Good question. I think it's something to do with the impression that if something doesn't work, I can have absolute confidence that it's something that I've do

Good question. I think it's something to do with the impression that if something doesn't work, I can have absolute confidence that it's something that I've done wrong. There's no question of "bugs in the framework"[0]. There's also the matter that this is one area where code golf is actually practical, and can make the difference between being able to do something and simply not. [0] Yes, I know there are hardware bugs. In the sort of thing I'm doing? Not hugely relevant.