Build a compiler or small emulator if you want to get better not more web CRUD. But really don't code on your break, i'd say buy some shrooms and walk around the woods.
It's funny how so many people are telling me that I shouldn't be coding while I'm on a break. Do people actually not like it? I really enjoy it!
It may be an age/experience thing. I spent many years coding in my free time, worked on all parts of the stack from boot loaders to single page applications. The magic is kind of gone for me now and I prefer to try to expand my physics and math skills which capture how I used to feel about code.
Ok but you did enjoy coding on your breaks in the past right? So the advice of “don’t code on your break” is more like “do something you enjoy on your break.” Or maybe “beware of contributing to burnout on your break.”
No I think my advice is don't code on your break because coding is boring, repetitive and the culture is shit and it took me too long to realize this.
Yeah I would agree that the magic is kinda fading for me too, but there's always something new in our field. Someone coming up with a new project, a new language, a new idea, something... I don't think it'll ever be completely gone for me!
Sadly I can't work on many meaningful or interesting physics problems in my apartment, so im stuck programming.
Dont ever listen to what people think you should be doing. Just because other people think you work too hard or because they judge you for being too nerdy or w/e the case might be. Who cares (of course they do but... thats a reflection of them), If you want to code in your break then code in your break, and own it. Let them go around taking shrooms or playing world of warcraft, or watch netflix. That's fun for them, you do you. And if anyone asks why you dont know what its like to be on acid then just press ignore/delete and move on. They have no right to condescend because they like shrooming-off more than you do.