In the first 2 years of my degree, that means 12 courses, around 4 were about programming.

The progression was:

learning algorithms and control structures -> learning basic data structures and pseudocode ->
learning advanced data structures and put all of that in a programming language -> shift to object oriented programming and patterns.

So the "programming" part isn't that intensive at all, and you lightly touch over programming languages. Its pretty much the big elephant in the room that you're supposed to learn to progress anyway.

Now the other 8 courses dealt with algebra, function analysis, statistics, logic and boolean algebra, assembly, logic gates and low level workings of CPUs, system/organization analysis and database design and normalization.

And still all of those subjects are pretty much introductory, you're not going to skillfully use SSE intrinsics in your codebase after an assembly course, you're not going to understand everything inside the CPU after a few classes on logic gates and basic circuits, you're not going to properly make a big database after just learning small normalization and what a schema is. It is a very "broadener" of knowledge, it can open your mind to many, many applications that computing in general can have.

I consider it a good experience.

It really depends on you: how you learn, and what you want to do in life (I'm going to assume that you are indeed talented at programming).

You get out of college what you put into it - if you aren't well suited to college (either the learning style or the life style), then you may be better off not going to college. A talented individual can always wrangle one's way into an internship, and with a little work experience under the belt, many of the same doors open up.

If on the other hand you thrive in college, it is absolutely invaluable. A computer science degree will make you a better engineer, and above all, a broad liberal arts education will help you become a better human being. And the mo0ney you spend obtaining that degree is a small amount in the long run of engineering salaries...

I am in the exact situation that you are in. I am 18 and I have been programming since I was 10. This year I have got an internship at a company programming for them over the summer and now they have decided they want to keep me. So what I am doing is taking the year off and deciding what I want to do for school. In this time I think I will program another game or two and release them and see if that kicks off...I would really like to be able to make it as an indie developer. Anyway I think I have decided to go into school and take some classes in business cause if you are as experienced as it sounds then you will not get that much out of computer science anyways...I mean I am constantly debugging the other programmers slow code at my work to make our software actually run nicely.

I actually think you will learn something from it as now you are just going on past experience but you can't scientifically justify why an algorithm works the way it does. This is something a CS degree should teach you. Other than that learning about proper data structure and algorithm design is extremely useful.

It's the things besides programming that a uni teaches you that can help you out, I had hardware logic designs as part of my first year program. This seemed completely useless at first up untill you reach the course operating systems and all of that stuff becomes important again as it explained how memory worked in hardware, how addressing of memory works in hardware.

As a skilled programmer without a degree (yet), let me say in no uncertain terms: get a degree.

Even if you can _do_ the job, getting that first job is tons easier with a degree. HR departments (and most hiring managers) will hire a candidate with a degree over one without. And even when you do get a job, you'll get paid far less than a "more qualified" candidate.

And really, why would you *choose* to slave away 40 hours a week rather than spending 4 years hanging out with uninhibited coeds?

As a skilled programmer without a degree (yet), let me say in no uncertain terms: get a degree.

Even if you can _do_ the job, getting that first job is tons easier with a degree. HR departments (and most hiring managers) will hire a candidate with a degree over one without. And even when you do get a job, you'll get paid far less than a "more qualified" candidate.

And really, why would you *choose* to slave away 40 hours a week rather than spending 4 years hanging out with uninhibited coeds?

Uninhibited coeds tend to have an inverse financial effect when compared to employment.

As a skilled programmer without a degree (yet), let me say in no uncertain terms: get a degree.
Even if you can _do_ the job, getting that first job is tons easier with a degree. HR departments (and most hiring managers) will hire a candidate with a degree over one without. And even when you do get a job, you'll get paid far less than a "more qualified" candidate.
And really, why would you *choose* to slave away 40 hours a week rather than spending 4 years hanging out with uninhibited coeds?

Uninhibited coeds tend to have an inverse financial effect when compared to employment.

I have lost somewhere around $25-30k *per year* over the past 15 years by making less than my degree'd peers. And that doesn't include the 15 months I spent unemployed because nobody would hire a non-degree'd computer programmer with no formal experience.

Not getting a degree is absurdly more expensive than even today's universities.

Yes. You SHOULD get a degree. Be it a CS degree, an EECS degree, or even an English degree. Any degree is always better than no degree.

There are a lot of reasons for why you should have a degree, but here's a few:
1. It shows you are able to commit to a project (getting your degree) for years on end. As an employer I'll often have projects that go on for many years and will require dedicated people to complete.
2. You will learn many things that are difficult or simply unlikely to learn outside of getting a degree. In the CS/EECS case you get all the theory that goes along with the practical. It is important to note that CS is much more theory oriented than EECS. EECS will have much more implementation side of things. Things you might end up learning include: Graph theory, set theory, complexity theory, combinatorics! All of these you COULD learn on your own, however its hard to correct mistaken assumptions and/or errors in your reasoning without someone else checking it for you (i.e. homework, quizzes, etc.)
3. It looks good on a resume.

Frankly, as an employer who gets to see lots of resumes... if two resumes cross my desk, each with similar portfolios but one has a CS degree and one doesn't, I'll take the CS candidate. Even if I did take the one without, I wouldn't pay that person as much as the person with the degree... because I don't have to. Any degree increases your income level, and that increase more than pays for the few years of learning and socialization you will undergo at a college.

Adding to the list of reasons why you should get a degree: connections.

If I had never gone to school, I never would have made the connections that have led me to where I am (not that I'm in some super high-up position, but I've had some cool opportunities). By going through school, you'll connect with professors, peers, and others which very well may open up a lot of doors (in addition to the extra doors a degree/education will open).