Old screens, new minds

Twenty-five years… A full quarter-century in the information technology sector. From academic podiums to R&D labs, from debugging sessions that lasted until dawn to the moments at the first light of morning when we would shout, “It works!”…

I remember, in the years when I first started the profession, we would go days without sleep because of a missing comma in a line of code. Three or four friends would gather around the screen, coffees would go cold, cigarettes would run out, and our eyes would turn bloodshot. We would examine the same line for hours, asking, “Is it here? Is it there?” And the moment we solved it, that indescribable excitement… We would reach the finish line like a marathon runner, chest puffed out. The taste of that moment was like nothing else.

Now? Now there is artificial intelligence. You write a sentence, and within seconds, clean, proper, and sometimes surprisingly creative code appears before you. Did you make a mistake? It tells you instantly, corrects it, and suggests alternatives. A debug process that used to take days now drops to minutes. Efficiency has increased incredibly, work has accelerated, and projects are coming to life in shorter timeframes.

So why do I have a slight sense of melancholy inside?

Because I miss the “human” side that came with the difficulty of those old times. That collective effort, that shared excitement, that feeling of “we achieved this”… Those small victories that a few friends would celebrate by standing shoulder to shoulder, sweating, and patting each other on the back… Those sincere moments of exhaustion where we would order pizza in the lab at midnight and say, “let’s take one more look.”

Artificial intelligence saves us time, yes. But it seems to take away a bit of the excitement, patience, friendship, and the sense of “discovery” that came with that time. We are no longer working alone in front of a screen; we are working side-by-side with an AI companion. It is very talented, very fast… But it cannot quite provide the warmth of a human who is sweating, cursing, and laughing in front of that old screen.

Perhaps the issue is this: As technology advances, we as humans have started to seek what is “easier.” Yet, what was difficult was often more meaningful. Chasing a bug for days taught you something when you finally found it; not just about code, but about patience, solidarity, and the value of victory in life…

Today, I look at my young colleagues; they are faster, more productive. But sometimes I look for that old “fire” in their eyes. Perhaps I should tell them this:

“Intelligence will give you everything very quickly. But you, every now and then, should also seek the taste of those old difficulties. Because the most beautiful part of technology is what makes it human: effort, excitement, and a shared story…”

Missing the old times is certainly not about rejecting the new. I just want to remind everyone that the nights spent in front of those old screens were warmer than the bright but somewhat colder screens of today.

Perhaps the most accurate thing is this: While thanking artificial intelligence, let us also remember with gratitude our old tired eyes, our trembling fingers, and the moments we hugged each other saying, “We found it!”

Because we are the generation that grew up in those difficult times. And those difficulties brought us to where we are today.

News Source: 12punto