{
  "id": 3447029,
  "title": "A year of coding by talking: what I gained and what I lost",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/26/a-year-of-coding-by-talking-what-i-gained-and-what-i-lost",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-08-26T06:35:29.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Dev.to",
    "slug": "dev-to",
    "url": "https://dev.to/tacckim/a-year-of-coding-by-talking-what-i-gained-and-what-i-lost-1p15"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In 2024, the year of AI prevalence, I chose to dive into the world of coding with the help of artificial intelligence. As a fifty-year-old father, I was determined to find financial freedom through an automated trading system, an idea that had been germinating in my mind for years. My initial steps took me to VS Code, where I made use of paid resources to bring my concept to life.\n\nInitially, I relied on GPT and Claude, two AI models, each in turn. However, I quickly realized that both names mattered, as their usage was limited and their results were not always satisfactory. The illusion began to crack when I discovered that changing models led to rewriting the entire code, rather than making targeted edits. This proved to be a major obstacle, as switching AI mid-project was deemed a bad idea.\n\nDespite the challenges, I persevered and eventually settled on Claude. With this model, I set out to automate a repetitive data-entry task at work, which had been causing me and my colleagues stress. The initial efforts were not smooth, as the code grew in length and the AI struggled to maintain track of what was in which file. This led me to merge all the files back into one, despite the growing size of the codebase.\n\nThe automation eventually proved successful, resulting in a single file of over ten thousand lines. However, this outcome was not without its drawbacks. I found myself frustrated with the limits of the AI and its need for clear standards and records. While the data-entry automation worked, the trading system remained elusive, as I was unable to integrate the various tests and verification processes into a cohesive, trading-ready system.\n\nIn conclusion, my year of coding by talking with AI taught me the importance of setting clear standards and maintaining records, not out of dissatisfaction with the tool, but to prepare for its inherent limitations. My journey was marked by both success and failure, ultimately resulting in a deep understanding of the challenges that lie ahead.",
  "summary": "2024 was the year AI was everywhere. The ads, the praise, the feeling that something had already been decided without me. I am in my fifties. I had to decide whether to watch or take part. I decided to take part. I started with VS Code, on a paid plan. I did not have to think about what to build. Something had been sitting in my head for years: an automated trading system. I have lived fifty…",
  "key_points": [
    "A 50-year-old father aimed for financial freedom through automated trading.",
    "Initially used GPT and Claude, but struggled with model switching and code management.",
    "Success in automating data-entry, but failed to develop a cohesive trading system."
  ],
  "editors_take": "Relying on AI for coding forced the writer to adopt clear standards and record-keeping to work around the technology's limitations, a crucial lesson for leveraging such tools effectively.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}