Dave Copeland Feb 23

The Death of a Software Craftsman (it happens a lot 'round here)

https://naildrivin5.com/blog/2026/02/23/the-death-of-the-software-craftsman.html

AI Abstinence? All in on Agents? Or resign yourself to becoming a niche craftsperson?

The Death of the Software Craftsman

The Death of the Software Craftsman

Naildrivin' 5 - Website of David Bryant Copeland
Show threadCoraline Ada EhmkeFeb 23

@davetron5000 I hate this timeline. I left corporate tech in 2021, and it would have been hard enough to return had not this rug-pull pulled this particular rug. Now I can only code on passion projects or grant-funded work I guess.

I still care about code. Writing code is transformative, and I don't want to lose that. So for me, I guess it's option 3: Embrace Tradition. (But I'm still not calling myself a "craftsman".)

Show threadDave Copeland Feb 23

@CoralineAda I have been a depressive haze for the last few months because of this. I'm not sure if writing this post helps, but I think it does. Though still not sure what this means for me personally.

Craft{er,sman,sperson} - I don't love the term, but "maker" doesn't seem right to me, nor does "artisan", but maybe it's just "coder"?

Show threadCoraline Ada EhmkeFeb 23
@davetron5000 We could recoup “software architect”?
Show threadJared White (ResistanceNet ✊)
@CoralineAda @davetron5000 or perhaps “software poet” 😄
Feb 23 at 9:09pmWeb
Show threadSam Livingston-GrayFeb 23

@jaredwhite @CoralineAda @davetron5000 iirc very early versions of rails docs had examples of a "David" whose job was "code poet"

I thread this particular needle by changing the noun to a verb, which, not coincidentally, helps separate action from identity: I write software. I clean up messes. I help the people around me learn to do those things.