The future of coding

[Richard Russell]

With ChatGPT-5 having just been released, and arguably being one of the best AIs yet for writing code, it's pretty clear that before too long most programs will be written that way. I therefore wonder what the future holds for 'hobbyist' programming if you can achieve the same or better results simply by asking an AI.

It's also going to cement the top few programming languages - C, Python, JavaScript, Ruby etc. - as even more dominant than they are now, since they are the only ones that AIs can write really good code in (simply because there are far more examples available for training).

[JeremyNicoll]

For non-trivial real-life applications, how would one specify to an AI precisely what the program is meant to do?

If the AI will somehow ingest a detailed spec, does this not just move much of the burden to whoever has to define that spec in terms that the AI will unambiguously understand? Hobbyist programmers probably have no experience of writing a detailed spec (eg for an API) let alone a whole application.

Yes, I know, in theory that's already required for human programmers & probably exists, possibly in a formal [academically so, I mean] way in big companies ... but would any sensible company whose intellectual property, security etc is represented by whatever their computer systems do give enough of their proprietary information to an AI?

[Richard Russell]

For non-trivial real-life applications, how would one specify to an AI precisely what the program is meant to do?

Exactly the same way that you would specify it if giving the task to a human programmer! Understanding natural language is their strength.

If the AI will somehow ingest a detailed spec, does this not just move much of the burden to whoever has to define that spec in terms that the AI will unambiguously understand?

AIs are good for 'iterative' coding, where you start with something only vaguely specified and at each iteration provide more detail until it does exactly what you want. There's no need to prepare a detailed specification at the start.

would any sensible company whose intellectual property, security etc is represented by whatever their computer systems do give enough of their proprietary information to an AI?

If they're that concerned about the AI 'leaking' confidential information it's not that difficult to host it on their own servers. There are some Open Source / Open Weights AIs that are good at coding (DeepSeek for example) and they don't place huge demands on the server.

[Chuckiegg]

Generate a forum post in the style of Richard Russell BBC Basic

Absolutely, . Here's a forum post written in the style of Richard Russell—the legendary BBC Micro developer and creator of BBC BASIC. His tone tends to be precise, technically insightful, and quietly passionate about elegant code and enduring design. I’ve imagined this as a post he might write on a retro computing or programming forum, reflecting on the philosophy behind BBC BASIC and its continued relevance:

Title: Why BBC BASIC Still Matters

There’s a certain elegance to BBC BASIC that modern languages often forget. It was never about syntactic sugar or chasing trends—it was about clarity, speed, and giving the programmer control without unnecessary abstraction.

When I first began developing BBC BASIC, the goal was simple: make something powerful enough for serious work, but accessible enough for a curious teenager with a manual and a cassette recorder. It had to be fast. It had to be lean. And above all, it had to be honest—what you wrote was what you got.

Today, we’re surrounded by bloated frameworks and IDEs that do everything except teach you how to think like a programmer. BBC BASIC doesn’t hold your hand. It doesn’t hide the machine. It invites you to understand it.

And that’s why it still matters.

Whether you’re writing a sprite routine for a Mode 2 game or experimenting with inline assembly on a modern RISC OS system, BBC BASIC remains a tool for learning, tinkering, and building with purpose. It’s not nostalgic—it’s timeless.

If you haven’t touched it in years, fire up a copy. Write something. Break something. Learn something.

The machine is still listening.

—Richard Russell

[Chuckiegg]

Not just coding.

Will this 'work;?

generate bbc basic music using sound and envelopment of Taylor Swift song Blank space
Creating a BBC BASIC rendition of Taylor Swift’s “Blank Space” is a fun challenge—especially since we’re working with the BBC Micro’s limited sound capabilities. We’ll use the SOUND and ENVELOPE commands to simulate melody and dynamics. Here's a simplified version of the intro motif, adapted for the BBC Micro:

BBC BASIC Setup
basic
MODE 1
ENVELOPE 1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,126,126
This sets up a basic envelope for a sustained tone. You can tweak the parameters for attack, decay, sustain, and release to simulate more expressive phrasing.

Melody Snippet (Intro Motif)
The actual melody is transposed and simplified to fit the BBC Micro’s pitch range. Each SOUND command plays a note:

basic
REM Blank Space Intro Motif (Simplified)
REM Channel 1, Pitch, Duration, Volume

SOUND 1, 200, 20, 15 : REM F
SOUND 1, 202, 20, 15 : REM G
SOUND 1, 204, 40, 15 : REM A
SOUND 1, 202, 20, 15 : REM G
SOUND 1, 200, 40, 15 : REM F

SOUND 1, 198, 20, 15 : REM E
SOUND 1, 200, 20, 15 : REM F
SOUND 1, 202, 40, 15 : REM G
Envelope Variation
To add dynamic flair, define a few envelopes:

basic
ENVELOPE 2,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,126,126 : REM Soft
ENVELOPE 3,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,255,255 : REM Loud
Then use them selectively:

basic
SOUND 1, 200, 20, 15, 2 : REM Soft F
SOUND 1, 204, 40, 15, 3 : REM Loud A
Tips for Expansion
Add harmony on Channel 2 for chords

Use ENVELOPE to simulate echo or reverb

Loop sections to build verse/chorus structure

Use PROC to modularize motifs

Want to build out the full chorus or simulate the vocal phrasing with pitch bends and vibrato? I can help you break it down note-by-note and tailor it to BBC Micro’s quirks. Just say the word.

[Richard Russell]

Creating a BBC BASIC rendition of Taylor Swift’s “Blank Space” is a fun challenge—especially since we’re working with the BBC Micro’s limited sound capabilities.

If it helps, they are not quite so limited in BBCSDL (and BB4W with the HQSOUND library). Firstly you can enable four voices rather than three (channel 0 becoming another 'tone' channel) using the *TEMPO command. Secondly you have control over the tonal quality ('stop' if you think in terms of an organ) with the *VOICE command. And thirdly you can pan each channel independently across the sound stage with the *STEREO command.

Not a massive improvement, admittedly, but enough that you might be able to get better results if you don't mind it being limited to 'modern' versions of BBC BASIC.

[Richard Russell]

Generate a forum post in the style of Richard Russell BBC Basic

Absolutely, . Here's a forum post written in the style of Richard Russell—the legendary BBC Micro developer and creator of BBC BASIC...

Which AI was that? I was neither a "BBC Micro Developer" nor the "creator of BBC BASIC" so it's a little concerning that these 'facts' seem to have been hallucinated.