Author here. No analogy is perfect, but this is how working with code has felt for me for a while, so I wanted to write down my thoughts about it.

I wrote this a couple of months ago, and everything moves so fast nowadays that the concept of factories is already being blurred as harnesses get better and require less tooling around them. I still think that the distinction between wanting to be in the loop vs automated out from it holds up, though.

There are other interesting aspects of malleable code that I don't explore in the article, for example:

- Ownership. People feel less attached to their code, which has both good and bad consequences (e.g. fewer ego battles but less accountability).

- Malleable software that adapt to users. Huge topic, many interesting questions to explore.

- Assets in code. Things like (some) 3D graphics and animations can now be done entirely in code. Before they were very tedious to code and tweak.

- Collaboration dynamics. Instead of high-frequency alignment (discussions, meetings) to make sure every detail is clear before the implementation, it might be more efficient to go ahead with educated guesses and align later over a working build.