Code is an Artform

Code really is an artform as much as it is a science. Code can be elegant and beautiful, so please remember this the next time you're tempted to completely mangle it with your favorite editor's cut-n-paste function or whatever.

Pretty code also serves to be more readable and maintainable.

Using an editor (vi) that requires me to think a moment before mangling has made me a better programmer, and the desire to keep any and all code in its finest form has also lead me away from inferior code-generating tools. I'll only use generators (like Xdoclet in particular) that are elegant enough to allow me to control everything from my source. Xdoclet is usable, because I never have to try modify and maintain generated code -- I can go right back to my source.