We respect it. This gradually expanded into being programmed just for fun, or as a way for the programmer to show. The computer scene is worldwide, but mainly based in Europe. Scandinavia is one of the biggest sources of demos, but Germany, France and Holland also produced a lot of demos. Demos are very fun to watch, because they seemingly do things that aren't possible on the machine they were programmed on.
Demos are an art form.
They blend mathematics, programming skill, and creativity into something incredible to watch and listen to. Demos are not actually functional or interactive, in the main, but then nor are portraits, or cds. Perhaps you can think of a demo as a music video on a computer, but with equal emphasis on the visuals, the music, and the code. It's something to watch, enjoy, and marvel at the creativity of. Demos can be beautiful.