I like to think about how much creativity the writers of the “Star Trek” series had, in particular the “Voyager” series. There are a lot of “Programming”-related idioms in it. Not surprising given that they are flying a “Starship” after all. The creativity is really in what they thought “programming” meant to evoke in the audience. Not that anyone is running around showing reams of code streaming on a screen. In its classic style, most of the time they only show a cast member leaning over a console pressing buttons which beeps and flashes as it processes his instructions. The instructions are sometimes as simple as commands to steer the starship or set it on an automated pilot to programming a holodeck sequence. “Tom Paris” in fact seems to be known to “program” interesting “encounters” on the holodecks, which are immersive stories you can jump in. He calls it “Programming”. No IDE in sight, no tabs vs spaces fight. They do talk a lot about “routines” in code. I added a “routine”, deleted a “routine”
The charismatic and Intriguing holographic “Doctor” is himself a “program” with a lot of moral and ethical dilemmas which are plot points throughout the series. He is, he insists much more than the “code” that he was written in. “More than the sum of the routines that he is made of”. A true AI