[dragonwriter]

> I know asking for help when you really need some isn't wrong, but how did older programmers tackle that conceptual "blank page" syndrome, without all that information abundance, when they didn't want to annoy their coworkers?

Books. And desire. And breaking things down and doing one step at a time. "Information abundance" is a mixed blessing; it makes it much easier to find information, but it makes it a lot easier for people to get out of the habit of working things through.