I can understand that some people enjoy pair programming, and there are some situations like knowledge transfer where it may be appropriate. But I'm not sure it would fit with the way I solve problems. I don't know what I'm doing half the time -- I have to experiment and hit my head against the wall and continually inspect APIs in an IPython repl. I go back and forth between a console and a browser and emacs a mile a minute.
When I've had to program with another person watching, my productivity screeches to a halt.
For me, experimenting, debugging and everything else that's basically try-and-error is actually where pair programming really shines.
Most of our time is spent finding solutions to problems, even if it's just figuring out how to use an API. When we are working on a problem with two people at the time, we can carry on as early as the first of both figures out the solution.
It's not about sharing a keyboard to write code together. Pair programming is about approaching development with two different ways of thinking.
Maybe? But on the whole I tend to be pretty fast, just a bit hyperactive. I suppose I mostly feel as if pair programming would stifle the ability to experiment with every bit of code while I go, and cause me to have to plan everything out in a way that's unnatural to me. Maybe I'm wrong.
When I've had to program with another person watching, my productivity screeches to a halt.