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I don’t think about _why every day the way I used to, but I still miss his presence.

by Arubis 6y ago

oliyoung 6y ago
his influence on a whole generation of developers was priceless
- alxjrvs 6y ago
  It is not an exaggeration to suggest that If I - liberal arts graduate focusing on technology in academia - had not found _why's guide, I would never have believed I had a mind capable of doing code professionally. I will be celebrating my 10th year in the industry soon.
echelon 6y ago
Where did he go? I know he likes anonymity, but it's really sad that he just left.
- klodolph 6y ago
  Rather than think of leaving as a sad thing, think of it as an affirmation of the other things in his life.
  - derefr 6y ago
    It's not so much that I'm sad that _why is gone, as that I'm sad that there aren't more people like him. We went from having one _why-like force in programming to having zero. And that is the shame.
- allworknoplay 6y ago
  My understanding is that he burned out and had to take himself offline. He used to be involved in quite a bit (also see Hackety Hack), and it can be really exhausting for some people. I'm hopeful that he found the balance that he needed, and glad for all the contributions he made along the way.
  - mariodiana 6y ago
    My understanding is that his "true identity" got outed and he disappeared off the scene after that. Imagine! The guy was both an insanely productive programmer and Ruby evangelist. He gave more to the community than anyone could repay. And what did he ask for in return? He asked to be the Lone Ranger. All he wanted was anonymity. He wanted to be the masked hero who rides in, does a bunch of good, and then gallops off before anyone has had a chance to thank him. He was an eccentric, a romantic. That romantic eccentric was a benefactor who asked basically nothing in return. And some nobody decided it would be fun to pull off the mask. Who was that? We'd have to look him up to know his name. He ruined it for _why and for the rest of the Ruby community. Why? What for?
  - failrate 6y ago
    He also got doxxed after specifically asking to be left alone.

I don’t think about _why every day the way I used to, but I still miss his presence.

by Arubis 6y ago

I don’t think about _why every day the way I used to, but I still miss his presence.

oliyoung 6y ago

his influence on a whole generation of developers was priceless

alxjrvs 6y ago
It is not an exaggeration to suggest that If I - liberal arts graduate focusing on technology in academia - had not found _why's guide, I would never have believed I had a mind capable of doing code professionally. I will be celebrating my 10th year in the industry soon.

echelon 6y ago

Where did he go? I know he likes anonymity, but it's really sad that he just left.

klodolph 6y ago
Rather than think of leaving as a sad thing, think of it as an affirmation of the other things in his life.
- derefr 6y ago
  It's not so much that I'm sad that _why is gone, as that I'm sad that there aren't more people like him. We went from having one _why-like force in programming to having zero. And that is the shame.
allworknoplay 6y ago
My understanding is that he burned out and had to take himself offline. He used to be involved in quite a bit (also see Hackety Hack), and it can be really exhausting for some people. I'm hopeful that he found the balance that he needed, and glad for all the contributions he made along the way.
- mariodiana 6y ago
  My understanding is that his "true identity" got outed and he disappeared off the scene after that. Imagine! The guy was both an insanely productive programmer and Ruby evangelist. He gave more to the community than anyone could repay. And what did he ask for in return? He asked to be the Lone Ranger. All he wanted was anonymity. He wanted to be the masked hero who rides in, does a bunch of good, and then gallops off before anyone has had a chance to thank him. He was an eccentric, a romantic. That romantic eccentric was a benefactor who asked basically nothing in return. And some nobody decided it would be fun to pull off the mask. Who was that? We'd have to look him up to know his name. He ruined it for _why and for the rest of the Ruby community. Why? What for?
- failrate 6y ago
  He also got doxxed after specifically asking to be left alone.