This isn't the only way that I "waste" my time learning.

Learning isn't a waste of time, not in and of itself. Undisciplined learning is.

I'll try a different metaphor. Playing scales and arpeggios on the piano (or Chopin's Études) is usually a good exercise, but if you slouch or rest your wrists on your knees and have poor fingering technique, they're lousy, wasted exercises. If you let yourself slip up and hit the wrong keys, you're only hurting yourself.

In a similar way, well-focused research is often valuable. I know you make a sharp distinction (as do I) between experimental, research code and code you intend to maintain. That's a very important point. If discipline in practice and research is important (and it is), it's because it helps to establish and maintain good habits for when you use your skills for real.

In reply to Re^4: Reinvent the wheel! by chromatic
in thread Reinvent the wheel! by telemachus

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