Sometimes Dave Winer gets it just right.

I think, in some ways programmers, who live the scientific method, are better prepared for life than non-programmers, but the opposite is often assumed. We all have a visual image of the programmer, but this is just the outer package. A great programmer is a seeker of truth and beauty. Successful programmers know how to ask questions, and they know how to ask the **right** question. You can’t go forward until that happens. A programmer is a rigorous scientist determined to coax the truth out of the ones and zeros. There’s the beauty.

I haven’t been a programmer as long as Dave (it’s been 15 years or so for me), but this piece captures for me exactly how I feel about the work I do.

When a programmer catches fire it’s because he or she groks the system, its underlying truth has been revealed. I’ve seen this happen many times, a programmer languishes for months, chipping at the edges of a problem. Then all of a sudden, a breakthrough happens, the pieces start fitting together. A few months later the software works, and you go forward.

***YES!*** I believe that programming is much more art than engineering, and that a good programmer has the soul of an artist. This is the way an artist works… when meaning is found, inspiration ensues.