[marinintim]

That is indeed another perspective, yet not that different after all, if we'd look at what programming _is_. At its core, it is problem solving and mashing keys on the keyboard.

I don't think that keyboard part is really meaningful to anyone who claims to love programming, so it must be problem solving coupled with complex interactions between abstract idea how to solve it with concrete pecularities of programming languages, platforms, libraries, etc. The second part doesn't go anywhere whether you solve problems for Business Folks or scratch your own itch.

That means that difference between the perspectives is only who's supplying the problems. That reminds me of another distinction, namely, the one between painters and commercial illustrators (not sure if that is proper nomenclature). The path of Painter is hard and lonely, most of the painters we know today did some kind of commercial work or lived off 'grants' from philantropists. Or you can earn your paycheck doing something else and program as a hobbyist, for its own sake. I think that this is also valid programming 'culture' that exists somewhat under the radars of 'tech industry'.

[mclehman]

> I don't think that keyboard part is really meaningful to anyone who claims to love programming

I'd beg to differ on that front.