sadara (5/15/2008)
i disagree. if the programmer can't communcate well with at least the person/people supplying him/her with the spec, s/he will quite likely code what s/he THINKS is required, rather than what IS required. i've seen it countless times. on one occasion, a programmer of my acquaintance was told that he should stop an application producing a certain error message: he removed the error message.
i'd go further: the best programmers give people what they need - and sometimes that's different from what they ask for.
I completely agree. To say that communication is not important is a cop-out based on preference or fear. Granted, some people aren't gifted in communication, but that doesn't mean that it somehow disappears. Most important of all, though, is proper understanding, which certainly requires good communication. It is too easy to communicate something that could be taken in many different ways. Look at all the implementations of "standards."
A great programmer--I realize I'm using different terminology than "guru" due to the misunderstanding on the meaning of the word--definitely delivers what is meant, not what is specifically requested.