it also tends to teach you just how sloppy your thinking usually is with uncanny precision, probably more than you like. Computers invariably do what you tell them to do with great precision and speed but almost never what you want them to do. The number of times that I've stared at a single line knowing that I was looking at the source of the problem and still not seeing the wood for the trees is best left unmentioned...

Programming is a harsh mistress, but the rewards are worth it.