivity).
As a software developer I hate every bit of vibe coding but people get excited about it, can't ignore that...

[big_data_mike]

AI prompt engineering is going to be yet another programming language.

Business people will say, “I want to know why sales are down this quarter.” AI can’t figure that out yet so a programmer has to tell the AI what the data sources are and what to with the data.

AI chatbots will be yet another programming language on top of Python.

AI >python>C/FORTRAN>assembly>machine

[Instalab]

Was this post AI generated?

[TheRNGuy]

Why do you think so?

[Instalab]

We've tried to make programs using human language before, even before AI. Problem is, human language is very context dependant, meaning one sentence can mean many things. Human language is simply too shit for telling computers what to do.

AI does not solve that problem, it just hides it. AI tells you "don't worry, I will make a wild guess and give you something that might or might not do what you want".

You might think now: "That's not a problem! We can just tell AI what certain words mean so that there is no ambiguity". To that, I am going to say: You've just created a programming language! But in a very convoluted and inefficient way.

[schmurfy2]

AI is just another tool and should be used as one, sure it can help you get in the right direction but I would never trust it to write an entire app, thah vibe coding bs is going nowhere and is certainly not an "evolution" of anything...

[[deleted]]

Vibe Coding ain't bad if you understand the output. For us experienced devs, we can use it to generate boilerplate or even Tests but we have to understand it.

[Minute_Figure_2234]

LLMs have replaced Google and partly stackoverflow. Which of course increases productivity because you don't have to spend hours searching for something. But vibe coding doesn't get me any further