The Non-Programming Programmer

Why Can’t Programmers... Program?

I was incredulous when I read this observation from Reginald Braithwaite: Like me, the author is having trouble with the fact that 199 out of 200 applicants for every programming job can’t write code at all. I repeat: they can’t write any code whatsoever. The author he’s

“I am not a programmer” | Teleogistic

Spend a few minutes in a place where software users interact with software developers – support forums, dev trackers, face-to-face team meetings – and you’re bound to hear this phrase used (or one of its relatives: I am not [a geek|a developer|a coder|tech-savvy], etc). It’s a statement of fact, and a useful statement at that, since the kind of help offered to a “programmer” is obviously quite different from what’s offered to someone who’s not.

Why the fuss about conversational programming?

First, there isn’t much fuss … yet. But there will be.

Programming Still Sucks. — Writing

Sorry Peter. — I'm at a birthday party, and while most people here also work in tech, there's always a Guy with a Real Job. You know, a physical job, building some or other thing people need. And this Guy always asks some variant of the same question: aren't you worried AI is taking your job? I glance around and see a few faces turning around toward us, rolling their eyes ever so slightly before returning to their previous conversation. Yes, this question again.

Coding After Coders: The End of Computer Programming as We Know It

In the era of A.I. agents, many Silicon Valley programmers are now barely programming. Instead, what they’re doing is deeply, deeply weird.

Coding After Coders: The End of Computer Programming as We Know It

In the era of A.I. agents, many Silicon Valley programmers are now barely programming. Instead, what they’re doing is deeply, deeply weird.

Why AI hasn’t replaced software engineers, and won’t

Coding agents as normal technology

Reflections of an "Old" Programmer - Ben Northrop

Framing our programming careers in terms of knowledge accumulation and decay can yield some interesting insights.

Algorithmic Monocultures in Hiring - Stanford Digital Economy Lab

Many employers screen job applicants with algorithms built by the same few algorithm vendors. We hypothesize that algorithmic monoculture leads to the same individuals and members of the same racial groups facing rejection. We acquire and analyze a novel dataset of 3 million applicants submitting 4 million applications where all the applications are screened by algorithms built by the same vendor.

Gergely Orosz on Twitter / X

An under-discussed topic: how the hottest software engineering job of the early 2010s is seeing a steady but ongoing decline the last few years.I'm talking about the native iOS and Android positions. Outside of Big Tech, few startups/scaleups hire for this. Since ~2022? pic.twitter.com/SjDcaD2yEs— Gergely Orosz (@GergelyOrosz) November 3, 2025

nxthompson on Twitter / X

AI is mucking up the job market. Everyone uses AI to write similar cover letters; resumes are all perfect. People apply for zillions of jobs and cheat in Zoom calls. Hiring is now basically AI talking to AI while humans wait to hear nothing back. https://t.co/kyqOotxeAl— nxthompson (@nxthompson) June 2, 2026

The traits of a proficient programmer

Bridging the gap between competence and proficiency

Why AI hasn’t replaced software engineers, and won’t

Arvind Narayanan and Sayash Kappor take on the question of AI job losses through the lens of a profession that is uniquely suited to AI disruption - software engineering. In …

Its Time for a New Programming Language

Today, when compared to any other point in programming history, we find ourselves spoiled for choice when it comes to programming…