AI coding tools unlock small software (via)
I can now hand much of the mechanical work to an AI coding tool, then spend my time fixing the interesting parts.
This has been my experience with vibe coding too. On the surface, my coding agents can produce incredible apps very quickly. Once I start actually trying to use them, there are endless paper cuts to fix.
Programming becomes part of using a computer, whether the user calls it programming or not.
This does seem true. Not everyone will become a "programmer" in this sense, but many many more people will, the same way many people use spreadsheets or other similar tools to get their work done.
Traditionally, the software industry has optimized for products that can support large audiences: companies, engineering teams, sales organizations, and lots of customers who, in aggregate, will pay enough to justify building the product. That makes sense when software is expensive to build.
This is a really interesting way of putting it. Finding people to pay for your software is always the challenge.
Finding someone to write and maintain a narrow program used to be the primary bottleneck. Now, the challenge is recognizing when a “throwaway” tool has stopped being throwaway.
This is a great way to frame all of the ad-hoc development happening now. LLMs writing code is cool and fast for sure, but it can be very very annoying when you need the software produced this way to actually work.
Before building your next program, I recommend you ask three questions:
Does anyone else depend on it?
Can it change or expose important data?
Would work stop if it disappeared tomorrow?
If the answer to all three is no, treat it like an experiment, not a product. Build it quickly, skip the formal engineering process, and expect to delete it.
If the answer is yes, add only the structure you really need. Give it an owner, list its connections, limit its credentials, and make failures visible. Then, have a plan for how it gets repaired, replaced, or retired.
The amount of engineering process should follow the consequences. A disposable tool can stay disposable. A tool people depend on needs an owner, tighter access, and a plan for keeping it working.
I really love this framework, I think more people should adopt it. These are very sensible guidelines for vibe coding.