I agree with you completely. I enjoy it more when I know how it's done but don't notice it myself. Kind of like woodworking where someone patches a hole in th

I agree with you completely. I enjoy it more when I know how it's done but don't notice it myself. Kind of like woodworking where someone patches a hole in the wood and you don't notice it, but they point it out anyway. With all that information, you can say "wow, I still don't even see it really" which is more impressive than just not noticing at first glance. The extra information proves how good the illusion actually is. (Penn & Teller obviously based their career around this stuff. I imagine many of the HN types also like Penn & Teller a lot as a result.) I am pretty sure it's mostly "I don't want someone else to steal this." Generally, I'm pretty unconcerned about telling people unimplemented ideas. If they want to rearrange their life to "steal" my idea, good for them. But they probably won't be able to execute it as well, so it's not really a concern I have. But, magic is tough... you want to have new material for your acts, and if someone beats you to the punch, you don't get paid. So I see why magicians are paranoid. But if we get a new generation of Penns and Tellers, I'd personally be happy.