Does vibe coding sort of work at all?

Submitted ⁨⁨9⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago⁩ by ⁨secretlyaddictedtolinux2@lemmy.world⁩ to ⁨[deleted]⁩

Hi, I am a computer nerd. I also took a computer programming class and got the highest score in the class, but I never followed up with advanced classes. Recently, I’ve thought of different ideas for software I’d like to try. I’ve heard about vibe coding. I know real programmers make fun of it, but I also have heard so much about it and people using it and paying for it that I have a hard time believing it writes garbage code all the time.

However, whenever I am trying to do things in linux and don’t know how and ask an LLM, it gets it wrong like 85% of the time. Sometimes it helps, but a lot of times it’s fucking stupid and just leads me down a rabbit hole of shit that won’t work. Is all vibe coding actually like that too or does some of it actually work?

For example, I know how to set up a server, ssh in, and get some stuff running. I have an idea for an App and since everyone uses smart phones (unfortunately), I’d probably try to code something for a smart phone. But would it be next to impossible for someone like me to learn? I like nerdy stuff, but I am not experienced at all in coding.

I also am not sure I have the dedication to do hours and hours of code, despite possible autism, unless I were highly fucked up, possibly on huge amounts of caffeine or microdosing something. But like, it doesn’t seem impossible.

Is this a rabbit hole worth falling into? Do most Apps just fail all the time? Is making an App nowadays like trying to win a lotto?

It would be cool to hear from real App developers. I am getting laid off, my expenses are low because I barely made anything at my job, I’ll be getting unemployment, and I am hoping I can get a job working 20-30 hours a week and pay for my living expenses, which are pretty low.

Is this a stupid idea? I did well in school, but I’m not sure that means anything. Also, when I was in the programming class, the TA seemed much, much smarter at programming and could intuitively solve coding problems much faster due to likely a higher IQ. I’m honestly not sure my IQ is high enough to code. My IQ is probably around 112, but I also sometimes did better than everyone on tests for some reason, maybe because I’m a nerd. I’m not sure I will have the insight to tackle hard coding problems, but I’m not sure if those actually occur in real coding.

source

Comments

Sort:hotnew top

xavier666@lemmy.umucat.day ⁨7⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
Think of LLMs as the person who gets good marks in exams because they memorized the entire textbook.

For small, quick problems you can rely on them (“Hey, what’s the syntax for using rsync between two remote servers?”) but the moment the problem is slightly complicated, they will fail because they don’t actually understand what they have learnt; if the answer is not in the original textbook, they fail.

Now, if you are aware of the source material or if you are decently proficient in coding, you can check their incorrect response, correct it, and make it your own. Instead of creating the solution from scratch, LLMs can give you a push in the right direction. However, DON’T consider their output as the gospel truth. LLMs can augment good coders, but it can lead poor coders astray.

This is not something specific to LLMs; if you don’t know how to use Stackoverflow, you can use the wrong solution from the list of given solutions. You need to be technically proficient to even understand which one of the solutions is correct for your usecase. Having a strong base will help you in the long run.

source
FreedomAdvocate@lemmy.net.au ⁨4⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
No, making an app is not just something you can decide you want to do and do it without learning to code.

source
EmilyIsTrans@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨6⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
In my experience, an LLM can write small, basic scripts or equally small and isolated bits of logic. It can also do some basic boilerplate work and write nearly functional unit tests. Anything else and it’s hopeless.

source
ComfortableRaspberry@feddit.org ⁨8⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
I use it as a friendlier version of stackoverflow. I think you should generally know / understand what you are doing because you have to take everything it says with a grain of salt. It’s important to understand that these assistants can’t admit that they don’t know something and come up with random generated bullshit instead so you can’t fully trust their answers.

So you still need to understand the basics of software development and potential issues otherwise it’s just negligence.

On a general note: IQ means nothing. I man a lot of IQ tests use pattern recognition tasks that can be helpful but still, having a high IQ says nothing about you ability as developer

source
- FuglyDuck@lemmy.world ⁨8⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
  
  On a general note: IQ means nothing. I mean a lot of IQ tests use pattern recognition tasks that can be helpful but still, having a high IQ says nothing about you ability as developer
  
  to put this another way… expertise is superior to intelligence. Unfortunately we have this habit of conflating the two. intelligent people some times do some incredibly stupid things because they lack the experience to understand why something is stupid.
  
  Being a skilled doctor or surgeon doesn’t make you skilled at governance. two different skillsets.
  
  source
Dr_Nik@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
People who vibe code are not using free LLMs, they are using custom AI code generation systems they pay subscriptions for. I don’t know which ones work best but I do have a close friend who runs a software company and he just bought subscriptions for all his employees to some system I’ve never heard of because the code it generated drastically sped up their development time.

source
older_code@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨hour⁩ ago
I have successfully written and deployed a number of large complex applications with 100% AI written code, but I micromanage it. I’ve been developing software for 30 years and use AI as a sort of code paintbrush. The trick is managing the AI context window to keep it big enough to understand its task but small enough to not confuse it.

source
OhNoMoreLemmy@lemmy.ml ⁨7⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
You absolutely can’t use LLMs for anything big unless you learn to code.

Think of an LLM as a particularly shit builder. You give them a small job and maybe 70% of the time they’ll give you something that works. But it’s often not up to spec, so even if it kinda works you’ll have to tell them to correct it or fix it yourself.

The bigger the job is and the more complex the more ways they have to fuck it up. This means in order to use them, you have to break the problem down into small sub tasks, and check that the code is good enough for each one.

Can they be useful? Sometimes yes, it’s quicker to have an AI write code than for you to do it yourself, and if you want something very standard it will probably get it right or almost right.

But you can’t just say ‘write me an app’ and expect it to be useable.

source
Mountaineer@aussie.zone ⁨9⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
If you “vibe code” your way through trial and error to an app, it may work.
But if you don’t understand what it’s doing, why it’s doing it and how it’s doing it?
Then you can’t (easily) maintain it.
If you can’t fix bugs or add features, you don’t have a saleable product - you have a proof of concept.

AI tools are useful, but letting the tool do all the driving is asking for the metaphorical car to crash.

source
NigelFrobisher@aussie.zone ⁨7⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
Only for really basic things. I’m trying to use it to build tools in the background while I do real work, but it quickly falls into a pattern of presenting a working product that actually didn’t work at all.

source
Toes@ani.social ⁨8⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
It’s cool for little things when working on an unfamiliar project or learning something new.

But don’t trust one example and read about the features you’re using.

source
Gonzako@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
If you care about it at all, don’t vibe it otherwise go hog wild

source
droning_in_my_ears@lemmy.world ⁨9⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
It works short term. If you have a deadline tomorrow by all means.

Long term you need to be aware of not just the code but the theory behind the code. You can make it work if you’re promoting what you need and read the result, understand it and test it but if we pure vibe coding is probably too much.

source
jol@discuss.tchncs.de ⁨8⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
It already kinda works 95% of the way. But more often than not the last 5% still requires you to understand everything the AI did which can be hard. If it was you implementing everything, you’d already have the whole context in working memory. I’ve been learning better prompting and getting better at it. I think it thrives in typed languages and where the code base has clear design patterns it can follow.

source
Lumelore@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨4⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
I pretty much only use it to generate boilerplate. I’ve tried using it to learn the syntax of new languages and it kind of works, but in my experience just reading the docs is better even if it seems like a lot of text. Also your IQ really does not matter. You can learn anything as long as you’re willing to put in the time and effort; don’t compare yourself to others it’s fine to go at your own pace. (I’m Autistic also btw)

source