GAME CHANGE
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I've developed three programs so far—two of them are web-based applications written in Python. The third is a desktop application I created for music is a digital art tool that lets me manipulate visual parameters and automatically generate MP4 videos into a designated folder. It’s designed to integrate seamlessly with my other music projects. The creative potential here is absolutely astonishing.
When you're working with Claude (or any advanced AI), it's helpful to reflect on everything you've learned and mastered over time. Start by clearly explaining your goals. You’ll likely find that 95% of what you're asking for is handled effortlessly. But as your ideas become more nuanced, you may need to rephrase your requests a few times. That’s part of the fun—watching how the AI adapts, sometimes making small, recurring typos, or even looping through your entire file structure. Occasionally, it might rebuild or duplicate files unexpectedly, which can be both amusing and revealing.
A good practice is to zip up your project periodically, especially after major revisions. While it's rare, things can get messy enough that reverting becomes difficult. Also, be mindful not to ask for things that—even subconsciously—you know aren’t feasible. That kind of clarity will save you a lot of time and frustration.
That’s been my experience so far. Hope it helps others navigating similar creative and technical workflows.
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I've developed three programs so far—two of them are web-based applications written in Python. The third is a desktop application I created for music is a digital art tool that lets me manipulate visual parameters and automatically generate MP4 videos into a designated folder. It’s designed to integrate seamlessly with my other music projects. The creative potential here is absolutely astonishing.
When you're working with Claude (or any advanced AI), it's helpful to reflect on everything you've learned and mastered over time. Start by clearly explaining your goals. You’ll likely find that 95% of what you're asking for is handled effortlessly. But as your ideas become more nuanced, you may need to rephrase your requests a few times. That’s part of the fun—watching how the AI adapts, sometimes making small, recurring typos, or even looping through your entire file structure. Occasionally, it might rebuild or duplicate files unexpectedly, which can be both amusing and revealing.
A good practice is to zip up your project periodically, especially after major revisions. While it's rare, things can get messy enough that reverting becomes difficult. Also, be mindful not to ask for things that—even subconsciously—you know aren’t feasible. That kind of clarity will save you a lot of time and frustration.
That’s been my experience so far. Hope it helps others navigating similar creative and technical workflows.
@stevelinz said in GAME CHANGE:
A good practice is to zip up your project periodically,
A better practice is to not rely on AI. I admit that the pull is strong, but resist and learn how to actually write your own code.
I've been coding for over 45 years. That's right - when I started, I had to find a book that described the language I was using, and had to gleen knowledge without even having the luxury of example code. I think programmers have it way too easy nowadays. (I had to code uphill - BOTH WAYS! - when I was your age.) :)
I tried AI a few times, and in the process of tailoring my prompt, I found that the AI becomes highly sycophantic, essentially claiming that I'm brilliant because I was able to craft an "awesome" prompt.
I tried it yesterday, and told it what I was using (React v19 with typescript), and I actually had to tell it to maintain as much type safety as possible. Even so, if wouldn't give me const functions until I told it to, despite the fact that pretty much everyone that uses typescript in React uses const functions. I haven't looked at the code it churned out yet, because it was just a test to see how it would do, and I already have a solution that I wrote myself. I certainly wouldn't have it write an entire application.
