think about language level

[catwithlion]

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hello every one i am android developer Abenezar Balcha .i hope you all are doing well .I was quite intuitive about what is going on all the way around specially as developer .we all know that growing and fast moving technological landscape is so hard to adapt ,especially with emergence of even intelligence .for today let's discuss on some issue i had in mind .
what do you think about programming language level in todays development . can we recognize them minor ?is learning syntax and semantic of the language is such messing time?
yes of course I know that there are languages still crucial for even running large product .like python but what about beginner level essence of the language all ?
should you we still concern about normal essence of the language or we just need them subjectively for our goal just for our purpose ?

[KrishnaSaxena108]

Hi @catwithlion !!

Great question!

Programming language syntax and semantics still matter — but the level of depth you need depends on your goals.

For beginners: understanding the basics (variables, control flow, functions, data structures) is essential. Without that, it’s hard to reason about code, even if tools like Copilot can generate it.

For professionals: most of the time, you don’t need to master every corner of a language. What matters more is problem-solving, architecture, and using the right libraries/tools. The language is just the medium.

AI/modern tooling: with intelligent code assistants, the emphasis is shifting — you don’t need to memorize syntax, but you do need to understand what the code does and how to adapt it safely.

Long-term: a solid grounding in at least one language’s “essence” gives you transferable skills. Once you grasp the core concepts, switching between languages is much easier.

👉 So yes, syntax learning can feel like “overhead,” but it’s still the foundation. The deeper priority is developing the ability to think computationally — languages are just tools to express that thinking.

[catwithlion]

you put it well krishna but i think my question little bit subtle .so do you agree that we use programing language subjectively and in the coming years we may even need not to learn some of them?

[KrishnaSaxena108]

I see what you mean — yes, I do think programming languages are becoming more subjective tools than rigid prerequisites. With AI and higher-level abstractions, the emphasis is shifting from “knowing every detail of a language” to “expressing intent and solving problems.”

That said, I don’t think languages themselves will disappear. Even if we don’t need to learn them all deeply, having a grounding in a few helps us reason about what AI or frameworks produce, and gives us control when automation falls short.

So maybe the future is less about mastering many languages and more about choosing one or two anchors, then relying on tooling to bridge the rest.

[catwithlion]

well said krishna !yes i agree with you i insist especially that languages are so much subjective now a day also some languages even become more important in near future but i have worry that this has LIMIT

[KrishnaSaxena108]

Exactly — I think you’re right to point out the limit. Even if languages feel subjective today, some will definitely grow in importance because of ecosystems, performance, or platform dominance.

The risk is assuming “AI + tooling” can replace all language knowledge. In practice, we still hit boundaries where a deeper understanding of the underlying language matters — debugging, performance tuning, or building something that pushes beyond templates.

So maybe the balance is: use languages subjectively for goals, but keep enough core knowledge to not get stuck when those limits appear.

[KrishnaSaxena108]

I’m glad the discussion has been useful 🙏 — that was exactly my goal in sharing my perspective. If my reply helped clarify your question, feel free to mark it as the accepted answer so others can benefit too.

And of course, I’m always happy to continue the conversation on interesting ideas around languages and their future! 🚀

[catwithlion]

one of my interesting question yet is what about writing code ? even though i agree that we don't have to be dependent on tools like assistant
i spend so much time on reading code and prompting assistant .but some times i worry that "well am i leaning so much on assistant?" hey guys what do you say at what extent this worry become true and i fail to exist as unique and genuine developer then fall in to terrible diminish of original intelligence ?
do you really believe that developer should write codes for their development ?

[KrishnaSaxena108]

That’s a very important question.

Using assistants and reading generated code isn’t a weakness in itself — it’s the new reality of development. The real danger comes only if we stop understanding what the code does.

If you rely on AI to replace thinking, then yes, skills can atrophy.

But if you use it to accelerate exploration, learn patterns, and focus on design/logic, then you’re still building your own intelligence.

Writing code by hand is still valuable — not because every developer must reinvent the wheel, but because the act of coding strengthens problem-solving muscles.

So I’d say: don’t measure your uniqueness by how much code you type manually, but by how deeply you understand the problems you’re solving and the choices behind the code. AI can help write, but only you can provide intent, architecture, and judgment.

👉 Developers should still write code — but not for the sake of “proving” they can. It’s for training their mind and keeping control over what the tools produce.

[catwithlion]

wow that is okay thank you for your valuable insight!
i am now looking above just coding and hand those thing down for assistant and concern about architectural pattern understanding the algorithm,the flows ,i stuck to learning DSA .

[KrishnaSaxena108]

That’s a great direction — focusing on architecture and DSA will give you lasting skills beyond any single tool. Glad my insight helped! 🙌
If you feel your question is clarified, marking my reply as the answer could also help others who face the same concern.

[Alok4D]

Thank you for raising such an important and thoughtful question, Abenezar.

In today’s fast-evolving development ecosystem, it's true that syntax and semantics of a programming language are becoming less of a barrier thanks to modern tools, frameworks, and AI support. However, understanding the fundamentals of a language is still not a waste of time—especially for beginners.

💡 Why?
Because learning the "essence" of a language builds the foundation for:

Writing clean, maintainable code

Understanding how things work under the hood

Debugging effectively when tools fail

Adapting to new technologies faster

That said, we no longer need to master every detail of a language to be productive. The goal should be balance: Learn just enough of the language to serve your purpose, but deeply enough that your code is reliable and efficient.

In the end, programming languages are tools, and like any tool, we should use them wisely—with purpose, but also with understanding.

[jfullstackdev]

learn some mature languages and frameworks, for me, that’s PHP & Laravel, Java & Spring Boot, and JavaScript with the MERN stack

we might think that in tech, it's always evolving but the mature languages, once you gained mastery will stay for several years, with of course updates, but still you have the grasp of those

to be honest, nowadays the coding part is often handled by AI, especially in Agent mode across multiple files

this makes it tempting to assume that core developer skills are becoming irrelevant, we’ve all seen “vibe coding” demos where non-coders create projects instantly and successfully

but that’s just the shiny part of those demos, in reality, if you’re building a System for a business, the requirements are rarely simple, you might be able to generate an initial version purely with AI, but as requirements evolve, any developer will encounter edge cases and this is where your core skills truly matter

even if AI can code well for simple projects, its consistency is limited, things like API response formats, coding patterns, and error handling differ with every AI iteration

current AI tries to follow the patterns in your codebase, but it’s never perfectly consistent, that’s why design and architecture always need to be enforced by you, if you haven’t learned the fundamentals, how can you maintain control over these aspects ?

in short, mastering the core fundamentals is still extremely relevant, a senior developer without AI is already powerful, but a senior developer who knows how to leverage AI properly becomes exponentially more powerful

I wrote articles about AI too, enjoy !

https://github.com/jfullstackdev/ai-agents-far-beyond

https://github.com/jfullstackdev/generative-ai-review

[catwithlion]

yes of course i agree with your ideas generally the dramatic change in tech landscape we can't be sure that how much these tools evolving
i am skeptic even that " general meaning of language i mean just what we now about language right now will diminish in the coming two years " .
yes i am sure about that thought above will even be so much trend ,new DSA will even created exponentially ,architecture ,design will still be important .hey well our role is shaping those tools for our purpose deliberately.

[seamusrobertmurphy]

Hi @catwithlion,

Super discussion here, which touches on the interesting trade-offs happening in the AI-driven coding space. However, I dont believe the real risk is about tool dependency or skill erosions.

Much of coding has always been about replication and adaptation, we've been copying patterns, reusing libraries, and building on existing solutions for decades. AI just makes this more efficient. The previous responses raise valid concerns about understanding fundamentals, but I'd argue that AI actually frees us to focus on what truly matters: solving problems and creating value.

While others mentioned edge cases and performance optimization as AI limitations, I see AI as particularly strong at:

• Generating boilerplate and repetitive code patterns
• Exploring multiple implementation approaches quickly
• Handling common architectural patterns
• Accelerating learning through code examples

The worry about "vibe coding" and losing core skills has merit, but consider that most production code follows established patterns anyway. I would argue that AI can actually teach concepts through generated examples and allows more time spent on architecture and business logic

The industry has always had developers at different skill levels. Rather than the "master core concepts deeply" approach others suggested, I lean toward:

• Learn enough to direct AI effectively
• Focus heavily on problem decomposition and requirements
• Use AI to explore and prototype rapidly
• Validate outputs through testing rather than manual review

Resoruces

GitHub Copilot Studies - Productivity Research
AI-Assisted Development - Interesting Take

[queenofcorgis]

Hey there! 👋

Thanks for posting in the GitHub Community, @catwithlion ! We're happy you're here. You are more likely to get a useful response if you are posting in the applicable category. The Accessibility category is a place for our community to discuss and provide feedback on the digital accessibility of GitHub products. Digital accessibility means that GitHub tools, and technologies, are designed and developed so that people with disabilities can use them.

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[shahkochaki]

Hey Abenezar
Nice question, and honestly I’ve been thinking about this too.

These days, I feel like programming languages are more like tools than “big things” to master on their own. Sure, it’s good to know the syntax and basic concepts, but what really matters now is how you use them to solve problems.

For example, no one really cares if your loop syntax is perfect — what matters is that your code is clean, readable, and actually gets the job done. Learning a language deeply is great, but spending too much time just memorizing syntax? Not really worth it anymore, because frameworks, AI tools, and docs are everywhere to help you out.

So yeah, I’d say: learn the basics well, understand the logic and patterns behind coding, then focus on building stuff. The language itself is just a bridge — what matters is where you’re going with it