I think sans hit it on the head - RAW is an exact as seen function and doesn't apply, contrast, sharpening or any other bits that come into plug with Tiff and Jpeg compression.
Leaving all the work up to you, including the sharpening :D
I think it's a pretty good way of knowing your work is improving coz when you don't have to sharpen as much you know your focusing skills are improving :D

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