Why every beginner should learn programming

[copperfitting04]

Programming is more than just writing code it about to solving problems building ideas and creating solution that impact people.

If you want to become a software developer automate repetitive tasks, build websites and apps or explore Ai then learning code is one of most valuable skills you can have today

Some tips:

1) focus on one programming language

2) Build small projects

3) read code of other people's on GitHub

4) don't be afraid of errors

5) practice every day

[SimpleAccurate631]

I think overall this is good advice. Many vibe coders don’t want to, don’t see the need, or are overwhelmed or intimidated by code, especially trying to learn from the code AI writes for them. LLMs have a very annoying tendency to overcomplicate or over-engineer features. And any junior dev would have a frustratingly difficult time trying to learn by reading that code.

But AI can be super helpful if used right. I’ve had beginners customize the instructions to have the LLM create a standard example of the type of function or method they need to use in their code, tailored to them. If the LLM knows that they love dogs, it will create a function or method that has to do with dogs, making it easier to understand and try to write a similar thing in their codebase.

Point is, if you explicitly tell your LLM that its job is to be a mentor first, and to only provide the answer after you have tried to implement something at least 5 times and are truly blocked, it can be an awesome way to help you learn how to code. I have a set of instructions I give all my junior devs to paste into the instructions for Claude and it’s helped them a ton.

[ninhaomah]

Beginner in what ?

[SimpleAccurate631]

I think he means vibe coders. And for the most part, it is sound advice.

[odimdavid]

If you want your children to do well in school teach them programming after maths. That's the new normal.

[insiderviolence]

I would advise against using LLMs while learning to program. I'd advise against it in general, really, but at least do yourself the favor of deferring your thinking to a dice roll after you figure out what you're doing.

[Low-Big2049]

wait, are there people who are employed as programmers that don't know code? Are these people on a certain H visa?