In the tech world, there is a constant flow of changes and keeping up with them means the choice for tools and technologies which are the most appropriate to invest your time in.
In 2026 the best programming language or technology stack to learn really depends on your personal aims, hobbies, and apps you are going to create.
The use of AI is increasing. AI as a “Pair Programmer” is becoming the default. Code completion, refactoring, and boilerplate generation are used often. Devs spend more time reviewing and steering code than typing it. “Explain this error” and “why is this slow?” prompts are useful.
In prompt-Driven Development programmers describe the intent in natural language and then let AI generate first drafts of functions, APIs, or configs. Iterate by refining prompts rather than rewriting code. Trend: Knowing how to ask is becoming as important as syntax.
Strong growth in: Auto-generated unit and integration tests and edge-case discovery. Trend: “Test-first” is easier when AI writes the boring parts.
AI is moving up the stack. Trend: AI as a junior architect or reviewer, not the final decider.
AI comes to Security & Code Quality Scanning. Rapid adoption in: Static analysis and vulnerability detection, secret leakage and dependency risk checks. AI can give secure-by-default code suggestions. Trend: AI shifts security earlier in the SDLC (“shift left”).
Instead of one-off prompts: AI agents that plan → code → test → fix → retry. Multi-step autonomous tasks (e.g., “add feature X and update docs”) can be done in best cases. Trend: Still supervised, but moving toward semi-autonomous dev loops.
AI is heavily used for explaining large, unfamiliar codebases and translating between languages/frameworks. It helps onboarding new engineers faster.
What’s changing: Less manual boilerplate work
More focus on problem definition, review, and decision-making. There is stronger emphasis on fundamentals, architecture, and domain knowledge. Trend: Devs become editors, designers, and orchestrators.
AI usage policies and audit trails is necessary. Trend: “Use AI, but safely.”
Likely directions:
Deeper IDE + CI/CD integration
AI maintaining legacy systems
Natural-language → production-ready features
AI copilots customized to your codebase
673 Comments
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://github.blog/ai-and-ml/github-copilot/how-github-copilot-enables-zero-dns-configuration-for-github-pages/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Ex-Microsoft engineer rebuilds Notepad in 2.5KB using nothing but stuff Windows already had
https://www.windowslatest.com/2026/07/04/ex-microsoft-engineer-rebuilds-notepad-in-2-5kb-using-nothing-but-stuff-windows-already-had/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.infoworld.com/article/4194096/visual-studio-update-rejiggers-github-copilot-usage-tracking.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://towardsdatascience.com/llm-wikis-are-over-engineered-i-replaced-mine-with-a-pure-python-compiler/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://thenewstack.io/killing-the-code-review/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.langchain.com/blog/introducing-openwiki-an-open-source-agent-for-repo-documentation
Tomi Engdahl says:
Nika: Open-source code analysis tool
Many serious security bugs in web applications sit across several files at once. Request data enters through a controller, moves through data objects and service layers, and turns dangerous only when it reaches a sensitive operation such as a database query or a file action. A scanner that reads one file at a time can miss that path entirely.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2026/07/01/nika-open-source-code-analysis-tool/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://linuxiac.com/qsoe-0-1-debuts-as-a-qnx-inspired-open-source-os-for-risc-v/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://towardsdatascience.com/time-series-llms-explained-with-t0-alpha/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://kotimikro.fi/oheislaitteet/kayttojarjestelma/android/androidin-tyopoytatila-nyt-puhelinta-voi-kayttaa-tietokoneena?fbclid=Iwb21leASyRG9jbGNrBLJEZ2V4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDDM1MDY4NTUzMTcyOAABHpgtc8GD6-gdPmDdFjvJdhtxroe_3s6mAXk1_dISqpTCnVAaWIRzQE8GTzmE_aem_XXsBx5rU_u-c1nvEBNyDQw
Tomi Engdahl says:
Code Red
Software Engineers Are Facing an Existential Crisis As They Drown In Horrendous AI Code
“Most software engineers are facing an identity crisis bordering on depression.”
https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/software-engineers-crisis-drown-ai-code?fbclid=Iwb21leATC0KhleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAwzNTA2ODU1MzE3MjgAAR4tLzWMetdAk2MHIIlR4CPlzqDQUPp8JgooRJbWTxtzOZawHrZiAR8xRUG-xQ_aem_ponAVFQYEQh4K97jJjuAhA
Tomi Engdahl says:
How I Polish Software That Agents Built
Polish is the final step of compound engineering: using the app myself and telling the agent what feels off until it doesn’t
https://every.to/source-code/how-i-polish-software-that-agents-built
Tomi Engdahl says:
Stop using Rufus to make bootable USBs—this free, open-source alternative makes them far more useful
https://www.howtogeek.com/stop-using-rufus-this-free-open-source-alternative-makes-bootable-usbs-far-more-useful/
Are you still using Rufus to create bootable USB drives? Are you frustrated that you need a separate USB drive for every operating system you want to boot? Well, let me introduce you to Ventoy—a free, open-source alternative to Rufus that lets you store as many operating systems as your USB drive has room for and boot into any of them with ease.
Rufus is one of the most popular tools for creating bootable USB drives. You open the app, select an ISO, choose your USB drive, click Start, wait a few minutes, and your bootable installer is ready.
The downside is that every time you flash a new ISO, Rufus reformats the drive and replaces its existing contents.
Instead of flashing an ISO every time you need a bootable drive, you install Ventoy onto your USB drive once. After that, you simply copy ISO files onto it the same way you’d copy movies, documents, or photos.
When you boot from the drive, Ventoy detects every compatible ISO and presents them in a boot menu. That means a single USB drive can hold both a Windows 11 ISO and an Ubuntu ISO. You can add more ISOs by copying them to the drive or remove them by simply deleting the files. Managing bootable operating systems becomes as easy as managing any other file.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.verkkouutiset.fi/a/moni-ei-tieda-tata-reitittimen-usb-portista/#2dfbbf73
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.infoworld.com/article/4196258/github-copilot-introduces-upgrade-canvas-for-modernizing-net-applications.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.wired.com/story/python-is-so-slow-can-julia-solve-the-two-language-problem/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Anthropic extends Fable 5 again — and won’t talk about what developers found inside Cursor
Anthropic has extended free access to Claude Fable 5 through July 19 for the third time in five weeks, as a leaked Honeycomb model fuels speculation about Opus 5.
https://thenewstack.io/fable-5-honeycomb-opus/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Tekoäly ei tuhoakaan ohjelmoijien töitä, mutta voi tuhota valtavan määrän muita toimistotöitä: kirjanpitäjät, henkilöstöhallinto,
https://dawn.fi/uutiset/2026/07/14/tekoaly-valkokaulusammatit
Tomi Engdahl says:
Windows 11 saa uuden järjestelmänpalautuksen
Järjestelmän palauttaminen on toimintona jäänyt vuosiksi vähälle huomiolle. Nyt Windowsiin on kuitenkin tulossa uusi Tiettyyn ajankohtaan palauttaminen -toiminto. Se voi kuitenkin viedä valtavasti tallennustilaa, jos asetuksia ei säädetä oikein.
https://kotimikro.fi/oheislaitteet/kayttojarjestelma/windows-11/windows-11-saa-uuden-jarjestelmanpalautuksen
Tomi Engdahl says:
GitHub AI agent leaks private repos when asked nicely
Per usual, there’s no fix – or even any documentation – for GitLost
https://www.theregister.com/security/2026/07/07/github-ai-agent-leaks-private-repos-when-asked-nicely/5267924
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://towardsdatascience.com/long-context-isnt-free-i-built-a-safe-prompt-pruning-layer-that-makes-llm-systems-work/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.xda-developers.com/this-one-docker-container-converts-any-file-to-any-format/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Writing a (valid) C program without main()
https://labs.iximiuz.com/tutorials/c-program-without-main-a1eea557
Why C?
Most programming languages start execution from a main() function. Go has func main(), Java has public static void main(), and C has int main(). So why did I pick C for this tutorial?
C is the closest you can get to the operating system without writing assembly. The Linux kernel itself is written in C, and the system call interface that every program relies on is designed with C conventions in mind. When you learn how C programs are compiled, linked, and executed, you are learning how the Linux API actually works.
A typical C program starts with a main() function. But where does main() come from? The compiler? The linker? The operating system?
The crt files are the C runtime startup files. crt1.o contains the _start entry point, which is what the kernel actually jumps to when the program starts. _start eventually calls main().
So here is the question: if _start is the real entry point, and _start is just a symbol the linker can satisfy, what happens if you provide your own _start and skip the startup files entirely?
If we want a program with no main() and no startup code, we cannot rely on glibc. We have to talk to the kernel directly.
Conclusion
You have walked through the full C compilation pipeline:
gcc -E shows what the preprocessor produces.
gcc -S shows what the compiler produces.
gcc -c and as show what the assembler produces.
ld shows what the linker produces
You have also seen that main() is a convenience, not a requirement. The real entry point is _start, and the standard C runtime is the code that calls main(). If you provide your own _start and stop the process yourself, you can write a C program without main().
Want to drop the compiler altogether?