Is this the future?
Vibe coding- where you pair your instincts with an AI assistant like ChatGPT- might just be the future. It's fast, fluid, and surprisingly powerful. You bring the vision and context; it brings the syntax and speed. But it seems to only be as good as your prompting. You are the driver, it helps you navigate. The magic lies in the callaboration- asking the right questions, refining the prompts, and working toward your goal with clarity and intention.
My Idea
I've had this app idea simmering for a while. It came from a simple annoyance: watching videos on my computer. Full screen was a bit too much at times, but a tiny window wasn't enough due to other windows as distractions. I wanted a way to "paint" a video area and dim the rest of the screen- simple, subtle, intuitive. With vibe coding growing in popularity, I finally gave it a go. First, I asked for suggestions on tech stack and implementation. ChatGPT delivered and provided addtiional guidance and architectural approaches to the solution. I started in .NET MAUI (in Rider), but quickly hit platform limits. The focus area (user drawn area for video focus) was confined to the app window. After working with ChatGPT on solutions to this problem, it seemed more effort was involved and I needed to work more in the Mac Catalyst and start building with Objective-C. So I pivoted to Swift (in Xcode) for a native macOS build.
The Magic
I've never touched Swift before but with ChatGPT guiding me, I had a working prototype within a few minutes. It even included thorughful touches- like assigning the ESC key to quit. One of my biggest concerns when building anything- especially with AI- is understanding the why. I want to know what I'm building and why code is the way it is. I asked about specific code strutures, why certain methodds were recommended, and even potential security concerns. The answers were spot on. Clear, credible, and insightful.
With the right idea and a willingness to work with AI, you can build a completely new application -or "dim your screen"- before an episode of One Piece recap finishes. It's not just about building faster, it's about lowering the barrier to start. What once took weeks now can take minutes.
Let's keep vibing.
Naviage to my project page to check out FocusInPlay!