DEV Community: Okello Odhiambo

VS Code Is Not Here to Replace You. It Is Here to Save You From the Boring Parts.

Okello Odhiambo — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 08:29:19 +0000

There is a joke that programmers spend only a small part of their day writing code. The rest is spent searching for a missing semicolon, wondering why yesterday's code suddenly stopped working, or asking the internet questions they are convinced someone else has already answered.

The joke is funny because it is painfully true.

Today, however, software development is changing. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has quietly moved from being something we only heard about in science fiction to becoming a practical assistant sitting inside one of the world's most popular programming tools: Visual Studio Code, better known as VS Code.

The important word here is assistant.

Contrary to what dramatic headlines often suggest, AI inside VS Code does not replace developers. It helps them work faster, make fewer mistakes and spend more time solving real problems instead of repeating routine tasks.

For anyone who has never written a line of code, imagine hiring an experienced carpenter who never gets tired of answering questions, finding the right tool or reminding you that you forgot to measure before cutting a piece of wood. The carpenter does not build the house for you. He simply helps you avoid expensive mistakes.

That is exactly what AI is becoming inside VS Code.

Understanding VS Code Without the Technical Jargon

Imagine writing a newspaper article.

You probably use Microsoft Word, Google Docs or another word processor. The software gives you a blank page where you type your story.

VS Code plays a similar role for software developers.

Instead of writing news articles, developers write computer instructions known as code. VS Code provides the workspace where those instructions are created, organised and edited.

According to Microsoft, Visual Studio Code is a free source-code editor that supports hundreds of programming languages and runs on Windows, macOS and Linux. Since its public release in 2015, it has become one of the world's most widely used development environments because of its speed, flexibility and large ecosystem of extensions.

Think of VS Code as an empty workshop.

On its own, the workshop contains the basic tools.

You can then add specialised equipment depending on the kind of work you want to do. These additions are called extensions. One extension checks spelling in code. Another helps connect to databases. Yet another introduces AI capabilities that can explain code, generate suggestions and answer programming questions.

The workshop remains the same.

Only the tools become smarter.

So Where Does AI Fit In?

Imagine you are preparing chapati for the first time.

You know the ingredients but are unsure about the measurements.

Standing beside you is an experienced cook who quietly says,

"Add a little more water."

"The dough is too soft."

"Reduce the heat."

"You forgot the salt."

That person is not cooking for you.

They are guiding you.

AI inside VS Code works in much the same way.

As you write code, AI studies the context and predicts what you are likely trying to achieve. It can recommend the next few lines, explain unfamiliar code, suggest corrections and even generate simple functions from plain-language instructions.

It is less like an autopilot and more like having a knowledgeable colleague who never complains when you ask the same question five times before lunch.

*Real-World Situations Where AI Actually Helps
*
Many people assume programmers spend their entire day creating brand-new software from scratch.

Reality is far less glamorous.

A surprising amount of software development involves fixing old code, understanding someone else's work and correcting tiny mistakes that somehow consume entire afternoons.

Consider these everyday examples.

A university student is building a final-year project but cannot remember the exact syntax for connecting to a database.

Instead of opening ten browser tabs, the student asks the AI assistant inside VS Code, receives an explanation and continues working.

A small business owner hires a freelance developer to create an inventory management system.

The developer uses AI to generate repetitive database operations, freeing more time to focus on making the software easier for employees to use.

A cybersecurity analyst notices unusual behaviour in a program.

Instead of reading thousands of lines manually, the analyst asks AI to explain sections of the code and identify possible vulnerabilities.

The final decisions still belong to the human expert.

The AI simply reduces the amount of repetitive work.

That distinction matters.

*AI Is Brilliant—Until It Is Wrong
*
Here is the uncomfortable truth.

AI can confidently produce incorrect answers.

Sometimes it invents information.

Sometimes it misunderstands instructions.

Sometimes it generates code that appears perfect but quietly introduces security risks.

If that sounds familiar, it should.

Think about GPS navigation.

Most of us trust Google Maps.

Yet almost everyone knows someone who has faithfully followed GPS directions into a dead end, a flooded road or the wrong destination altogether.

The problem was never the map.

The problem was assuming the map could never be wrong.

AI deserves the same healthy skepticism.

Its suggestions should be reviewed before being accepted.

Experienced developers often say the fastest way to create a software bug is to copy code without understanding it.

AI has not changed that rule.

It has simply made copying much faster.

*The Security Question Everyone Should Ask
*
There is another important consideration.

Many AI assistants operate through cloud services.

When a developer requests help, portions of their code may be processed on remote servers depending on the AI service being used and the organisation's privacy settings.

Now imagine walking into a doctor's office.

You would not casually hand confidential medical records to strangers sitting in the waiting room.

Company software deserves similar caution.

Businesses working with financial records, health information or confidential customer data should understand how their chosen AI tools handle information before uploading sensitive code or documents.

Several AI providers now offer enterprise privacy controls, but users should still read data-handling policies carefully rather than assuming every service treats information the same way.

Convenience should never come at the expense of confidentiality.

*AI Will Not Replace Curious People
*
One question appears almost every time AI is discussed.

"Will programmers lose their jobs?"

History suggests a more balanced answer.

Calculators did not eliminate accountants.

Spreadsheet software did not eliminate financial analysts.

Digital cameras did not eliminate photographers.

Instead, each tool changed how professionals worked.

AI is likely to follow the same pattern.

Developers who understand software, think critically and solve problems creatively will remain valuable.

Those who rely entirely on AI without understanding the underlying principles may struggle when the tool produces incorrect answers.

In other words, AI rewards understanding rather than replacing it.

*Learning to Work With AI Instead of Depending on It
*
For beginners, the best approach is surprisingly simple.

Use AI as a teacher rather than a shortcut.

Ask why a piece of code works.

Request explanations instead of only accepting generated answers.

Challenge its suggestions.

Experiment.

Make mistakes.

Correct them.

Learning this way builds confidence that remains useful even when AI is unavailable.

After all, if your calculator battery dies, knowing basic arithmetic suddenly becomes very valuable.

Programming is no different.

*The Future Is Collaboration
*
According to the 2024 Stack Overflow Developer Survey, AI tools have become a regular part of software development for many developers, particularly for writing code, learning new technologies and improving productivity. At the same time, many respondents also reported concerns about accuracy and trust, reinforcing the need for human oversight rather than blind reliance.

That finding captures the current reality perfectly.

AI inside VS Code is neither magic nor menace.

It is simply another tool.

A remarkably capable one, certainly, but still a tool.

The best developers of the future may not be those who type the fastest.

They may be those who know when to trust AI, when to question it and when to ignore it completely.

Technology has always rewarded people who combine curiosity with judgment.

AI changes neither of those qualities.

If anything, it makes them even more important.

Perhaps that is the real story behind AI in VS Code.

It is not teaching computers to think like humans.

It is quietly encouraging humans to think more carefully while letting machines handle the repetitive work none of us enjoyed in the first place.

From the Village Granary to the Digital Ledger: Understanding Blockchain and NFTs Without the Technical Headache

Okello Odhiambo — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 07:25:39 +0000

A child who has never travelled believes their father's homestead is the whole world.

Technology often makes many of us feel like that child. We hear new words, nod politely, and quietly hope someone will explain them in plain language. Few technologies have attracted as much excitement—and confusion—as blockchain and NFTs.

For years, these two terms have appeared alongside stories about cryptocurrencies, million-dollar digital art, scams, and overnight fortunes. Somewhere in that noise, many ordinary people concluded that blockchain was only for investors, programmers, or people chasing the next big thing online.

Yet that is far from the truth.

The real story of blockchain is not about speculation. It is about trust. It is about keeping records that people can verify without depending entirely on one individual or institution. NFTs, meanwhile, are not simply expensive digital pictures. At their heart, they are a way of proving ownership of something unique in the digital world.

Understanding both begins not with computers, but with something much closer to home.

Imagine your grandmother's granary.

Everyone in the village knows how many sacks of maize went in after harvest. Whenever a sack is removed, everyone who helps with the granary can see it. Nobody quietly sneaks in at night and changes last month's count because several people already know what was recorded. Trust comes from shared knowledge rather than blind faith.

That simple idea lies at the heart of blockchain.

Trust, Written One Page at a Time

Think of a notebook used by a merry-go-round (chama). Every contribution is written down. Every member has seen the entries. If someone tears out a page and replaces it with different numbers, the rest of the members immediately notice because their own records no longer match.

Blockchain works in much the same way.

Instead of one notebook locked inside an office, identical copies of the record exist across many computers. Each new page of transactions is connected to the previous page, forming a continuous chain. Once information has been agreed upon and added, changing it becomes extraordinarily difficult because every copy would need to be altered simultaneously.

Rather than relying on one trusted gatekeeper, the system relies on many participants verifying the same information.

As The Truth Machine, economists Michael J. Casey and Paul Vigna observe, blockchain represents "a machine for creating trust." That simple description captures its greatest strength. The technology does not eliminate trust altogether; instead, it changes how trust is established.

*Why This Matters Beyond Computers
*
Imagine buying a plot of land.

You receive the title deed and carefully lock it away. Years later, another person appears claiming ownership with a different document. The dispute drags on for months, perhaps years.

Now imagine if every legitimate transfer of ownership had been permanently recorded in a system where altering past records without everyone noticing was practically impossible.

That is one reason governments, researchers, and businesses continue exploring blockchain technology—not because it is fashionable, but because reliable records matter.

The World Economic Forum has repeatedly highlighted blockchain's potential in improving transparency across supply chains, healthcare, trade documentation, and public services.

The technology is not a magic wand, but it offers a different approach to keeping records honest.

A Kenyan Story Hidden Inside Your Morning Cup of Coffee

Picture a farmer in Nyeri harvesting coffee cherries.

The beans leave the farm and pass through processors, exporters, shipping companies, warehouses, and finally a café somewhere in London or Tokyo.

Along the journey, information can easily disappear.

Which farm produced these beans?

Were farmers paid fairly?

Was the coffee organically grown?

Blockchain allows every participant in that journey to add verified information as the product moves from one stage to another. Instead of relying on one company's records, everyone along the chain contributes to a shared history.

The result is greater traceability.

Several agricultural supply-chain projects around the world—including initiatives involving IBM Food Trust and similar traceability platforms—have demonstrated how distributed ledgers can help consumers understand where products originate and how they reached the shelf.

The same thinking could extend beyond coffee.

Imagine purchasing beef in Nairobi and scanning a QR code that tells you which county the animal came from, when it received veterinary treatment, where it was slaughtered, and how it reached your local supermarket.

For livestock-producing countries like Kenya, such transparency could strengthen consumer confidence and improve access to export markets that increasingly demand traceable food systems.

*So Where Do NFTs Come In?
*
Suppose your grandfather carved a beautiful wooden stool.

It is the only one he ever made.

Many people can photograph it.

Others can paint it.

Someone might even create an exact replica.

But only one original exists.

An NFT—or Non-Fungible Token—acts like a digital certificate proving ownership or authenticity of something unique.

The word non-fungible sounds intimidating, yet the idea is familiar.

A KSh 1,000 note is fungible because any other genuine KSh 1,000 note can replace it.

Your national identity card is not fungible.

Neither is your university degree.

Neither is your passport.

They belong specifically to you.

NFTs apply this same principle to digital assets.

Contrary to popular belief, the NFT is usually not the artwork itself. Instead, it is a digital record pointing to ownership or authenticity.

That distinction matters.

Owning an NFT of a photograph does not automatically stop others from viewing or copying the image online, just as owning the original Mona Lisa would not prevent people from printing posters of it. What changes is who possesses the recognised original.

Beyond Digital Art

The headlines often focused on colourful digital images selling for extraordinary sums.

That created the impression that NFTs were little more than expensive internet collectibles.

Their practical uses are far broader.

Imagine receiving your university certificate as an NFT.

An employer could instantly verify its authenticity without calling the institution.

Imagine concert tickets issued as NFTs.

Counterfeit tickets become far harder to produce.

Imagine hospital records where patients control access to their medical history instead of carrying paper files from one clinic to another.

Imagine land titles, professional licences, intellectual property rights, museum collections, or even livestock ownership represented through secure digital certificates.

Many of these ideas remain under development, but the underlying technology already exists.

*Not Every Problem Needs a Blockchain
*
Good technology should solve real problems rather than create new ones.

Blockchain is no exception.

Traditional databases are often faster, cheaper, and easier to manage.

If a small family business only needs to record daily sales, an ordinary spreadsheet may work perfectly well.

Blockchain becomes valuable where many independent parties need to trust shared records without placing complete confidence in one central authority.

It is a specialised tool—not a universal solution.

As the old Luo saying reminds us, "Piny owang' ni ng'ato ok nyal bedo gi rieko duto." The world has taught us that no one possesses all wisdom. Likewise, no single technology solves every challenge.

The Challenges We Should Not Ignore

Balanced conversations matter.

Blockchain systems can be expensive to build and maintain.

Some public blockchain networks have historically consumed significant amounts of electricity, although newer systems increasingly rely on energy-efficient methods such as Proof of Stake, reducing electricity use dramatically compared with earlier designs.

There are also legal questions.

Who owns digital assets?

How should governments regulate them?

What happens when mistakes occur in records designed to be difficult to change?

Fraud remains another concern. Scammers often exploit public excitement around NFTs and cryptocurrencies. Importantly, these scams usually arise from dishonest people, not from the blockchain technology itself.

As with mobile banking or online shopping, understanding the technology is one of the strongest forms of protection.

*Looking Ahead
*
Blockchain and NFTs are still evolving.

Some ideas will succeed.

Others will quietly disappear.

That is how innovation has always worked.

Few Kenyans imagined twenty years ago that sending money through a mobile phone would become an everyday habit. Today it feels ordinary.

Blockchain may follow a similar path—not because everyone suddenly becomes a cryptocurrency trader, but because the technology quietly finds practical uses in areas where trust, transparency, and reliable records matter most.

When that happens, many people may use blockchain every day without ever noticing it, just as millions of people send mobile money without thinking about the complex systems operating behind the screen.

Technology is at its best when it disappears into everyday life.

Perhaps that is the simplest way to understand blockchain.

It is not trying to replace human trust.

It is trying to help us record trust more faithfully.

And NFTs?

They simply answer an old human question in a new digital world:

_"How do we know this truly belongs to you?"
_
The answer, increasingly, may not come from a filing cabinet or a rubber stamp, but from a carefully maintained digital ledger shared across the world.

Building Confidence Without Knowing What You’re Doing (A Beginner’s Honest Story)

Okello Odhiambo — Wed, 13 May 2026 11:49:07 +0000

Last week, I passed an audit I was fully prepared to fail.

Not “maybe fail.”
Not “slightly unsure.”

Fail.

The kind where you’re already planning how you’ll explain yourself when everything starts falling apart.

But somehow… I passed.

And to be honest? I wasn’t even sure I deserved to.

Welcome to learning without a map

I’m currently learning software development at Zone01 Kisumu, where everything is peer-to-peer. No teachers. Just apprentices trying to figure things out, reviewing each other’s work, and occasionally pretending we understand what’s going on.

For the past two months, my learning journey has looked less like a straight line… and more like a circle.

Learn.
Unlearn.
Get confused.
Repeat.

At some point you even start asking yourself:

“Am I actually learning… or just surviving?”

The moment things stopped making sense

One project that really humbled me was ascii-art-web.

The task sounded simple enough:
Build a Go server and connect it to a web interface.

Simple… until it wasn’t.

Because just when I was starting to understand Go—just starting—HTML showed up like:

“Surprise 🙂”

Suddenly I wasn’t just thinking about logic anymore.
Now it was structure, templates, rendering…

At that point I just stared at my screen like:

“Wuod gi nyithindo, what is actually going on here?”

I didn’t fully understand what I was building.

But I still submitted it.

Because… what else are you going to do?

The real fear isn’t failure

Every time I hit “submit,” there’s a small moment of regret.

Like maybe if I close my laptop fast enough, the audit won’t happen.

Because the fear isn’t really failing.

It’s sitting in front of someone while they go through your code and ask:

“Why did you do this?”

And your brain just goes:

“We listen, we don’t judge.”

If I’m being honest, I’m less afraid of failing…

and more afraid of being exposed as someone who doesn’t fully understand what they’re doing.

The audit that almost ended me (but didn’t)

Then came net-cat.

Server. Client. Connections. Ports. Communication.

Big words. Serious things.

I walked into that audit already defeated.

And the auditor?
Very thorough. The kind who doesn’t just follow the questions—they expand them.

At some point, they started asking things that weren’t even on the audit sheet.

I remember thinking:

“Ah. This is where my journey ends.”

But somehow… I passed.

Passing without confidence is confusing

You’d think passing would feel amazing.

But instead, I just sat there wondering:

“Wait… so what exactly just happened?”

Because in my head, I was still the same person who didn’t fully get it.

That’s when something small shifted.

Instead of celebrating, I started seeing audits differently:

“Maybe this is not just a test… maybe this is where I actually learn the thing I thought I learned.”

What “not learning” really feels like

Let me be real.

There are days it feels like I’ve learned absolutely nothing.

Two months in… and sometimes I still feel like it’s day one.

You’re in a group discussion.
People are throwing around terms.
Debating solutions.

And you’re just there like:

“Yes… yes… I also agree… with… everything.”

Meanwhile, inside:

“Koro an gi wach matin… I am completely lost.”

And then the comparisons start.

“They understand this faster.”
“They explain things better.”
“They belong here.”

And you?

You’re not so sure.

But something is happening (quietly)

Even with all that confusion, there are small things that have changed.

I can push projects without struggling.
I understand my way around VS Code.
The terminal no longer feels like a place where mistakes go to multiply.

These aren’t big, dramatic wins.

But they matter.

Because a few weeks ago?
These same things felt impossible.

Maybe confidence isn’t the starting point

I used to think confidence comes first.

That one day I’d wake up and feel ready.

Now I’m starting to think that was a lie.

Because what’s actually happening is this:

You submit while unsure.
You get audited while nervous.
You pass… sometimes by surprise.

And slowly—very quietly—something starts to build.

Not loud confidence.
Not “I know everything now.”

Just a small, steady realization:

“I may not understand everything… but I’m not the same person I was when I started.”

So what does confidence mean to me right now?

It’s not clarity.
It’s not mastery.
It’s definitely not feeling ready.

Right now, confidence is much simpler than that.

It’s this:

Showing up. Submitting anyway. And refusing to quit.

Even when I feel lost.
Even when I can’t explain my own code properly.
Even when I’m sure I’m about to fail.

Because somehow… despite all that…

I’m still here.

Still learning.
Still confused.
Still moving forward.

And for now?

That’s enough.

After attending the piscine at Zone01 Kisumu twice (almost 60 days), I realized it’s less about coding and more about resilience. I wrote a story about the experience, the confusion, the checkpoints, the audits, and the lessons that come with them.

Okello Odhiambo — Thu, 12 Mar 2026 07:51:49 +0000

Okello Odhiambo

Mar 12

Surviving the Piscine at Zone01 Kisumu - 60 Days of Being Humbled by Code

#beginners #codenewbie #devjournal #learning

4 min read

Surviving the Piscine at Zone01 Kisumu - 60 Days of Being Humbled by Code

Okello Odhiambo — Thu, 12 Mar 2026 07:49:53 +0000

I attended the piscine twice.

That’s nearly 60 days of intense coding, confusion, debugging, and occasional existential crises in front of a computer.

And when I say intense, I mean the kind where you stare at your screen so long that even the keyboard starts judging you.

When I first joined the piscine at Zone01 Kisumu, I had zero tech background. Not “a little HTML” zero. I mean completely zero.

The closest I had come to programming was dialing USSD codes like *544# to check bundles.

Yet somehow, I had decided to learn software engineering.

Looking back, that decision would lead to one of the most challenging and transformative experiences of my life.

Day One: A Very Fast Reality Check

The first day of the piscine is where reality politely introduces itself.

You sit down, open your computer, log into the system, and look around the room.

Some people immediately start typing like they’ve been preparing for this moment since childhood.

Within the first hour, something becomes obvious.

Not everyone is starting from the same place.

Some participants come from computer science backgrounds or have already spent time coding. They move through exercises quickly and confidently.

Meanwhile, you’re still reading the instructions.

At Zone01, finishing an exercise is often called “BIM-ing” it.

So imagine hearing someone say:

“I’ve already BIM’d that exercise.”

And you haven’t even figured out what the instructions mean yet.

That’s the moment when your brain quietly asks:

“Are we sure we belong here?”

But stubbornness is powerful.

So you stay.

The Weekly Cycle: Hope vs Reality

The piscine has a rhythm that every participant eventually recognizes.

During the week, you start gaining confidence.

You solve a few exercises.
You fix a bug.
Maybe you even help someone else.

For a moment, you feel like you're finally getting the hang of things.

Then comes the checkpoint.

The 4-Hour Checkpoint Experience

The checkpoint is a timed exam designed to test your understanding.

And it’s also where confidence goes to die.

Everyone starts at the same time.

You open the exam.

You read the first question.

Then you stare at the screen.

Five minutes pass.

Ten minutes pass.

Meanwhile, the person next to you is already on Level 3.

At this point, many people develop the same coping mechanism: typing random commands just so it looks like you're working.

Your screen is empty.

But your keyboard is extremely busy.

Checkpoints have a way of reminding everyone that learning to code is not a straight line.

Group Projects: When Confidence Meets the Audit

Group work is one of the most interesting parts of the piscine.

People gather around one screen discussing solutions, sharing ideas, and proposing approaches.

Someone says:

“Let’s use recursion.”

Everyone nods.

Even the people who have absolutely no idea what recursion is.

For a moment, the team feels unstoppable.

Then comes audit time.

An auditor reviews your project and asks a simple question:

“Can you explain this part of the code?”

If you truly understand it, no problem.

If you don’t, the explanation suddenly becomes very creative.

You start sentences like:

“Basically what happens here is… you see… the function…”

And somehow the explanation never reaches a conclusion.

It’s a humbling moment that most piscine participants remember very clearly.

The AI Temptation

Let’s talk about something modern developers understand very well.

The temptation to use AI.

When you're stuck on a problem for hours, the thought appears:

“Maybe I should just get a small hint.”

Suddenly, perfect code appears.

Clean. Elegant. Working.

You submit it feeling brilliant.

Until someone asks:

“Can you explain what this line does?”

That’s when the real test begins.

The piscine doesn’t just evaluate whether your code works.

It checks whether you understand what you wrote.

And that’s a lesson many developers learn the hard way.

What the Piscine Actually Teaches

At first glance, the piscine looks like a coding bootcamp.

But after weeks of struggling through exercises, something becomes clear.

The real lesson isn’t just programming.

It’s resilience.

You learn how to deal with frustration.

You learn that confusion is part of the learning process.

And you learn that everyone—no matter how experienced—gets stuck sometimes.

A Luo proverb says:

“Piny owacho gi chike, to ng’ato nyalo puonjore.”
The world has its rules, but a person can learn them.

The piscine forces you to accept that progress happens slowly, one concept at a time.

Why I Came Back the Second Time

After my first attempt, I had a choice.

Walk away.

Or try again.

I came back.

Not because coding suddenly became easy.

But because something had changed.

I understood that the goal wasn’t to be the fastest person in the room.

The goal was simply to keep improving.

One exercise.

One concept.

One bug at a time.

Final Thoughts

Looking back at nearly 60 days in the piscine, one thing stands out.

The experience tests more than your technical ability.

It tests your patience.
Your humility.
Your willingness to keep learning.

Some days your screen is blank.

Some days the person next to you is already on Level 3.

But if you stay long enough, something interesting happens.

You start solving problems that once felt impossible.

And slowly, line by line, the code begins to make sense.

💬 If you’ve ever gone through a coding bootcamp, a 42/Zone01 piscine, or any intense learning experience, I’d love to hear your story.

What was the moment that humbled you the most?

Because if there’s one thing the piscine proves, it’s this:

Every developer has that moment.