Comment on When did programming become "coding"?
masterspace@lemmy.ca 5 days ago
It’s probably predominantly because of the switch to mobile computing / smartphones being dominant, and everyone referring to them there as “apps” / applications instead of programs.
i.e. If you write a mobile app with a function-as-a-service backend, you will never compile what someone would refer to as a “program”, so calling yourself a “programmer” (as-in, someone who makes programs) feels inaccurate and a not helpful description for people. “Coder” (as-in, someone who writes code) is a vaguer in terms of the type of code you write and more accurate in terms of what you spend your time producing.
dev_null@lemmy.ml 3 days ago
How is a mobile app or a function-as-a-service not a program though? They are clearly programs, at least to me.
masterspace@lemmy.ca 3 days ago
If you’re a user who grows up using one, and then starts following instructions on how to build one, when are you going to come across the word program?
It will be app, maybe application, saas software, functions a service, compute as a service etc etc. Hell what most people think of as an “app” is really a collection of applications all working together.
dev_null@lemmy.ml 3 days ago
I see what you mean now, you were talking about what words people use, not whether the definition of the word program applies to something.