Choose boring technology and LLMs

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2024-11-08 12:30:03

I really like boring technology. Software that has been tested for decades, does what it is supposed to robustly and fast, and is known by every person and machine on the planet. Technology like relational databases and SQL, HTTP, HTML, a well-known programming language. Throw LLMs into that mix, and you've got a potent cocktail!

It’s no wonder LLMs are taking the world by storm: they feel like magic, can do incredibly useful things that we could only have dreamed of (checks calendar) about two years ago, and they’re available to everyone that can write somewhat coherent sentences.

And while we developers are trying to wrangle LLMs into our mental model of how computers work, myself included, basically everyone can now call themselves a prompt engineer and maybe even build digital products that way.

Do you want to know how I keep up with the rapidly changing world of LLMs while also producing useful software? Okay, you already know from the title, but let me spell it out for you here: I don’t engage in a lot of other fancy software.