Now is the best time to write code by hand

Practicing code specifically is one of many options for engineers right now. How about other skills? For example, now seems like a good opportunity to start developing deep knowledge in a particular domain, so that when you build AI assisted software in that space, you’re competent enough to know if it’s doing the right thing. Or, develop a better understanding of a range of disciplines, so that when you go to solve problems, you’re aware of them and have more areas to draw from. (The combination is what Valve calls a T-shaped employee I believe.) Also a good opportunity to develop your interpersonal skills.

Totally agree. Especially for commercial or code that adds value. Writing code is just one element of developing quality, robust, software. In the rea world, commercial or production software must be maintained, supported, and must respond to changing user requirements. The human element is critical, unless you’re OK with relying on LLM’s, crossing your fingers, and have no care to support users.

What I've been noticing is the abundance of the same "revolutionary" idea spoon fed by claude to everyone and their mom.

Coding gives the edge in creativity

Yes, I only want hand crafted, artisanal, small-batch, free-range, organic code.

AI atrophies the brain -

https://www.rxjourney.net/how-artificial-intelligence-ai-is-...

I think you'd have to start with 55+ years old and go upward to find an age range where more than 10% of programmers routinely wrote assembler code in their careers.

To find the same for machine code you'd need to start at 65 or older.

and prose, and sketching.

All these things (code, prose, sketching) are about thinking through making.

Is the purpose of this article to say "If you only do one thing, you will likely not excel at other things"? Is there anyone to which this is not an obvious conclusion? Did I miss the point?

such a bad take.