Why CHOP Is Changing How We Think About Programming?
I recently read an article by Steve Yegge called The Death of the Stubborn Developer. One idea really caught my attention: “Chat-Oriented Programming (CHOP).” It’s cool but also a bit hard to swallow for someone like me, who grew up in the hardcore coding days.
How Programming Has Changed
Back in the day, building a website meant hand-coding HTML tables for layouts. Forget CSS grids or JavaScript frameworks — those didn’t even exist. Over time, things got easier: libraries like jQuery, frameworks like React, and lifesavers like StackOverflow came along. Now we’ve got ChatGPT and other AI tools making development lightning-fast.
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But here’s the catch: many developers today don’t understand the basics of how computers work. And you know what? Maybe that’s okay. Just like I didn’t need to know how hardware circuits work back then, today’s devs don’t need to go deep into memory management or algorithm optimization. Still, I can’t help but feel we’re losing touch with the craft of programming.
What Are We Gaining and Losing?
Every tech leap makes life easier, but we always trade something for that convenience. Think about it: living in a jungle gives you fresh air and survival skills, but it’s hard. Moving to a city brings comfort but disconnects you from nature. The same thing’s happening in coding. Tools like ChatGPT and other Large Language Models (LLMs) are speeding up development but also pulling us further from the nitty-gritty of code.
My Way of Teaching
So, how do we stay relevant without losing our roots? Here’s my 3-step teaching plan:
- Master the Basics: Start with core programming — no frameworks, no libraries. Just raw code. Learn the fundamentals like loops, conditionals, and algorithms.
- Limit AI Usage at First: Don’t jump straight to ChatGPT for everything. Solve problems the old-fashioned way to build real problem-solving skills.
- Understand the Tools: Once you’ve got the basics, dive into how LLMs like ChatGPT actually work. Learn how to use them smartly instead of depending on them.
You need to know the whole spectrum — from old-school basics to cutting-edge tools like CHOP. But right now, I’m seeing students use ChatGPT for even simple coding assignments. That’s a problem. They need to nail the core concepts first, then learn how to leverage AI.
Why CHOP Matters (and Why Basics Still Matter More)
Steve Yegge is absolutely right: CHOP is fundamentally changing how we approach programming. It allows developers to offload repetitive, mechanical tasks and focus more on design, problem-solving, and higher-level thinking, effectively making AI a collaborative coding partner. But here’s the thing — without a strong foundation in basic coding and problem-solving, you can’t really excel at CHOP. If you face a complex task that can’t be solved with a straightforward prompt, you might even struggle to explain it properly to the AI.
Learning CHOP and mastering LLM tools is essential, but it should go hand-in-hand with core programming knowledge. Just like we learn the alphabet before reading or writing, we must learn the basics of coding before diving into advanced AI-assisted workflows.
Wrapping Up
CHOP is changing the game for developers. It’s making us rethink what it means to be a programmer in the age of AI. Sure, it’s a bit scary for someone like me, but I believe in finding balance. Let’s embrace the future while holding onto the skills that made us coders in the first place.
