„I“ removed the Arduino framework dependency from the firmware

[newxito]

I wrote the nixie calculator firmware (about 15000 lines of code) without using AI and was a little bit proud of it. Well, after today’s experience that will never happen again.

Today I ‘ve tried Claude Code for the first time. I used the VS Code extension for Claude and my prompt was simple: Please remove the Arduino framework dependency from the firmware while keeping the functionality.

Claude created a 12-phase plan and compiled and corrected errors after each phase, if there were any. I uploaded the firmware and everything worked correctly except a WebSocket thing. I explained the problem and Claude fixed the issue. After just 2 hours I had a working native esp32 calculator firmware. This was not a trivial thing, as I made heavy use of Arduino libraries like Adafruit_Neopixel or OneWire and used String instead of std::string all over the place. I don’t know if I keep the “Arduino-less” version but I’m impressed! 

[Mitch]

There is no way that I could have done this much and supported so many variations, without Claude Code. I understand that Google Codex is good too, but I have no experience with it. Any software developer who doesn't accept that this is the future, will be left in the dust.

The Software — Angry Electrons

[Oskar]

> without using AI and was a little bit proud of it

This is exactly the issue I have with AI (at least in personal projects). There is no sense of achievement in having an AI solve your problems. I used to think that coding was just a means to an end for me but AI made me realize, I never truly felt that way

[Tom Katt]

I haven't reached a comfort level with AI just yet - with my luck it would go rogue and delete everything lol.  But I would find it interesting to review to generated code to see how it accomplished certain tasks.

The one benefit I would assume with self-coded work is that you can document it so if modifications are needed in the future you have some references available.  Does any of this new fangled AI stuff document itself?

[Adrian Godwin]

I think maintenance is supposed to consist of letting the next generation of AI mash it some more.

On Wed, Aug 5, 2026 at 8:43 PM Tom Katt <tomk...@gmail.com> wrote:

I haven't reached a comfort level with AI just yet - with my luck it would go rogue and delete everything lol.  But I would find it interesting to review to generated code to see how it accomplished certain tasks.

The one benefit I would assume with self-coded work is that you can document it so if modifications are needed in the future you have some references available.  Does any of this new fangled AI stuff document itself?

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[Mitch]

It not only documents the code, it also writes assembly and operator manuals. Take a look at mine. They are 90% AI generated, and better than I could ever do at technical documentation.

[David Pye]

The bigger risk, IMHO, is dependence.

The manufacturers are greatly subsidising the cost of their token generators, and at some point, the vast investment costs will need to be repaid.

No harm in making hay while the sun shines, but becoming dependent on tools such that you find it difficult to live/work without them (eg Autodesk - "first hit is free") makes you vulnerable to rent-seeking later on.

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[Dekatron42]

There's also a high risk, that if you don't spread the knowledge on how to use AI in coding to several members of your team, that it starts to fall apart when the people responsible for the AI coding leaves the group/company and you don't have anyone to fill their shoes right away.

[Adrian Godwin]

All this advice would have been applied to compilers when engineers first started to use them instead of coding in assembly. You still need a good definition of what the code is expected to do so the AI codes the right thing. The use of natural language instead of a well-defined programming language will cause many problems at first but I guess we'll eventually leearn to use it in a way that gives predictably useful results.

At present, it seems to me that the burden of extra supervision and explanation to achieve the required result is not worth the time saving vs. "simply" coding it myself, but eventually that will change, probably more rapidly in some areas than others. And there will be some catastrophic errors along trhe way, on a scale comparable with the Mars Climate Orbitor or Therac-25.

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[Adrian Godwin]

It seems a missed opportunity that these programs are being used to generate code and therefore force us to repeat the errors of the past. A better route might be to use them to CHECK human-generated code. The failures and successes of the systems could be examined until it was able to find human errors in coding and specification and not suffer from false positives. Automating code generation would then look more like what we've learnt - that well-designed code followed by thorough verification is much more productive than making randome changes followed by skimpy tests.

[gregebert]

I've started using AI to (hopefully) improve my coding expertise. I write the code, and have AI critique it. Subsequent coding projects have better-quality code from me at the outset.

[Tom Katt]

Growing up from Z80 and 6502 assembly language, I'm guessing that AI might achieve a desired result, but brute force it's way through without the attention to efficiency and resources a human might prioritize.  Everything is so fast, powerful and full of ram these days that I'm not sure many coders consider things like this - and we get 'code bloat' as a result.

I remember having to miserly count each byte to make sure my code would fit and count each machine cycle to ensure interrupts completed in time or that the outputs generating a video buffer aligned with the NTSC timings...  Or creating self-modifying routines to cleverly solve a problem.  Thankfully, many projects don't have such restrictions anymore - but I don't think that stuffing code in any way it fits is a good path either.

That said - the AI code is probably better than what I can write lol.

[newxito]

I have 70 settings in the calculator that can be configured with the keyboard. I just asked claude to build a web configuration. 15 minutes later I have a page with all the settings grouped logically, with the correct descriptions taken from comments, with dropdown lists, color and time pickers and min and max values. And it just works! 

 

[Dan Hollis]

Not even remotely a problem here. I run my own llm locally on my own
hardware. qwen3.6 27B. All paid for so any tokens I generate only cost me
my own electricity.

And qwen3.8 is nearing release.

-Dan

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>
>

[Dan Hollis]

How is this any different from people writing 300,000 lines of C/C++ with
zero documentation, written in arcane styles for 15 years, and then
leaves the company. Nobody knows how any of it works.

At least with AI you can ask it to analyze the code, tear it apart, and document it.

-Dan

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>
>

[Dan Hollis]

I don't see this any different than say, being an architect like Dave
Cutler. He certainly didn't write 20 million lines of code. Instead he
directed other engineers to write code to his architectural design.

Who gets the credit for designing Windows NT, VMS? Dave Cutler.

You are still solving problems, its just moving higher level. I've been
coding for 40 years and I can't say there's any real sense of achievement
writing yet another kernel driver to control hardware. But I have claude
dump out kernel drivers to my specs so I can then fire up hardware in a lab,
connect hardware up to oscilloscopes, and spend the majority of my time
doing real problem solving.

The real accomplishment comes from the high level problems being solved.
At least for me.

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[Mitch]

Exactly the point. Assuming responsibility for a large code base is infinitely simpler using AI. in general, it can analyze, explain, summarize, debug, answer complex questions, and enhance, without reading a line of code.
 And it will only get better with time.

[Joe Croft]

I'm glad I have retired! I won't be forced to use the tools. I will remain happy with my writing in C++ and Perl, sometimes python for my hobby projects. My documentation is in LaTeX2. Call me a Luddite! I have broad shoulders 😉

-joe

[Toby Thain]

On 2026-08-05 15:13, 'Oskar' via neonixie-l wrote:
> > without using AI and was a little bit proud of it
>
> This is exactly the issue I have with AI (at least in personal
> projects). There is no sense of achievement in having an AI solve your
> problems. I used to think that coding was just a means to an end for me
> but AI made me realize, I never truly felt that way

No sense of achievement, no learning either.

And if you had the skills before starting to use it, they'll soon fade away.

Nothing could evaporate my interest in a project quicker than knowing
'ai' had any part of it.

--T

>
> Mitch schrieb am Mittwoch, 5. August 2026 um 20:49:40 UTC+2:
>
> There is no way that I could have done this much and supported so
> many variations, without Claude Code. I understand that Google Codex
> is good too, but I have no experience with it. Any software
> developer who doesn't accept that this is the future, will be left
> in the dust.
>

> The Software — Angry Electrons <https://angryelectrons.com/software/>

>
>
> On Wednesday, August 5, 2026 at 2:18:13 PM UTC-4 newxito wrote:
>
> I wrote the nixie calculator firmware (about 15000 lines of
> code) without using AI and was a little bit proud of it. Well,
> after today’s experience that will never happen again.
>
> Today I ‘ve tried Claude Code for the first time. I used the VS
> Code extension for Claude and my prompt was simple: Please
> remove the Arduino framework dependency from the firmware while
> keeping the functionality.
>
> Claude created a 12-phase plan and compiled and corrected errors
> after each phase, if there were any. I uploaded the firmware and
> everything worked correctly except a WebSocket thing. I
> explained the problem and Claude fixed the issue. After just 2
> hours I had a working native esp32 calculator firmware. This was
> not a trivial thing, as I made heavy use of Arduino libraries
> like Adafruit_Neopixel or OneWire and used String instead of
> std::string all over the place. I don’t know if I keep the
> “Arduino-less” version but I’m impressed!
>

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[Evan Cofsky]

Unsubscribe because of dumbassery.

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[newxito]

I completely understand your objections. Up until now, I have always written the firmware for my devices myself.

But honestly, do I really want to continue investing hours in tedious tasks like writing a web configuration page when AI can do it in minutes? 

And why not have my code reviewed by an AI? Claude found about a dozen issues in my code, one of them "critical". I would never have discovered it otherwise.

[Instrument Resources of America]

On the other hand gentlemen, how many of you do NOT use a calculator when balancing your checkbooks, and still do the math in your head, or on paper with a pencil?????

Ira.

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[Tom Katt]

Sliderule for me ;-)

Point made lol

[Joe Croft]

If I got as much pleasure doing arithmetic as I do coding, I would use  paper and pen.

I am actually thinking of creating my wife's web page using ai. At least until the two of us can learn to do that coding by hand. My biggest concern is getting locked into a provider and not be able to get out when they become to expensive!

Though overall, I still love the art of coding!

-joe