The Stack Overflow Syndrome

Let's be honest: developers don't write code anymore. We assemble it from Stack Overflow snippets like digital LEGO bricks, hoping the structure doesn't collapse under the weight of our ambition.

The Five Stages of Stack Overflow Dependency

1. Denial: "I'll just check SO for a quick reference"
2. Bargaining: "Just one more snippet and I'll understand it properly later"
3. Copying: *furious Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V noises*
4. Confusion: "Why isn't it working? It had 457 upvotes!"
5. Acceptance: *adds comment* "// Magic code, DO NOT TOUCH"

The Classic Developer Workflow

function modernDevelopment() {
  if (knowsSolution()) {
    writeCode();
  } else {
    const snippet = searchStackOverflow();

    try {
      implementSnippet(snippet);
      takeFullCredit();
    } catch (error) {
      blame({
        npm: true,
        framework: true,
        compiler: true,
        self: false
      });

      // Emergency backup plan
      return useJQuery();
    }
  }
}

The Documentation Paradox

Why read 50 pages of documentation when you can paste random code from the internet?

// What the docs recommend
import { performOperation } from 'library';
const result = await performOperation(data, options);

// What you actually implement
const hackedTogether = eval(`
  // Found this on Stack Overflow, written 8 years ago
  // for a completely different version of the library
  // but the avatar of the poster looked trustworthy
  magic_function_that_somehow_works(${JSON.stringify(data)})
`);

The Comment Archaeology

// Added 2022: Original solution that worked
function calculateTotal() {
  /* ... */
}

// Added 2023: Something broke, quick fix
function calculateTotal_FIXED() {
  /* ... */
}

// Added 2024: Refactor that kind of works
function calculateTotal_NEW() {
  /* ... */
}

// Added 2025: I give up
function calculateTotalPLEASE_WORK() {
  /* ... */
}

// Actually used in production:
calculateTotal(); // Somehow still works?!

The Reputation Economy

"This snippet came from a user with 350k reputation. It MUST be good code. What do you mean it's from 2011 and uses jQuery for everything?"

Conclusion

Next time you find yourself with 27 Stack Overflow tabs open, desperately comparing snippets to fix a problem you barely understand, take comfort: you're not a bad developer. You're just a modern one.

P.S. Yes, I wrote this blog post myself and didn't copy it from anywhere. But if you ask me how the syntax highlighting works, I'll have to get back to you after checking Stack Overflow.