[wvenable]

The big difference between coursework code and production code is the size and scope of it. When you finish a course after 4 months you never have to look at that code again. And it's only going to be so big because, over the entire course, you spend at most a few intense weeks on it.

I just got a call tonight about some code I wrote that has a sorted history that is well over 10 years old. I work on a code base every day that contains over 6 years of code I've personally written. In education, you rarely experience that sheer amount of code.

[loeg]

I'm guessing you meant "sordid" history, as in:

  Sordid \Sor"did\, a. [L. sordidus, fr. sordere to be filthy or
     dirty; probably akin to E. swart: cf. F. sordide. See
     {Swart}, a.]
     1. Filthy; foul; dirty. [Obs.]
     2. Vile; base; gross; mean; as, vulgar, sordid mortals.

(1913 Webster's)

[wvenable]

Yes, yes I did. That's what I get for posting a comment 10 minutes before bedtime and now it's even too late to edit.

The only code I have with a "sorted" history was part of my coursework. :)