The Tar Pit - Woes of the Craft

"First, one must perform perfectly."
Comparing programming to magic, Brooks expounds:
"If one character, one pause, of the incantation is not strictly in proper form, the magic doesn't work."
"Human beings are not accustomed to being perfect, and few areas of human activity demand it. Adjusting to the requirements for perfection, I think, the most difficult part of learning to program."

"...One's authority is not sufficient for his responsibility".
"...actual authority is acquired from the very momentum of accomplishment."

"...debugging has a linear convergence, or worse..."