This is the type of thing I learned in my first semester of undergrad as a CompE. This information is not a revelation for 90% of people with programming experience unless I'm greatly overestimating our collective knowledge.

kmfrk: You have a point. I guess my point was that _I_ don't think HN is a venue for sharing articles aimed at beginners. But the upvotes prove me wrong :) The article is pretty well written.