Good post ... although I must say that the first paragraph has no learning value, but it does establish your 'geek credentials'

One informal analogy I use when thinking about...

The sense I get is, for a well-defined environment like SQL Server, there is barely any justification for tibbling.

But, once you move into the sprawling and usually chaotic development...

Hah! Access -- the great coding-style polluter! I take a perverse pleasure in being part of the Access coding community, so reviled by its peers -- if only it wasn't...