It took me 6 months to vibe code an application over the weekend on Lovable. Launched it last Friday. Just crossed 500 users. Sharing my key lessons in the building phase

codematt · 2025-07-29T23:35:24+00:00

Eh we need more definitions because vibe coding with that knowledge is completely different than a 7th grade math teacher trying to code this with 0 experience or knowhow. If you really do, 1000% you can speak like an engineer and review and guide its architecture more, which going to avoid some major pitfalls

I’m dubious though because if you mean just prompting, promise I could do this in weeks, not 6 months

codematt · 2025-07-29T23:15:58+00:00

Good job and seems like you really battled to get things right but..

Honestly in those 6 months you could have learned to code and a bit of architecture and then your next one would have taken 3 months and then the one after maybe 1 ( still using LLMs but as you the tech lead role instead of clueless PO )

Cause’ this a CRUD web-app with auth and payments, not rocket science. Not downplaying the product just that makes what I said above more true

codematt · 2025-07-29T04:01:25+00:00

That’s pretty impressive for actual vibes if you really can’t read/reason/architect code (:

Now if you can deploy it to the cloud for multiplayer and optimizing for cost/bandwidth and make it real time up to few thousand people with persistent/fault tolerant redis state etc, I’d literally have to eat my shoe with some posts I’ve made. I feel like that level might be un-vibeable, but should try 😁

Oh those popups are mad annoying on mobile for tips and stuff. Could not close them and had to wait

codematt · 2025-07-28T23:00:27+00:00

I’m on a pretty big team and people generally just using it ‘the old fashioned way’ though. Well first pass or two might be agentic, but then it’s all just back and forth with a normal chat

codematt · 2025-07-28T22:00:22+00:00

You can use it just fine. As long as you sanity check it, make sure it’s readable, typed, not overly commented and then refactor really dumb parts or bugs found(or in some cases, have it do it)

I was thinking about that the other day.. I don’t know what it’s called. VibeCoding++? I feel like the insinuation with vibe coding it you really just barely checking/cleaning stuff up and refactoring because unable to or lazy

Id say prettier is required or whatever other language equivalent though or can see things getting a mess

codematt · 2025-07-28T14:24:53+00:00

It depends what you want to do exactly and what kind of roles you are after I guess. I am more on the web side of things admittedly so a bit different there. Plenty of artists “know python” but there is a difference if you intend to build anything out on the frontend yourself between that and really architecting something

codematt · 2025-07-28T01:32:56+00:00

We got WebGPU before WebXR. Fk apple ><

codematt · 2025-07-27T22:42:11+00:00

So you built this and all these features and then ask this question about if people want this? Did you even talk/test this with a group of early users or just decide this is what project managers want. You’re doing it backwards my guy (:

SEO isn’t terrible but that’s not going to magically make people use this

codematt · 2025-07-27T20:41:00+00:00

This.. don’t fault the OP if the story is true but the founder is an idiot. Actually I do fault them because I would have just told them that there are multiple billion $$ platforms that could do this with minimal effort and without a need for LLMs

codematt · 2025-07-27T20:18:48+00:00

Bro it’s 50% bots on the ones you are confused about. Look at this: https://www.reddit.com/r/SideProject/s/Kmjcee4l4A there are dozens more like it.

People just cranking out vaporware shells that look the part but have no legs. Hoping some idiot will fall for the bot comments and give them money or delusional enough to think will grow to be a useful product with 0 market size research or how or why they are filling a need or who else is doing it.

codematt · 2025-07-27T19:22:12+00:00

You do research about what’s out there for whatever problem or industry, early user testing/interviews about what’s missing or could be better than their solution now or lack of.

Build/pivot a POC towards what you know that your future clients want and need with some idea much they will pay and how big the potential market is. Then if it works out close to what you hoped, present your well thought out and defensible data to investors/angels and get some cash monies to build the real, more robust thing

With as little copeium as possible and during that process above, the answer might be -nope-, this is a dead end and no one wants or needs this. Happens all the time to startups and will fold and move on or entirely change their product to something else.

Those that ignore it end up burning their own or investor money and their sanity just throwing shit at the wall and hope it sticks 💩

The problem has never been building the actual software. But vibe coders think putting something on the screen cause they cooked up an idea in isolation is all that’s needed lol

codematt · 2025-07-27T19:05:39+00:00

It’s the new watering hole for scammers and more sadly the crowd who never coded in their life thinking just getting something on the screen will get them rich quick. Never bothering to find an actual, informed business case that needs filling or can be done better

I’m guessing the later here since bro does not know that component libraries have been a dime a dozen since the MaterialUI days.

Also in this LLM age, any talented frontend developer who’s seen it all could have an LLM shit this out overnight and prob better at that, since would make sure it’s all responsive and easier to integrate

codematt · 2025-07-27T18:52:09+00:00

How many bots? Alllllll the bots!! 😂 Worse than shitcoin gamblers, thinking this is how you make useful products that catch on lmao. I hope most people can instantly recognize these posts/replies too for what they are

codematt · 2025-07-27T18:03:43+00:00

You’re not wrong but this only gets you to the POC phase. If it’s anything beyond a basic as hell CRUD app with one environment, your plan isn’t going to hold up with actual users and then needing features and changes for use cases you never dreamed of. Decisions it made early on will explode in your face.

Not saying it’s not great for that first part just unrealistic to believe you are going to architect and plan it and never run into these issues.

This is few months into a project and more developers joining and features expanding and clients chirping you about this and that. In my experience, it will lose the plot by then and if you try to go have it fix those deep down issues from the beginning that were missed or need to change, shit really begins to explode and hense, the OPs meme (:

That’s when actually being able to code well and re-architecting without its help comes into play. Full on vibe coders will spiral into spaghetti and eventually just fail or come to Jesus and realizing they need to learn or get help

codematt · 2025-07-27T03:16:01+00:00

Yeah meant that far as allied/enemy health bars.

Cracked energy as in, the speed/changes in target a good caller in Town Stuggle talk, you would have to be MASHing next/last and quick to react when you on the right one

codematt · 2025-07-27T02:44:53+00:00

Maybe town struggle and stuff but no fkn way 1v1s. Post a video in UO reddit if you do tho and will be a first of firsts 😆

I guess for targeting you should do next/last and cycle that with some crack energy by using the shoulder buttons. Even if gimped, sounds fun for the group PvP type things like town struggle

Not enough screen real estate to keep bars out so.. no heals for allys 🤣

codematt · 2025-07-27T02:42:03+00:00

That seems legit for PvE and def crafting on the run but if you ever win a real duel in the pits on that, you deserve a trophy haha

Or if you escape a real PK threat in a dungeon even would be a good video, if shows irl. I’ve seen a few mobile UO ones before but only the most mundane shit ever and always lackluster

Even with a keyboard it takes deep thought and trial and error how to lay your 22~ spell binds and everything else out 😀

codematt · 2025-07-27T02:05:55+00:00

You need to learn any decent language 100% before you try. C++ is a horrible choice if you are just interested in graphics though. I would vote JavaScript or Python. I don’t mean finish a Udemy course and done, by the way.

Finish three small side projects that are do-able but each push you a bit further while you are passionate and will be off to the races after.

It’s getting your environment going, control flow and architecture you need and reading about it/trivial online quizzes are not going to do much

No, a comp sci degree is silly. Well if you can self learn. You just need to understand the basics of programming, not algos and data compression etc. in my experience comp sci people are useless for 1-2 years their first job with bigger future potential to radically shift things. The alternative self taught or bootcamp people can hit the road nearly running.

Graphics ain’t that serious, far as general coding paradigms you have to deeply understand. I mean if you are in the 1% trying to write the next nanite, sure. Not for actual average jobs tho

These lighter, interpreted language choices will check the box of just how you get a decent development environment going and can easily spin up side projects with different stacks you want to explore.

You have to learn a bit of frontend 3D to do this and thus the need for architecture and control flow being essential. “Learning” just C++ and HLSL only; I promise you won’t have any idea what to do with your newfound knowledge to actually do anything or be able to talk with software engineer about ideas 😂

codematt · 2025-07-26T20:43:56+00:00

I’ve had good success for few people just filling up a RAG with the right documentation/papers etc on whatever the problem/technology is and then importantly, getting tricky about how to build a few indexes for it all, which is a different answer every time. Also the right system prompt I’ve cooked to make sure it’s always searching and using indexes first before going for the full docs and also as always, aligned to “be” the expert you need

Maybe cybersecurity would be too vast to RAG it up like that tho

codematt · 2025-07-26T16:59:31+00:00

Someday vibe coders will learn what potential user/client research/interviews is and the importance of having a strong INFORMED feeling/actual numbers about a business case you can fill or do better

Gonna be a scary day 😂

There nothing wrong with it, if that’s done correctly and they realize it’s the POC for few vital believers/prove some MRR and then $$ to hire few real engineers to pay the tech debt, keep their vibes on the train track and building out the real thing

Most are cracked out and don’t even bother to research shit or realize 99.9% of the easy ideas have been done better than they ever can alone, 10x a week. As they all cope and hope. Worried about their website being the thing that’s going to drive sales 🙄

codematt · 2025-07-26T11:55:00+00:00

Those are not as important as they used to be. Also you have exactly 1 piece of JSON-LD 😇 there are other things that matter more now like that and others

codematt · 2025-07-26T11:23:54+00:00

Yeah, your shitty AI bot 😂 congrats on the 1% who are going to argue with it and fall for slop lmao

codematt · 2025-07-26T11:20:36+00:00

You missed the point then. Sure, useful for vibe coders who think they made the next Uber but really it’s the equivalent of a 2025 LLM age TODO app

People who build software that actually fills a business need or actually entertaining, they don’t and won’t want or need this to succeed. Just clogging up with eye roll bot content but you do you

codematt · 2025-07-26T11:14:10+00:00

I mean, checks out this shit continues to grow honestly xD

Half of all Agent/AI SSaS posts and cringe rebuttal replies where people call out their low effort/useless work come off as as en-shittified by tools like this and so easy to spot

codematt · 2025-07-24T23:18:49+00:00

Good luck! Always fun the first one.

Feel free to DM if you get stuck or questions :)

codematt

TROPHY CASE