this post was submitted on 16 Mar 2025
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Yes, but this may be a symptom of an issue I've been seeing with younger programmers; they've siloed themselves so specifically into whatever programming they "specialize" in, that they become absolutely useless at dealing with absolutely anything else related to their job. And exasperating this issue is the fact that they've grown up with systems that "just work". Windows, iOS, and android are all at the point where fucking around with hardware issues is very uncommon for the average person.
Asking this guy to solve a hardware problem is like asking hime to tune a carburetor. He likely has not the slightest clue how to start.
In my experience, a lot of software dev degree paths basically don't even have relevant classes on hardware at all. Classes on hardware are all in IT Helpdesk and Network Admin degree paths whereas the software dev students are dumped straight into Visual Studio right off the bat with no relevant understanding of the underlying hardware or OS.
You don’t teach a farmer how an internal combustion engine works. Computers are tools to software engineers. What they need to know is how to operate them, not how to maintain them.
I’m not sure how well that analogy holds up. Farmers are usually pretty well versed in mechanical systems. To the point that now that John Deere has been screwing them over on right to repair that some farmers are even becoming versed in computer programming so they can flash the firmware on their tractors.
Farmers can build a two stroke from parts.
No, but if a farmer’s tractor is overheating (as in the gard drive conparison), I’m sure they could diagnose it.
Let me rephrase: most farmers I know could build a two stroke from parts
Haha, hell yeah. Saw your reply at the same time op responded to my message and misinterpreted. Agreed.
I never said that it was impossible for a farmer to learn things outside their immediate field. Just like computer programmers often have knowledge of hardware and the general technology stack.
My point, to make it explicit to a few of the illiterates who’ve replied to my comment so far, is that it is not necessary to teach a web developer how a goddamn CPU works. They can gain nothing from that knowledge because there are at least 3 levels of abstraction between JavaScript and assembly.
no but a web dev should have some knowledge basis on what the ever living fuck their AIDs code fuelled by nothing but the cheapest source of caffeine and brain damage they have even does.
This is the entire reason why half of the internet is just broken, stupid developers who don't know how anything works, but know how to code, making dogshit implementations of anything and everything they can get their hands on.
It doesn't matter that the learning is segmented, you should STILL be learning about computer hardware and it's architectural choices, it's literally the reason why programming languages work the way that they do.
Operating your tools and being able to maintain and repair your tools are the unequivocally essential skills for everyone in every single industry.
If you can't, you are not a professional.
The concepts of machine logic, registers/lookups/etc are essential for every programmer. If you don't have a clear idea about how the simplest CPU functions, you don't have any basis of understanding the abstractions in front of you, scripting in JS. Not a professional.
And my point is that the example you used does not make the point you are trying to make, but rather the opposite. I get what you’re saying, it just doesn’t apply to farmers and mechanics.