I remember typing in programs from books and magazines. Although this is theoretically no different from copy-paste, I wonder if the slowness of the process gave me time to think about what I was typing. "Why is this bit here? What happens if I leave it out? Could I replace this with something else?" That's something you don't get today, when moving code from one place to another takes a couple of key-presses.

I feel you. A blank slate is really a joyful playground for me, but it's so rare nowadays.