The core of what I do is solve problems, whether that's in graphic engine flow or rockets. I like working on things that are going to have an impact one way or the other.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the importance of solving complex problems in innovative fields like graphics and aerospace.
John Carmack highlights his passion for addressing challenges in technology, particularly in graphic engines and rocket science. He expresses a desire to work on projects that produce significant outcomes, indicating a commitment to making a difference through problem-solving in high-impact areas.
In practice
This quote can be used in a tech conference to inspire developers to focus on impactful solutions.
Sharing the code just seems like The Right Thing to Do. It costs us rather little, but it benefits a lot of people in sometimes very significant ways. There are many university research projects, proof of concept publisher demos, and new platform test beds that have leveraged the code. Free software that people value adds wealth to the world.
The cost of adding a feature isn't just the time it takes to code it. The cost also includes the addition of an obstacle to future expansion. ... The trick is to pick the features that don't fight each other.
Low-level programming is good for the programmer's soul.
Because of the nature of Moore's law, anything that an extremely clever graphics programmer can do at one point can be replicated by a merely competent programmer some number of years later.
Programming is not a zero-sum game. Teaching something to a fellow programmer doesn't take it away from you. I'm happy to share what I can, because I'm in it for the love of programming.
If, at any moment, reality gets dull or boring, our phone offers something more pleasurable, more productive and even more educational than whatever reality gives us.
Fraud really thrives in moments of great social change and transition. We're in the midst of a technological revolution. That gives con artists huge opportunities. People lose their frame of reference for what can and can't be real.
Most of the good programmers do programming not because they expect to get paid or get adulation by the public, but because it is fun to program.
We live in a technological universe in which we are always communicating. And yet we have sacrificed conversation for mere connection.
Part of the inhumanity of the computer is that, once it is competently programmed and working smoothly, it is completely honest.
Over the last ten years, technological advances have dramatically lowered the financial bar for starting a new company, but the courage bar for building a great company remains as high as it has ever been.
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