Better Offline CZM Rewind: The Truth About Software Development with Carl Brown
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Nov 26, 2025 Carl Brown, a veteran software developer and host of The Internet of Bugs, shares his insights on the realities of software development. He discusses how writing code is only a fraction of an engineer's job, with critical tasks often undervalued. Carl critiques the reliance on coding LLMs, emphasizing they can't replace experienced engineers and tend to create inconsistent implementations. He warns that management's enthusiasm for AI and shortcuts like 'vibe coding' can compromise software quality. Brown encourages new engineers to focus on testing and understand core systems.
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Coding Is A Small Part Of The Job
- Software development is mostly about defining problems, communication, and long-term thinking rather than typing code.
- Carl Brown estimates only 10–30% of the job is actual code writing, with seniors doing far less direct typing.
LLMs Lack Long-Term Project Memory
- LLMs can't perform sustained, long-term reasoning across many incremental changes in a codebase.
- Brown says long-term sequence building and historical context are core to software work and LLMs fall short.
AI Creates Inconsistent Duplicate Code
- AI-generated code often duplicates functionality inconsistently across a codebase, raising maintenance costs.
- Brown warns inconsistent implementations make bug-finding and fixes far harder than unified shared modules.