My dad tried to push me to computer work when I was young, I’m glad I didn’t listen.
I became a diesel mechanic and am now a specialised crane technician, sure it harder on the body but I don’t foresee my job being replaced by Ai and automation in my life time.
If anything the diagnosis work would become easier, much like the introduction of on board diagnostic facilities have already done for us.
The way electricity works though you can never exactly pinpoint an electrical fault with 100 percent accuracy on a machine without physically looking. Along with that limitation the robots to go in and make repairs are a way off still.
Like many fields, computer work is still good if you’re drawn to it as a legitimate interest of yours. I’m part of a software engineering group working on embedded systems. I think the other engineers and our boss all really like what we have going, but you can tell everybody is a proper computer nerd and not the “I heard there was money in computers” type.
Admittedly though, generative AI is hitting certain segments of the field harder than others.
I’m a diesel technician and I wish I had gotten into tech work/programming instead. Honestly working towards a career change, but after 12 years of experience, a family etc, I make too much to change careers.
I worked as a licensed aircraft mechanic for years, watched my coworkers die from disease and injury, destroyed my body, and did it all for basically no money.
I did a coding bootcamp and and doubled my salary + plus wfh + better benefits.
Blue collar work is exploitation to the highest degree.
Automation has been replacing your job btw, just indirectly. More reliability, better preventative procedures, better chemical engineering, process improvements, and automation of related and dependent fields means that equipment needs less maintenance overall.
Software development jobs are not actually being replaced by ‘ai’ and the automation has to actually be engineered by someone.
In the same way that an llm may be able to naively troubleshoot a problem, it can also naively achieve a programming solution. That’s it though, llms arent solving the problems that computer science is solving.
After working on airplanes I worked as an applications developer (and pseudo systems engineer) for an industrial automation company, the physical machines we manufactured completely eradicated jobs, a single bespoke robot cell took what was 30-50 people and replaced it with three people monitoring it. Those 47 people are now in competition with you for your job.
Like you said in your own post, advancements in technology are making your job easier, which in turn lowers the bar of entry and the pay scale with it. Easier and faster work (increased efficiency) means you need less people to do the work.
Too many people think ‘automation’ is a robot coming in and replacing your job, sometimes that is the case, but more often than not, it’s things like digitizing records, excel spreadsheets, process improvements, and micro automation (like tools that can scan and diagnose every trouble code and provide the common troubleshooting paths, instead of needing to watch a flashing pattern and look that pattern up manually in a physical book)
Every job has automation risk, it’s just not always clear.
Yeah I understand that my job will go away eventually, fortunately it won’t effect me in my life time. Specialised skills in a specialised industry are worth a fortune.
What also helps me is I teach my trade to others, I’m not the dumb cunt on the ground doing all the labour every day all day.
I wouldn’t recommend getting into my trade today to anyone however. It’s hard on the body but if you have the work ethic and knowledge there’s a fortune to be made in Australia.
Specialised skills in a specialised industry are worth a fortune.
Unlike all that computer crap, which is, thankfully, finally all solved.
We can tell because our computer, phone, Internet connection, shopping websites, and government services websites all work perfectly, all the time, without any security breaches, now. (This is sarcasm).
I’m not saying computers aren’t specialised at some point. My point is where I live in can make over 200k a year with 2 weeks off every 3 weeks. I don’t have that sort of opportunities in other industries where I am
Like with any specialization, I’m glad you’re doing yours so I don’t have to learn it or learn to live without it.
On the computer bullshit side, shareholders and CEOs are betting hard on AI, right now, and we’re - unbelievabably - headed toward an even greater shortage of talent.
Unfathomably, I believe folks are going to look back with nostalgia on today’s pathetic computer science talent pool.
(No offense to my peers, but there clearly aren’t enough of us who actually know what we’re doing.)
My dad tried to push me to computer work when I was young, I’m glad I didn’t listen.
I became a diesel mechanic and am now a specialised crane technician, sure it harder on the body but I don’t foresee my job being replaced by Ai and automation in my life time.
If anything the diagnosis work would become easier, much like the introduction of on board diagnostic facilities have already done for us.
The way electricity works though you can never exactly pinpoint an electrical fault with 100 percent accuracy on a machine without physically looking. Along with that limitation the robots to go in and make repairs are a way off still.
Like many fields, computer work is still good if you’re drawn to it as a legitimate interest of yours. I’m part of a software engineering group working on embedded systems. I think the other engineers and our boss all really like what we have going, but you can tell everybody is a proper computer nerd and not the “I heard there was money in computers” type.
Admittedly though, generative AI is hitting certain segments of the field harder than others.
I’m a diesel technician and I wish I had gotten into tech work/programming instead. Honestly working towards a career change, but after 12 years of experience, a family etc, I make too much to change careers.
I worked as a licensed aircraft mechanic for years, watched my coworkers die from disease and injury, destroyed my body, and did it all for basically no money.
I did a coding bootcamp and and doubled my salary + plus wfh + better benefits.
Blue collar work is exploitation to the highest degree.
Automation has been replacing your job btw, just indirectly. More reliability, better preventative procedures, better chemical engineering, process improvements, and automation of related and dependent fields means that equipment needs less maintenance overall.
Software development jobs are not actually being replaced by ‘ai’ and the automation has to actually be engineered by someone. In the same way that an llm may be able to naively troubleshoot a problem, it can also naively achieve a programming solution. That’s it though, llms arent solving the problems that computer science is solving.
After working on airplanes I worked as an applications developer (and pseudo systems engineer) for an industrial automation company, the physical machines we manufactured completely eradicated jobs, a single bespoke robot cell took what was 30-50 people and replaced it with three people monitoring it. Those 47 people are now in competition with you for your job.
Like you said in your own post, advancements in technology are making your job easier, which in turn lowers the bar of entry and the pay scale with it. Easier and faster work (increased efficiency) means you need less people to do the work.
Too many people think ‘automation’ is a robot coming in and replacing your job, sometimes that is the case, but more often than not, it’s things like digitizing records, excel spreadsheets, process improvements, and micro automation (like tools that can scan and diagnose every trouble code and provide the common troubleshooting paths, instead of needing to watch a flashing pattern and look that pattern up manually in a physical book)
Every job has automation risk, it’s just not always clear.
Yeah I understand that my job will go away eventually, fortunately it won’t effect me in my life time. Specialised skills in a specialised industry are worth a fortune.
What also helps me is I teach my trade to others, I’m not the dumb cunt on the ground doing all the labour every day all day.
I wouldn’t recommend getting into my trade today to anyone however. It’s hard on the body but if you have the work ethic and knowledge there’s a fortune to be made in Australia.
Unlike all that computer crap, which is, thankfully, finally all solved.
We can tell because our computer, phone, Internet connection, shopping websites, and government services websites all work perfectly, all the time, without any security breaches, now. (This is sarcasm).
I’m not saying computers aren’t specialised at some point. My point is where I live in can make over 200k a year with 2 weeks off every 3 weeks. I don’t have that sort of opportunities in other industries where I am
Yeah. I’m just joking about your choice of words.
Like with any specialization, I’m glad you’re doing yours so I don’t have to learn it or learn to live without it.
On the computer bullshit side, shareholders and CEOs are betting hard on AI, right now, and we’re - unbelievabably - headed toward an even greater shortage of talent.
Unfathomably, I believe folks are going to look back with nostalgia on today’s pathetic computer science talent pool.
(No offense to my peers, but there clearly aren’t enough of us who actually know what we’re doing.)
And if the western world ever manages to move to fully electric you can always get a job in a less regulated country 😅
Yeah, thankfully I have my restricted electrical license too so I can still work on fully electric machines anyway.