I need to quiet space to think (or at least thick headphones) to solve hard problems. I can’t understand how some people work without ever getting that. Do pairs agree to shut up until someone gets an idea?

I am not sure everyone has the same idea of pair programming. I have never done it but it simply seems like: 2 people solve a single need.

How? "Deploy personal + company resources as appropriate to get the job done together" - however they damn well want to in that framework. It is between them. The pair could:

Use a whiteboard for 5 minutes every 3 hours and go their separate ways otherwise.

Sit together hunched over a single laptop.

Work from two entirely separate locations with collaboration software so they can see each others cursor and typing as they voicechat.

I mean, isn't it all about simply getting along and getting a job done?

> Do pairs agree to shut up until someone gets an idea?

Hard problems are quite rare, most development is mundane.

When facing hard problems, generally related to non-obvious bugs, there are many ways to solve them, and yes taking time off to think about it separately is absolutely one of them.

This isn