I probably should spend more time on my own code, perhaps. But this site has certainly proven a pleasant distraction from staring at unchanging error messages.

There is a saying in the literary world that disparages writers who produce more than they read. I think that concept applies equally well to writers of code: one who writes more code than they read is a fool.

Yes, spending time refining your own code and learning through example and trial is exceedingly beneficial. But, reading and understanding others' code is essential to improving your programming ability. Helping those less skilled than you is useful as well, as it helps solidify a concept when we explain it to others.

Participating in PerlMonks has done more for my Perl ability in the year or so than reading books and trying to write applications did for the previous three. This is only partly resulting from having Sought of Perl Widsom; it's much moreso learning from meditations, trying to answer simple SoPW questions, trying to understand the more advanced questions (and, more importantly, the answers), and so on. Never underestimate the value of exposure to others' work!