“We build tools to automate tasks.
We automate tasks to avoid manual work.
We avoid manual work… so we can build more tools.”
In the world of software development, this loop feels all too familiar.
The Eternal Dev Paradox
Every developer has felt it:
- You write a script to save you 10 minutes every day.
- You spend 2 days writing that script.
- You proudly remove a manual task from your workflow…
- …only to use that extra time to automate something else.
So I ask:
Are we coding to avoid coding?
It’s a tongue-in-cheek question, but it captures a very real dynamic in the evolution of the web.
The Web Dev Evolution: From Writing Code to Prompting It
Let’s take a quick tour of how we’ve “simplified” front-end development over time:
HTML – Hand-crafted structure
Simple, semantic, static. The web in its rawest form.
JavaScript – Interactive magic
Suddenly, we could manipulate the DOM, validate forms, and respond to events.
jQuery – Do more with less
jQuery made JS tolerable and concise. $() was freedom.
React – UI as a function of state
Component-based, declarative, and dynamic. We stopped “hacking the DOM” and started thinking in state.
Next.js – Frameworks over libraries
Routing, SSR, API routes, SEO — all baked in. Developer experience took center stage.
V0 / AI UI generation – Prompt and go
Now, we type:
“Create a pricing section with a testimonial slider and a CTA.”
And boom — production-ready UI components.
Are we even coding anymore?
The Tools We Create Are Rewriting the Rules
There’s nothing wrong with abstraction — quite the opposite. Abstractions allow us to move faster, reduce bugs, and focus on outcomes. But each new layer also comes with:
- More dependencies
- More magic (and less understanding)
- New mental models to learn
- New edge cases to debug
And while we remove old pain points, we invent new ones.
So, again:
Are we really coding to avoid coding?
Or are we just changing the shape of the code?
What I’ve Learned Along the Way
- Not everything needs to be automated.
- Sometimes writing the same thing twice is easier than building a reusable monster.
- Simplicity scales better than complexity disguised as automation.
- The best dev experience is not always the latest one.
- Sometimes, plain HTML + a sprinkle of JS beats an overengineered stack.
- Coding is not just about output.
- It’s a way of thinking, of shaping ideas into logic. Whether we do that in VS Code or with a prompt — we’re still creators.
Final Thought
“We’re not trying to avoid coding.
We’re trying to get closer to what matters — solving problems.”
So if a tool helps you get there faster, great.
But never forget why you started coding in the first place.
Let’s not just code to avoid coding.
Let’s code to create with intention.
What about you?
Are you excited by how fast things are moving?
Or do you sometimes miss the simplicity of the “View Source” era?
I’d love to hear your take.
