What is Vibe Coding? Easily write programs with Cursor's Composer, Agent Mode, and YOLO Mode! The secret is out, a must-try for developers

"Natural language (English/Chinese) has become the most popular programming language, and the era of writing programs with the flow of consciousness has arrived."

Have you heard of Vibe Coding? This is an emerging way of programming that allows you to interact with AI in natural language and quickly generate code, avoiding the tedious manual writing. Paired with the Cursor AI-enhanced editor, whether you are an experienced engineer looking to accelerate development or a beginner, you can easily realize your ideas. Today, we'll dive into the charm of Vibe Coding and introduce Cursor's latest features: Composer, Agent Mode, and YOLO Mode, as well as share some practical tips to help you master this technology in Taiwan!

Vibe Coding: The starting point of a new programming revolution

Vibe Coding is like "chilling" with AI to write programs. You only need to tell the AI "I want a web application that displays the weather in Taipei," and it will generate the code for you. According to HackerNoon's research, this approach, called "Vibe Coding," was proposed by Andrej Karpathy, a computer scientist and co-founder of OpenAI, emphasizing the reduction of manual programming and focusing on creativity and intent. It not only improves efficiency but also lowers the threshold, making it particularly suitable for rapid prototyping or small projects, which is a secret weapon for Taiwan's startup teams to accelerate product launch.

Cursor: The best tool for Vibe Coding

Cursor is an AI-powered editor based on Visual Studio Code, designed specifically for Vibe Coding. Since 2024, it has been loved by engineers from OpenAI and Perplexity because it can understand the entire codebase, provide intelligent suggestions, and even automate complex tasks. Its latest updates have brought three powerful features that make programming even easier:

Composer: Multi-file editing and application generation

Composer is Cursor's core feature, allowing you to handle multiple files at once and even generate complete applications. For example, if you tell it "Help me build a React app with user registration and login functionality," it will automatically create the frontend, backend, and database files. According to Prototypr's introduction, Composer has evolved from single-line suggestions to multi-file editing, making it very suitable for rapid MVP creation. Since December 2024, it has been the default feature for Pro and Business, and you can activate it with Ctrl+I.

Agent Mode: AI-driven task completion

Agent Mode is an advanced mode of Composer, allowing the AI to complete tasks on its own. You can say "Set up a Python server and scrape web data," and it will write the code, run tests, and even fix bugs - you only need to supervise. According to the official changelog, it supports parallel editing across multiple locations and can read linter errors to automatically fix them, saving a lot of manual adjustment time.

YOLO Mode: Wildly automated terminal commands

YOLO Mode is an enhanced version of Agent Mode, where the AI will automatically execute terminal commands like `npm install` or `git commit` without even needing confirmation. Sounds super cool, right? According to the egghead.io guide, it can quickly set up a TypeScript project or start a server. However, the risk is also high, such as potentially deleting files, so it's recommended to enable "Delete File Protection" and set up a command whitelist, especially before testing in a production environment.

My Vibe Coding Experience: From Zero to Weather App

I recently used Cursor to create a simple Taipei weather application. I just told it "Create a React app that displays the weather in Taipei," then turned on YOLO Mode, and the AI automatically installed dependencies, created files, and ran a bunch of terminal commands, completing the task in just a few minutes. Watching the commands fly by on the screen, I really had a sense of "the AI is busier than me." But I also found that collaborating with AI requires a bit of skill, so I'll share my experiences below.

Vibe Coding Practical Tips: Making AI Understand You Better

Want to make Vibe Coding smoother? Here are a few tricks I've learned from practical experience:

• Communicate in steps: Don't throw too many tasks at the AI at once. For example, first let it build the basic structure, then add the features. Studies show this can reduce AI confusion and improve accuracy.
• Patiently adjust prompts: If the AI doesn't grasp the key point the first time, don't give up quickly. For example, I initially said "sort," and it gave me messy results, but when I changed it to "implement quick sorting in Python," it was perfect. Keep trying, and the AI will understand you better.
• Carefully observe errors: If errors occur, start to understand where the errors come from and adjust your prompts or communication methods accordingly.

These simple yet effective techniques are especially suitable for Taiwan's remote developers, allowing you to collaborate with AI like a partner and double your efficiency.

The Advantages of Vibe Coding for Taiwan Developers

In Taiwan, Vibe Coding is particularly suitable for startups and freelancers. Rapid prototyping can help you get your product to market faster, and Cursor's multilingual support and cloud integration are a perfect fit for Taiwan's remote work environment. YOLO Mode's automation features are super attractive to developers familiar with AI, but Taiwanese people are risk-averse, so it's recommended to play in a sandbox environment first, get familiar with it, and then use it in formal projects. For teams looking to quickly build an MVP, this is a tool not to be missed.

In-depth Analysis: The Future and Challenges of Vibe Coding

According to the Medium article, Vibe Coding is the future direction of programming. It allows non-technical people to participate in development, like saying in natural language "Build a restaurant menu PWA," and the AI can handle it. But challenges also exist, like the high-autonomy YOLO Mode, which may go wrong due to unclear instructions or insufficient security settings. In the future, Cursor may add more protection mechanisms to make Vibe Coding more widespread.

Conclusion: Start Your Vibe Coding Adventure

Vibe Coding, combined with Cursor's Composer, Agent Mode, and YOLO Mode, makes programming as natural as chatting. Whether you're an engineer looking to improve efficiency or a beginner, this is a trend worth trying. Are you ready to create your next big project with AI? Go download Cursor and embark on your creative journey with Vibe Coding!

Do you have any questions or want to share your own Vibe Coding experiences? Leave a comment and let's talk about the fun of this technology!

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