As Deestan notes, delays have direct multipliers. Beyond that, delays often have indirect multipliers that are even worse. XKCD "Compiling" http://xkcd.com/30

As Deestan notes, delays have direct multipliers. Beyond that, delays often have indirect multipliers that are even worse. XKCD "Compiling" http://xkcd.com/303/ http://xkcd.com/303/ is funny because we have all done it. If there is a noticeable lag in a development step (VCS operations, compiling, running the program, etc.), it is very likely that the developer will lose concentration and switch to reading email, browsing HN, reading /., BSing with co-workers, etc. This takes the direct delays and turns them into exponential multipliers. The result is that 30 seconds of lag has a high risk of becoming 30 minutes of wasted time.