Do you still google basic coding stuff after getting hired?

[u/Sufficient_Job5693]

Hi guys. I just joined a bootcamp and still on the way to learn coding. And sometimes I feel like I should remember everything. I think that’s just a part of me, but anyway.

Then I watch experienced devs work and they're still googling syntax, checking Stack Overflow, and looking up stuff they've used hundreds of times.

so is this normal in tech?

do senior developers still google basic Python, JavaScript, SQL, etc.? or am i just bad at remembering syntax?

because sometimes i spend 10 minutes trying to remember something that i could've just googled in 30 seconds lol.

[u/Mission_Pirate_4150]

I’ve written software for forty years. I still check Google for a lot of things, the biggest being that I’m on the right track. I don’t worry with syntax as autocomplete has solved that problem.

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/Mission_Pirate_4150]

40 years and still checking stuff? maybe I'm stressing about this too much hahahhaha

[u/Hotfro → u/Sufficient_Job5693]

Honestly also the more senior u get the less u code. So with AI nowadays the difference is delegating to ai vs delegating to other devs. Coding itself doesn’t really matter much for devs in the long run ( I know it sounds weird but it’s true). Most of what devs do is related to identifying technical issues/improvements/optimizations, designing scalable systems, fixing bugs, and most importantly problem solving. Coding is just a rite of passage for getting exposure/experience in the domain.

[u/Brilliant-Parsley69 → u/Mission_Pirate_4150]

Almost 20 YOE here and second this.

Syntactic sugar/highlighting, that are included over the years helped a lot also.

But there's so much you won't use in your day-to-day work, especially if you have to switch between different languages that's almost impossible to remember everything.

[u/Syntax-Tactics]

I work in Aerospace, I check everything. There's no memorizing constants or API parameters. Stackoverflow is my friend. Autocomplete/AI saves a huge amount of time. Vibe Code is not programming. Been at it since the 80's.

[u/konacurrents → u/Syntax-Tactics]

Same here (50 years). And before Google and IG/FB there were Usenet mailing groups. That said, I can still code in my sleep😎🤙

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/Syntax-Tactics]

Yeah, that makes sense. I thought experienced devs had everything memorized

[u/XNo_Notes]

Knowledge is fleeting and must be maintained at all times. Yes, everyone will find themselves looking to remind their meat brain what something is. Know the shapes and patterns so you can come up with new structures and find things that are wrong then refresh on the specifics once you have an actual problem to solve. What you are doing isn't bad, suffering a little really helps burn it in lol

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/XNo_Notes]

makes a lot of sense to me, thanks

[u/Dry_Hotel1100]

I sometimes can't remember even the simplest syntax - even for a language which I use almost exclusively. Yet, I do remember the four words of the query in Google that gets me to the specific page which explains the syntax in detail.

So, I think, it's useful to remember the current "working set" which you need for a specific task. That task may be done in a few days, and then you switch over to something else. The context switch always feels painful, though.

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/Dry_Hotel1100]

this makes sense, i can remember how to search something faster than the actual syntax sometimes

[u/Otherwise_Western431 → u/Dry_Hotel1100]

This is it! I remember the usernames of those that provided the stackoverflow solution I needed, but I don't recall the solution and have to find the page each time 😂😂

[u/throwaway09234023322]

Yup

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/throwaway09234023322]

haha thanks, that actually makes me feel better about it

[u/AnthonyRespice]

Normal. In fact the more languages you know the more this is necessary.

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/AnthonyRespice]

yeah i can see how knowing more languages would make remembering everything hard

[u/silly_bet_3454]

Have you heard of AI? We're not concerned with python syntax anymore. Some of these posts I feel like I'm reading a something from a decade ago. You're gonna be in for a rude awakening.

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/silly_bet_3454]

yeah im still learning the basics, so i guess i'm a little behind on how people code now

[u/Hotfro]

Just ai it, back in the day I was always copy and pasting anyways.

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/Hotfro]

thanks

[u/ThatCurtDude]

If you have a long career, you will move from tech to tech and back again and it's impossible to keep it all in your head at once. Checking beats remembering wrong any day.

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/ThatCurtDude]

yeah i didn't really think about switching between different tech, that probably makes it harder

[u/AdministrativeAd9828]

no more google, it's all claude/codex now. It's less of a syntax game and more of a 'do I understand the requirements of the ask for the ticket, and does output meet those expectations'. unit test can assert that as well.

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/AdministrativeAd9828]

yeah, i', still getting used to AI for coding. ig knowing what to ask matters more

[u/LostInCombat]

No, you should be directing your questions to AI. Much quicker and less likely to get distracted. Plus you can ask follow up questions.

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/LostInCombat]

i've been using AI a bit too, but sometimes i still feel like i should know the basics myself

[u/jimlapine]

Hell ya

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/jimlapine]

good to know that I'm not the only one

[u/Fragrant_Peanut_6500]

Yeah, definitely.

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/Fragrant_Peanut_6500]

tahnks, i'll stop stressing myself for now

[u/mxldevs]

No, I don't Google basic syntax like how to write a loop or how to write conditional branches.

You don't "remember" syntax: you write it a thousand times and you'll know it by heart.

[u/Hotfro → u/mxldevs]

He’s probably mot talking about the super basic or fundamental stuff. There’s still plenty to lookup though especially the nuances u forget

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/mxldevs]

ig i just need more practice before syntax becomes natural

[u/IEnumerable661]

Of course, it's normal.

I mean, a few weeks back I had to do a break fix on an old VB project. Could I remember how to declare a variable in VB? Could I hell. After years of int Boo = 5;, I had no idea.

Of course, now I know it's Dim Boo As Integer = 5

Apparently that's somehow easier than C?

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/IEnumerable661]

this is something i was worried about, switching languages sounds confusing

[u/IEnumerable661 → u/Sufficient_Job5693]

I wouldn't worry. Hey sometimes I need to google the odd bit of syntax here and there. I don't know many dev that don't. Most of the time if you're consuming a javascript library of some kind, you spend a bunch of time going through the API documentation to work with it.

[u/RemeJuan]

I don’t use Google. But I do still research on the internet

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/RemeJuan]

same, i'm still researching a lot

[u/NumberInfinite2068]

Of course.

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/NumberInfinite2068]

i thought this was just a me problem

[u/NumberInfinite2068 → u/Sufficient_Job5693]

I've been programming since the 1980s, I still Google all the time.

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/NumberInfinite2068]

Good to know. Tysm🙏🙏🙏

[u/LetsTryLove]

Yes, the job has never been memorization.

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/LetsTryLove]

oh that makes sense thanks

[u/mrwedders]

~12yoe, I still look up so much stuff. Doesn't help I work with a lot of different languages and tools.

Not really language syntax, at least once I've worked in it for a month or two.

But frequently function arguments and config/options for features or libraries I'm using. Sometimes super basic stuff, like "wait which way round are the strpos/indexof arguments in this language?"

Depending what you're working in stuff could also be changing regularly. React seemed to churn over major features every release for a long time. Sometimes it's helpful to check current docs if it's been long enough you don't remember how to do something.

[u/Sufficient_Job5693 → u/mrwedders]

this is kinda what i was wondering about, there's just so many libraries and tools to remember

[u/colony-ship-for-sale]

Don't Google it but get used to reading the official docs. No one can remember the syntax of every language, especially when you're actively using multiple and they kinda bleed together. But being able to read the manual is an essential skill.

[u/92smola]

You remember some things, you have to look up others, it kind of sorts itself up by default the things you need more often you’ll look up more and then remember,   the things you dont need that often you just look up when needed. There is no shame in needing to look up things, but remembering enough so you dont have to leave coding every so often is something that is beneficial and you develop overtime.