From: ram@zedat.fu-berlin.de   
      
     In a current discussion about a topic from the field of physics,   
     there are some people who do not realize that I am right.   
      
     In computer programming, often, when someone says something   
     that is wrong, I can demonstrate his error relatively easily   
     to such an extend, that he must realize that he is wrong.   
     Of course, this applies especially to trivial matters, and   
     not to all programming topics.   
      
     For example, when someone says, "In C, one cannot print   
     an asterisk, as this is a so-called 'meta character' that   
     has a special meaning for the language.", I can go ahead and   
     write a C program that prints an asterisk. Even if my opponent   
     does not even understand the program, he can start it and   
     see that it prints an asterisk.   
      
     Of, course, he /could/ say: "Yes, as I said. This program   
     is not written in C, because it prints an asterisk! This must   
     be C++.". But often he will see his error. People who do not   
     like to admit their errors have a hard time in programming,   
     because the behavior of their program is only controlled by   
     the technical guidelines of the language specification and   
     not by their wishful thinking or overconfidence.   
      
     When things get more complicated, it becomes more difficult,   
     to get your opponent to admit that you are right. For example,   
     you cannot write a program that shows the complexity of an   
     algorithm in a convincing manner.   
      
     Of course, it is also possible that I am the one who is wrong.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)