devnull3

For me the way manual gears are calibrated at present, it is difficult to maintain speed at 20mph. It is very easy to overshoot compared to 30mph.

yeah. The snapshot of Java in my head still needs main() to be defined in a class.

A lot of it is to do with abstraction and reusability. E.g A third party lib uses hashmap for implementation but for my use-case an array would have suffice (like small number of integers over specific range). Since the 3rd party lib is essentially an implementation for union of many scenarios whereas I need only a specific set of it. This results into inevitable bloat.

The flip side is that you write all of the layers of your software and control the bloat. This now becomes an expensive option.

I think Fabrice is what is known as 10x engineer. They do exist.

There is not only depth but also breadth in the projects he has created.

Govt minister has rejected this as a rumour [1]

[1] https://www.livemint.com/politics/india-vs-bharat-row-govt-r...

lol ... it seems it is same as forgetting password of your password manager.

Frequent usage helps to retain the memory. Also, in my case my wife uses it so its two people remembering instead of one.

Do not write your real password. Instead modify it in certain way which is easy to remember:

E.g real password is "xB6fqmd$a90". Apply algo: swap 2nd and last char. So store it as: "x06fqmd$a9B"

This algo should be easy to remember and there infinite ways to come up with your own algo.

Even if your passwords are exposed there is additional protection.

In other words you have your own simple symetric encryption with algo being the secret.

Writing code is just one part of the overall list of things that an engineer does. Infact, barring the early versions of product/project more time is spent elsewhere in subsequent versions. With code it is more reading than writing new code. Other things on which time is spent are:

1. What needs to be built? What is feasible?

2. Investigations (bug reports, production issues, performance issues, etc)

3. Quality control (code reviews, writing tests)

I am only listing things which require considerable thinking and multi-domain skills. So LLMs (as of now) really only helps with one part of overall things to do.

Also, Rate of code generation with AI >> Rate of effective code review. So the bottlenecks will still be humans.

PS: About quality control: I think AI writing code and generating the test code is not desirable. If the underlying LLM has issues even the test code will have issues. Generating boilerplate is one thing but the key things about the tests (i.e. inputs/scenario & things to check) needs much better curation. This needs human intervention.

As a big fan of UPI, I have a concern if people became too much dependent on it. What happens when there is a power outage for extended period of time (due to war, natural calamity, grid failure, etc)?

Most shops in India do not have backup power provisioned.

I see productivity gains in software development but no full replacement (yet). Writing code is just one part of the overall list of things that an engineer does. Infact, barring the early versions of product/project more time is spent elsewhere in subsequent versions. With code it is more reading than writing new code. Other things on which time is spent are:

1. What needs to be built? What is feasible?

2. Investigations (bug reports, production issues, performance issues, etc)

3. Quality control (code reviews, writing tests)

I am only listing things which require considerable thinking and multi-domain skills. So LLMs (as of now) really only helps with one part of overall things to do.

Edit: Also, Rate of code generation with AI >> Rate of effective code review. So the bottlenecks will still be humans.

PS: About quality control: I think AI writing code and generating the test code is not desirable. If the underlying LLM has issues even the test code will have issues. Generating boilerplate is one thing but the key things about the tests (i.e. inputs/scenario & things to check) needs much better curation. This needs human intervention.

I tried:

Question/Task: Write a lock implementation in Rust

I got this (lol):

    use std::sync::Mutex;

    struct Lock {
        mutex: Mutex<()>,
    }

    impl Lock {
        fn new() -> Lock {
            Lock {
                 mutex: Mutex::new(()),
            }
        }

        fn lock(&self) -> MutexGuard<()> {
            self.mutex.lock().unwrap()
        }

        fn unlock(&self) {
            self.mutex.unlock();
        }
    }

Meta has ~$40B as Cash-on-Hand [1]. Why does it need to raise this money via bonds?

[1] https://companiesmarketcap.com/meta-platforms/cash-on-hand

I will add two more:

1. Your team is not your family. I have worked in environments where such characterizations exist.

2. When there is a conflict between teams the boss says "Guys we all are one team". No we are not. I understand to be co-operative & understanding but there is a limit to which a team is supposed to cover for incompetance or intransigence of other teams. The bosses in this case simply do not want to have hard conversations with their peers and to the management above. They just push down to ppl below to "resolve-the-problem-somehow".

Highly recommend videos from Anuja Kamat:

What is Raag? => https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBtFt3HUkT0

Concept of 'Swara'- Hindustani, Carnatic and Western theory of swara => https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-nUTYRyuqk

(the entire video series has a nice, casual way of explaining things. Grab a coffee and enjoy)

> Prashanth Abd al-Rahman (SO CEO)

The name is Prashanth Chandrasekar or am I missing something?

> Astound your friends! Confuse your enemies!

... more like your friends will curse you and your enemies will watch with glee that you are using C++

The block device may not be physical one. Instead it could be software like NBD. So there is really no way of knowing unless you know what exactly you are writing into, which actually breaks the abstraction.

I tried "Trump" and "Biden" out came the answer = "indifference" :)

> The primary beneficiaries of those low-cost services seem to be the upper deciles

Not necessary. For example, NHS is used by a large cross-section of the society. Another example are council services like picking up garbage. You will notice there is a substantial deterioration in these services.

> semi-skilled industry are now likely looking for jobs in other semi-skilled industries

There is a massive shortage of labour in hotels, farms, construction

> rent inflation and increases in the cost of real estate

Yes it does. But this is because of lack of housing supply. Govt is missing new housing targets every year since 2001 [1]. The focus should be to increase the pie instead of being a zero-sum game. The right migrants help you achieve this.

Also, the UK's birth rate is below replacement level [2] and with life expectancy high, UK will increasingly need more tax payers to fund the current standard of living .

[1] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/61407508

[2] https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsde...

Construction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQPGe6HQlZI

Hotels,pubs,etc: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/food-and-drink/features/british-...

Documentary: Britain's Unemployment Crisis | A Very British Job Agency | Channel 4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVH6pgKyZvE

Taxis/Uber (anecdotal): I rarely see proper english uber drivers.

Although it UK appears to be a democracy but in reality it is not. One of its true test is whether the people make the govt implement the key policies they want or whether the will of the people is truly reflected in the way govt conducts its business. It seems there is a big disconnect.

The general sentiment amongst people that no one listens to their plight & problems. I have felt this sentiment since Tony Blair's days. There appears to be a permanent establishment which influences the key policy making no matter which party forms the govt. This is not democracy.

This has resulted into feelings like nothing radical is going to happen to reverse the decline of the British empire.

> immigration sentiment in the Midlands

Like it or not, UK needs (skilled & semi-skilled) immigrants. There are jobs which the citizens do not want to do but still expect world-class, low-cost services. This is where semi-skilled people which used to come from Europe stopped after the brexit.

To fund the welfare system, NHS, old-age care, the govt needs money. This is where high tax paying, skilled immigrants come in.

The govt is not doing much to attract the relevant people (unlike Germany, Canada for example)

Actually it is [1] [2]

[1] Synonyms of artificial has "faked" : https://www.thesaurus.com/browse/artificial

[2] Synonyms of fake has "artificial": https://www.thesaurus.com/browse/fake

I guess C++ is the new COBOL.

When fresh out of college, I used to pride myself knowing C++. I used to revel in its complexity because it made me feel a cut above the rest. How naive & stupid I was.

I have not worked in C++ for a long time, I cannot climb the mountain of complexity again.

Some of these companies have "code-of-ethics" document which is mandatory for every employee to read. I had to read & acknowledge as a freshman software engineer at a firm which abused visa-on-arrival for work purposes.

The sheer hypocrisy is mind-blowing!

I think there is still time to course-correct. It is UK's bad luck that none of the political parties have any meaningful to offer.

Also, UK is stuck in a weird spot where I think lot of people know what needs to be done [1] but those things are so much under the shadow of brexit that it is unpalatable to talk about it in public. No one is willing to call spade a spade.

[1] Rejoining EU, NHS reforms, Immigration reforms, etc

> Nuclear powers

meh. It is a deterrence at best. Contributes nothing in terms of economic might.

> Soft power

Agree. The royal family which was a major attraction seems to be on wane (imo) after Queen's death

> permanent UN security council member

This is rooted in post-World-War-2 setup. If the council had to be setup fresh today, UK will not figure in top 5 for sure. There are many countries which are more deserving.

> Brexit has been an act of astonishing self-harm

Agree.

> Talking about "trying to survive" is a bit ridiculous.

Agree here too.

The key thing is that UK is declining. Its the trend that is important here.

I would say do not lose sight of the big picture. The topmost responsibility of parents is: To prepare them for adult-hood.

The following cross-cuts anything the child decides to do in future:

1. Being mentally tough

    * Dealing with success & failures
    
    * Dealing with conflicts

2. Money

    * Importance of money & saving

    * Importance of investing

3. Communication skills

    * Focus on effectiveness of communication

    * Importance & ability to sell

Edit: Its fine that as a parent you might not be well versed with all of the above. I am certainly not. Learn along with them. I make my deficiency in certain things e.g ability to sell as example to my kids to not to become like me.

Edit2:

If you have male child:

   * Teach them how to be respectful towards women

If you have girl child:

   * Teach them to be financially independent

To both:

   * Teach them that beauty is not permanent. It has short shelf-life and it quickly loses its utility after ~35. All that remains in later age is personality.

Ironically, this reminds me of a quote from a French mathematician, philosopher:

“All of humanity's problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone.” -- Blaise Pascal

Anecdotal experience: The people in my circle who are not in tech industry are having schadenfreude when it comes to tech layoffs. The sentiment is "look-at-these-high-earning-hotshots" ... who is laughing now? Extending to wider people (like journalists, commentators, etc) this is one of factor behind newsworthiness.

> have tech layoffs always been happening during financial 'bad times'?

Yes. Although in this case, a lot of companies over-hired in last 2-3 years and hence I feel current round of layoffs are just the beginning. There will be more.

> I remember the dotcom bust

I think compared to dotcom era, tech is much more tightly coupled in our daily lives. Whatever can be digitized will be digitized. Whatever can be automated will be automated. So tech is here to stay and hence I would expect a revival in late 2024-early 2025.