People play MMOs to tackle non-real-world problems where X hours of hard work according to precise set of rules R gives you precisely defined outcome O, with loot from [L1, L2, L3, ...]. They play precisely to escape from the fact the same effort in the real world gets you one from [nada, less than nada, peanuts, laughed at]. There is space for the use of MMOs to train people and it's not new, but most of the time it's set up by people who think that gamers need to be patronised. "Got Game" is an interesting read around this subject too.

Oops! Misspost. Nothing to see here. Move along please. Slap me as you pass.

Take it from me, MBCS/CITP at whatever level does not count for one dented penny in the job market. Nothing. Nada. Correction. It gives interviewers a laugh when you mention it, so maybe it works as an icebreaker.

How does it work if it has no electricity? Does it have a solar panel? A wind-up handle? Perhaps a compressed air line powered by foot or other pedal devices? Can I obtain similar results by removing my bicycle seat and cycling over rough ground? Is it designed for solo use or by a qualified practitioner? What is the training and certification regime? How was it tested and by whom. On whom. Was it under laboratory conditions or ... no never mind. If it has theraputic claims was it tested by the FDA or other qualified body. If so how, etc. For what purpose does one massage one's prostate if not for the alleged pleasure? This is a serious question. Lastly, but perhaps most apposite of all, how and why did anyone think of it? Having thought of it why the long face? Thinking about it, if that was the best idea I ever had, well....

You remind me of my ancient great aunt who had to have every disease worse than anyone else. Someone in the family developed prostate issues and she said 'for sure, I've had that and what's more, I've had to have them both out and I couldn't swallow for a month'.

And lo it came to pass that on the appointed hour of Armageddon, the Brits did come in their legions and attempt to correct the grammar and spelling of Satan's hordes...

Hmm. The problem here is you are asking Brits to fix a leaking pipe. Queue lots of sucking of teeth, scratching of heads and HUGE estimates. There is probably a guy there right now, using the undersea robot to tap the pipe and go, "well your problem, mate, is its all your own fault see, no offence, I've got a bit of twig I broke off a tree in my van. I'll stick that in the hole and wiggle it around while I think of something more plausible but it will cost you..." Call in the Poles. They have great plumbers: quick, efficient, well qualified. They'll have it fixed in a jiffy and clean up the mess afterwards.

75 years? Must be time for them to retire!

Delphi suffers the curse of being so 'beautifully engineered' that its fans assumed that it would carry all before it and can't understand why it didn't. Remember Betamax? Remember the DeLorean? Jo Public doesn't care about the nth percentile of engineering perfection, Jo cares about getting the job done. I've been a Delphi lead for over 10 years and I can't get a job so I'm learning C# instead. Personally I think C# is inferior in some respects but it wins out because it is designed to solve the real-life everyday problem of getting code out of the door.

I am singularly disgusted and appalled that Google have no Python graphic. Spam them!

I agree with most of Joel's post. What bothers me with this kind of thing is that there are a lot of idiots out there just waiting for an excuse for their poor standards. For every real Duct Tape Programmer there are ten buffoons who will now take that label for themselves. But hell they shoudln't be hard to spot.

Its petrified cheese I tell you. I've eaten cheese which tasted like petrified wood. No. Wait... that was aged Belgian cheese!! I say the visit of the Apollo 11 astronauts to Holland was obviously faked and staged in Belgium.