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software developer discovering code optimization again because RAM costs more than ever before. 😅

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in reply to nixCraft 🐧

In a few years, we will see books such as "The Art of Optimizing Code in the Age of LLMs" or "How to Debug Vibe Coded Mess Like a Pro" and so on...
in reply to nixCraft 🐧

And they will probably be written by AI themselves LOL
in reply to nixCraft 🐧

Not to be "that guy" but... the future is now.

https://github.com/dair-ai/Prompt-Engineering-Guide

They've been making these for a while.

in reply to nixCraft 🐧

I don't need a book for that. Delete and start from scratch 🤓
in reply to nixCraft 🐧

That'll be very thin books:
"Delete and redo from scratch. Avoid any AI slop."
in reply to nixCraft 🐧

bonus if the formerly slop developers begin acquiring a taste for good code and slowly realize that the copilots that made ram expensive in the first place are making shit code
in reply to nixCraft 🐧

remember when storage was rare and expensive, and all the hoops data files had to jump through to compress into binary encoded structures to save space ... remember when memory was so expensive, computer scientists had to come up with different optimized data structures to run within those boundaries... it seems the world made a full cycle #computerscience
in reply to nixCraft 🐧

Maybe once and for all we are going to have super fast computers with super fast software instead of super fast computers with chat apps that require 6gb of ram to render a nice button
in reply to nixCraft 🐧

I think the 1st moon landing software was the best demonstration of code optimisation.
in reply to nixCraft 🐧

is RAM in danger of becoming expensive? I know hardware prices are going up because data centers and whatnot, but from what I understand it’s still generally plentiful in most home and work computers and phones
in reply to nixCraft 🐧

Wish our biggest worry was RAM costs. In Gaza, we struggled for electricity to power devices.
in reply to nixCraft 🐧

For that reason, I'm pretty convinced that every programmer's first language should be x86 assembler.

Nothing teaches you quicker about:
Planning your code
Resource utilization
Not painting yourself into a corner
Checking return codes
Checking variables before use
Documenting your code

in reply to nixCraft 🐧

Did I mention that I have NCSA Mosaic (for DOS/X) install media on 2 1.44MB diskettes ?
in reply to nixCraft 🐧

I’m now thinking of the guy I used to work with who proudly never bothered thinking about memory utilization of software he wrote becuse “memory is cheap now, who cares!”
in reply to nixCraft 🐧

I normally do embedded but ping me if your code needs to fit in 64KB 😉
in reply to nixCraft 🐧

facts, optimizing code is basically the pickle equivalent of not swimming in your own brine. like, dude, let’s not waste RAM like it’s a day-old pickle chip!
in reply to nixCraft 🐧

RAM costs more because billionaires are engaging in a supply chain attack using their monopolies.

https://www.tomsguide.com/computing/ram-prices-are-exploding-heres-why-and-everything-you-need-to-know-about-surviving-ramageddon

Sam Altman & his AI ilk buying up all the supplies required for chip manufacture.
https://techcrunch.com/2025/10/01/openai-ropes-in-samsung-sk-hynix-to-source-memory-chips-for-stargate/

https://www.tomshardware.com/pc-components/dram/openais-stargate-project-to-consume-up-to-40-percent-of-global-dram-output-inks-deal-with-samsung-and-sk-hynix-to-the-tune-of-up-to-900-000-wafers-per-month

Reminder: Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE fund the AI bubble.

Noel Kelly reshared this.

in reply to nixCraft 🐧

It's sometimes not the software developers' problem, it's the PBBs'.

"Oh dear this performance is crap, I need to fix it" says the developer.

"Yes, you fix it by upping the autoscaling parameters on the cloud service," says the PHB, "I'm not paying you to have fun playing clever intellectual games with tech debt when there are new features I want you to write."

(Mind you, they do *sometimes* change their minds when they see the cloud bill.)

in reply to nixCraft 🐧

extremely expensive memory? Check.

RAM Doubler
will come back, eventually ;-)

Snake oil for a slick #Windows experience

in reply to nixCraft 🐧

@nixCraft, I wish my worries were just RAM costs. As a displaced father, I struggle to provide for my kids' basic needs, let alone think about code optimization. " #refugeelife
in reply to nixCraft 🐧

i mean

i'm seeing crucial and samsung going up in price, but what about adata and other vendors?

also what kind of games require 32-64-128 gb of ram to run anyway?

also you can download more ram by installing linux :blobcatpenguin:

also with antix you can download even more ram

This entry was edited (6 days ago)
in reply to nixCraft 🐧

some people on this network remember astonishingly cheap $34/Mbyte memory, so it'll have to rise a bit more