The freedom to modify software is becoming easier to use

Reading a tool’s source, getting it to compile and making a small change can consume more time than the improvement is worth. Even experienced programmers leave that freedom unused.

Coding agents lower the entry cost. Simon describes asking an assistant to inspect a repository and explain a particular behavior, or to get a project building while he does something else.

He is careful about the claim: he has not suddenly begun modifying every tool he uses. But the route from irritation to a personal fix looks much more practical than it did a year earlier.

That gives access to source code a renewed everyday value. You can ask the software how it works—and increasingly do something about the answer.