Oh, I'm so glad you, the one arbiter of all that is art, is able to correct our misunderstanding of the definition of "art".
The truth is, you can't define art, so in the same way I can use paint to paint my house, or use paint to create a portrait, I can use programming for art or just as a day job.
Finally, everything that requires skill has craft, even art.
while op is possibly being pedantic, aren't you agreeing with him?
shin_lao is suggesting that painting itself is not an art, but a craft. what you do with the paint defines whether or not it is art.
likewise, your code can create something menial the same way it can create something artful.
being able to program makes you no more of an artist than being able to put paint on a brush. whether or not being able to put paint on a brush makes you an artist, of course, is subjective. :)
>>Programming as an intellectual activity is the only art form that allows you to create interactive art.
Not true! Live performances can be plenty interactive. Which doesn't devalue programming--you can do things in software you actually can't do anywhere else--but this was perhaps poorly thought out.
The truth is, you can't define art, so in the same way I can use paint to paint my house, or use paint to create a portrait, I can use programming for art or just as a day job.
Finally, everything that requires skill has craft, even art.