20 ms·

Chris Seaton has died

557 points by iluzone 4y ago

oceanician 4y ago
I feel Chris was a very intelligent human, who conveyed complex information, in a human-digestable manner, that many others of us struggle with. I saw him present in Manchester at our ruby meetup, and later online. We interacted a little about jobs at Shopify. But there didn't seem to be a part-time option for me. Something I need due to some health issues of my own. I wonder if we as a group of ruby loving people, and the wider tech industry, can learn from this? I don't know. It seems no matter what was said, the outcome would have been the same? I guess we'll never know. It's likely that those who worked with him, and were trusted, will perhaps say more intime. I hope they do not feel bad in any way. But perhaps there's aspects his family and close colleagues will be able to share intime, when things are less hurtful so we can learn a little from how to help others in this situation? Big hugs to those close to Chris. And big respect to those writing amazing blogs in his memory. Hugs to all.
cinntaile 4y ago
https://twitter.com/ChrisGSeaton/status/1599108759183577088 https://twitter.com/ChrisGSeaton/status/1599108759183577088 I didn't know him but recognized the name from HN.
- ehPReth 4y ago
  I saw this tweet just randomly in the AI timeline and brushed it off as him just being busy/done/taking a break from open source ruby work.. maybe moving on to something else or just picking a different hobby. Quite a shock to see this today
  - freedomben 4y ago
    everybody did. it's horrifying now, but people as smart as Chris that are going to do it, are going to do it. They know that tipping the hand too early will result in forced prevention (something we as a society have messed up about but that's a separate post). He worded it that way on purpose. In my opinion as a kindness so he could say goodbye rather than just disappearing without a sound.
- docdeek 4y ago
  The tweet seems to imply this was not an unexpected death on his part. Was he unwell?
  - djmips 4y ago
    A form of a suicide note possibly. I hope I'm not reading it wrong but that's what I took from his post especially in context of his sudden passing.
  - bluerooibos 4y ago
    I saw photos of him presenting at the Ruby conference just a week ago and he looks pretty healthy.
- yla92 4y ago
  I saw this tweet and I was wondering about the language used there like "permanent rest" but was thinking he was going to delete his Twitter account. Will miss seeing his comments on HN and his contributions. RIP, Chris.
vips7L 4y ago
This made me incredibly sad. I didn’t know him, but always enjoyed his insightful comments here on Ruby, Truffle, and the JVM.
CHY872 4y ago
Oh man, it was always awesome to find something from this dude! He'll be missed.
infinitedata 4y ago
He basically announced his ‘permanent-rest’ via twitter. So sad but grounding for all of us to remember that there are things way more important past the marvelous inventions we can code or make. For learning purposes, anyone knows what was his major cause of frustration?
- Mikeb85 4y ago
  > For learning purposes, anyone knows what was his major cause of frustration? Suicide isn't because of frustration. Everyone has frustrations, most don't kill themselves because of it.
  - OJFord 4y ago
    I do think it's interesting that it's so widely stigmatised (illegal even) though: like we've collectively decided life is meaningful and must be lived to the best of your ability, deciding there's nothing in it for you and you don't want to take part is not (with very niche old-age && ill-health exception) allowed. Weird, when you step back and think about it isn't it? If you're agnostic/atheist at least.
    - rob74 4y ago
      I guess it's the same as with the death penalty: it's a decision that's very permanent and irrevocable. Someone may be convinced that "there's nothing in it for them" now, but are you really sure they would feel the same in a few months or a few years?
      - WhackyIdeas 4y ago
        But if you have been feeling that way for many years, with non-stop feelings of dread, it’s hard to see things getting any better.
        brigandish 4y ago
        Lack of hope is the real killer, that's why it's so important to give a depressed person hope. Not optimism, hope.
leetrout 4y ago
Please talk to someone if you are feeling hopeless. U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 800-273-TALK (8255) National Suicide Helpline UK 0800 689 5652 His HN profile was also just his name https://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=chrisseaton https://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=chrisseaton I wish the best for his family and friends over the next few months. This will be a tough holiday season for them. You never know what is going on in someone's life and no clue what was going on in his but I think working in tech is harder than people recognize / give credit (and may not have any bearing on Chris, I am not trying to speculate). Please talk to someone if you are feeling hopeless. U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 800-273-TALK (8255) National Suicide Helpline UK 0800 689 5652
- naedish 4y ago
  Support services for other countries below. https://meta.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mental_health_resources https://meta.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mental_health_resources
- toomuchtodo 4y ago
  You can also dial or text 988 in the US. https://988lifeline.org/ https://988lifeline.org/
- noneeeed 4y ago
  In the UK the Samaritans how have a short number 116 123.
- altendo 4y ago
  In the US, dialing 988 will also get you access to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. (Technically it is now the 988 Lifeline, but they both refer to the same thing[1].) 1: https://988lifeline.org/current-events/the-lifeline-and-988/ https://988lifeline.org/current-events/the-lifeline-and-988/
- adamc 4y ago
  Having been on the other end of it... the reality is harsh. People say they want to know, but in fact... they mostly don't. The reality of it is hard to deal with. It can go on and on. People have a lot of misconceptions, sometimes for good reasons (it makes life easier to endure). It's a lot like the pushback on #metoo or #blacklivesmatter or <almost anything linked to traumatic experience>. They want to make it your fault because then its not something they have to think about. I think depression is mostly orthogonal to where you work, although stress may make it worse.
aardvark179 4y ago
I worked with him on TruffleRuby for almost six years, and knew him for a few years before that. I think every one who knew him is shocked and saddened by this news.
- kshahkshah 4y ago
  I'm sorry for your loss then. We followed each other on Twitter and I tried to plug the TruffleRuby and Graal work wherever I could as I really believed it is the future of Ruby. Beyond that what a brilliant writer. This single article helped me understand so much more about a language I've cherished for nearly two decades: https://chrisseaton.com/truffleruby/deoptimizing/ https://chrisseaton.com/truffleruby/deoptimizing/
lordnacho 4y ago
He wrote a lot of thoughtful contributions here. Very sad to see him go.
nazgulsenpai 4y ago
His personal website for those, like me, who didn't know the name. https://chrisseaton.com/ https://chrisseaton.com/ Even without knowing of him, this is incredibly tragic and my condolences to all of those affected.
Edd314159 4y ago
It's not implausible that many of us who work with Ruby owe our livelihoods to Chris, and his relentless efforts to progress the language and not just keep it relevant, but thriving. He will be missed so much by the community.
adwn 4y ago
Really unsettling to think that just 4 days ago, right before his death, he was still posting here on HN. [1] [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/threads?id=chrisseaton https://news.ycombinator.com/threads?id=chrisseaton
- orra 4y ago
  It's a shock, yes, but worth knowing it's a common one. “They can't be dead: I just spoke to them” is a common response to death. Unfortunately, death can be rather sudden.
  - petercooper 4y ago
    I find the statistics surrounding death to be quite sobering. I was at an annual event with 1000 other people and for whatever reason got to wondering if everyone would return the next year. Being a nerd, some calculations occurred and it turned out that would be pretty much impossible as at least a few attendees would die (of any cause) before then. It's rather stoic but makes me appreciate things a little more. The Ruby community has lost some fantastic people. Chris, Jason Seifer, Steven Bristol, Jim Weirich, James Golick, and Ezra Zygmuntowicz all come to mind. RIP.
    - jacquesm 4y ago
      The Ruby community also seems to attract a lot of fantastic people. I'm not a part of it and never have been but from the outside looking in it looks like one of the most welcoming eco-systems out there.
      - petercooper 4y ago
        You're not wrong, but I also think there are fantastic people in most communities oriented around creative, technical projects. I've just been getting into Python as wow, there are certainly some hyper productive interesting individuals there! HN too, of course ;-) One thing Rubyists were particularly good at, though, was rapidly adopting new methods of sharing ideas, such as screencasting, git, blogging, Twitter, etc. so a lot of Ruby and Rails ideas spread more quickly than they might have from other communities. Currently the Rust and ML communities seem to have this sort of edge.
wpeterson 4y ago
Ugh, what a loss for this community and the Ruby community. This should be worthy of a Hacker News black banner today.
kshahkshah 4y ago
My god this is awful. He was brilliant, accomplished, and kind. A few days ago he announced his 'permanent rest' (https://twitter.com/ChrisGSeaton/status/1599108759183577088 https://twitter.com/ChrisGSeaton/status/1599108759183577088). I'd thought it meant from the Ruby community and that the replies asking if he needed help were reading too much into the wording.
- swader999 4y ago
  The outpouring of love in the replies on that thread. It is tough to comprehend how that wasn't enough to prevent this.
  - paufernandez 4y ago
    The depressed sees the same events quite differently, that's why it is so difficult to understand for many people (I can though).
    - swader999 4y ago
      Right, I've read that for them its not even seen as making a choice. Earth is too freaking hard sometimes.
      - sasattack 4y ago
        It's not a choice. It's not seen as a choice. The Choice is not between life-and-death but between suffering and ending your suffering. This is how the suicidal mind thinks. When suffering becomes greater than any other emotion it It's like a pressure that has to be relieved
        colossal 4y ago
        "The so-called ‘psychotically depressed’ person who tries to kill herself doesn’t do so out of quote ‘hopelessness’ or any abstract conviction that life’s assets and debits do not square. And surely not because death seems suddenly appealing. The person in whom Its invisible agony reaches a certain unendurable level will kill herself the same way a trapped person will eventually jump from the window of a burning high-rise. Make no mistake about people who leap from burning windows. Their terror of falling from a great height is still just as great as it would be for you or me standing speculatively at the same window just checking out the view; i.e. the fear of falling remains a constant. The variable here is the other terror, the fire’s flames: when the flames get close enough, falling to death becomes the slightly less terrible of two terrors. It’s not desiring the fall; it’s terror of the flames. And yet nobody down on the sidewalk, looking up and yelling ‘Don’t!’ and ‘Hang on!’, can understand the jump. Not really. You’d have to have personally been trapped and felt flames to really understand a terror way beyond falling." - David Foster Wallace
jimnotgym 4y ago
Chris often challenged me on discussions about UK politics. It is always important to hear different viewpoints, and I will miss that. He lived within an hours drive from here. Which somehow makes it worse. This is not exactly Silicon Valley and people of his caliber are not everywhere to talk to. He was pretty high up in the Army Reserve as well as his day job. It is humbling how much some people fit into a short life. My thoughts to his family and colleagues
ksec 4y ago
About 10 years ago he started a project with Ruby running on Graal before it was known as TruffleRuby. I still remember those HN submissions. SubstrateVM, Graal, The VM to rule it all. And as far as I am aware, he was the only one putting all papers about Ruby and Compilers Design in a single place [1]. I still remember a thread which I have bookmarked somewhere, where you have the lead of JVM, Graal, TruffleRuby, JSC, V8 and Spidermonkey along with another compiler expert arguing ( or in a heated debate ) about Dynamic languages. And when ever you have compiler related submission on HN, you will see him contribute his expertise on the subject. He has been a valuable member of the Ruby and HN Community. I once joked "I am a simple man, I see Chris Seaton, I Upvote :)." I still remember I felt honoured when he followed me on Twitter. He will surely be missed by many. R.I.P [1] https://rubybib.org https://rubybib.org
- freedomben 4y ago
  As a fellow Rubyist and HN reader I know what you mean! There was always something mindblowing from Chris in the thread, usually multiple things. There's a big hole in my heart today.
- meisel 4y ago
  Can you link that thread? It sounds quite interesting
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
graderjs 4y ago
Seeing some of the comments here how people valued him, it seems like maybe sometimes these sentiments of gratitude are not expressed until after someone passes. It works if folks cherish the time they have, and remind people of how they appreciate them while they're still on Earth in their body.
- schneems 4y ago
  I had lunch with him on Wednesday and wish I said more. I also worry about the hidden pressures of praise. A overly critical inner life can interpret it as “I like you as long as you are useful” which is of course not the truth. I have appreciation for the creators in my life, even when they no longer create.
  - xtracto 4y ago
    >I like you as long as you are useful” which is of course not the truth. I think that's the problem with depression disease: no matter what most people tell you, your brain will find a way to use it to dig the hole deeper. My wife has battled with minor depression and anxiety her whole life. I learned that more than trying to say things to cheer her up in the moment, i was more useful by looking for treatment. It's a terrible disease.
    - whats_a_quasar 4y ago
      This is a point that is often missed in the conversation about depression. In the middle of a major depression, literally nothing you can say to the person will cheer them up. The best you can do is be near them, express love, and try to help them maintain sleep/eating/exercise and therapy.
    - JohnBooty 4y ago
      no matter what most people tell you, your brain will find a way to use it to dig the hole deeper. "I've got them fooled. I'm a fraud, they just don't know it." "They're just being nice." "This good person's kind words and actions are wasted on a piece of crap like me. If I wasn't around, they could 'spend' that kindness on somebody who actually deserves it. I'm hurting the world just by being here." "They're lying, and now I feel worse because they're lying" "I hurt so bad inside, and it hurts so bad to wear this mask and graciously accept the praise" "I hurt so bad inside that I wasn't able to accept the praise graciously, and now I actually feel even worse because I've been so rude to this nice person who praised me" Yeah. It's a struggle. Even when you logically know those things are false and it's "just the depression talking" it's very hard to break out of those thought patterns. (Which is why practicing positivity and gratitude -- keeping a gratitude journal, etc -- is actually an effective part of treatment for me. I'm not sure if it's because of specific neuronal pathways being reinforced by specific repeated thought patterns or what but, from a practical perspective, I try to treat positivity like a muscle that I need to exercise)
gozali 4y ago
Gone too soon #RIPChrisSeaton
foobazgt 4y ago
I wasn't privileged to know Chris personally, but I was always keenly waiting to hear his latest achievements and insights. He was clearly talented, passionate, and compassionate. It is so very sad to see him go. Depression is a full blown pandemic. For example, in the US in 2021, there were approximately as many suicide attempts as there were COVID deaths. It is so fucked up and so pernicious. We (rightfully) encourage folks to seek help, but the very nature of the illness makes it difficult for them. Let's all also do our best to recognize the signs of folks struggling so that we can be there for them - to help them recover when it's so hard for them to even reach out for help.
tiffanyh 4y ago
Internet Archive. Does anyone know how to recursively save his entire website to Wayback Machine? I submitted https://chrisseaton.com https://chrisseaton.com, but it doesn't appear any of the child pages are being archived.
- toomuchtodo 4y ago
  Done. Will take some time for any straggler pages to show up in the CDX indexes.
- nirvdrum 4y ago
  If it helps any, Chris's web site used GitHub Pages and its source is available at https://github.com/chrisseaton/chrisseaton.github.io https://github.com/chrisseaton/chrisseaton.github.io.
  - eatonphil 4y ago
    There's no particular guarantee that this will stick around either as Github/MS changes policies down the line. Some guaranteed long-term archive like archive.org would be better.
    - nirvdrum 4y ago
      Right. I don't know if that GitHub account will be around forever, but you can clone it now and build the site. If it came to it, we could host on another domain. I'm just suggesting that we don't need to worry about archive.org getting every last bit of content.
- mossity 4y ago
  It looks pretty well archived to me, where are you seeing things missing?
gavinray 4y ago
What terrible news to wake up to. I hate when they say "passed away" -- here was a man in his prime, just the other week sharing knowledge of compilers at a conference, taken from the world. Chris helped me frequently on the GraalVM slack, and it was nice to see his face in the comments of many of the threads here on HN that had to do with compilers and compiler optimizations. I will miss him.
pjmlp 4y ago
What a loss, we discussed so many times about compiler related subjects. My sentiments and thoughts for the family and friends.
sbuccini 4y ago
This cuts deep. Chris had a big impact on my current life trajectory, one that is still playing out -- which is why I was holding off on reaching out with an update. Now I'll never get that chance. Chris seemed to be _everywhere_ and was always generous with his time, even to complete newbies like myself. He certainly set the standard, as one would expect from an Army officer. I'm not exactly sure what his experiences were like in active duty, but we lose way too many vets to mental health issues. If you know a veteran, consider checking in -- this time of year is particularly tough.
jacquesm 4y ago
Gah that so sucks. He left behind a wife and young daughter. Such a nice man, this really is painful.
noneeeed 4y ago
Absolutely tragic news. I met Chris at a couple of local Ruby meetups in Bristol when he gave talks. He was an extremely smart, but also very personable guy. He seemed to really love what he was doing and relished the opportunity to explain it to people and share what he knew. He had a knack for explaining things really well in a way that never patronised when talking to people who were not experts in his domain. He had a real love of communicating what he knew to other people and his passion for his projects was infectious and inspiring. He was younger than me (mid 30s?), but managed to pack an immense amount into that time. He was one of those people I've met who I've immediately thought "I need to be more like that". Genuinely inspirational. His death is a real loss to the community.
icedchai 4y ago
I didn't know him personally, but immediately recognized the name and always enjoyed his comments here. Very sad.
sicromoft 4y ago
Tenderlove wrote a nice tribute, "In Memory of a Giant": http://tenderlovemaking.com/2022/12/07/in-memory-of-a-giant.html http://tenderlovemaking.com/2022/12/07/in-memory-of-a-giant....
- searls 4y ago
  Aaron's post was incredibly touching and inspired me to share this https://blog.testdouble.com/posts/2022-12-07-the-best-kind-of-brilliant/ https://blog.testdouble.com/posts/2022-12-07-the-best-kind-o...
  - noneeeed 4y ago
    That was lovely, and put much more eloquently how I feel about Chris than I've managed myself. We really have lost an exemplar of how to be a member of a community based on knowledge and learning. I hope he continues to be an inspiration to people in the Ruby world for many years to come.
- noneeeed 4y ago
  This bit really chimed with my brief contacts with Chris > As a college dropout, I’ve always felt underqualified. Embarrassment about my lack of knowledge and credentials has driven me to study hard on my own time. But Chris never once made me feel out of place. Any time I had questions, without judgement, he would take the time to explain things to me. I never once felt like he looked down on people who knew less than him, he just saw it as an opportunity to share what he knew with them. In an industry that can sometimes be dominated by arrogant certainty, or people trying to demonstrate their brilliance, he was a breath of fresh air.
HL33tibCe7 4y ago
Desperately sad news. I never met him, he never met Me, but https://chrisseaton.com/army/ https://chrisseaton.com/army/ made a real impression on me. It’s the kind of thing that sits in your head and pops up from time to time. I found the level of dedication here alongside his professional success incredibly inspiring. Tragically, part of that article is about his young daughter. Not really sure what to think now.
- pwdisswordfish9 4y ago
  This part had something about it that stuck out in light of the news (first just a bit, but then it kept going): "My fantastic job with Shopify meets my physiological and safety needs, and the job is rewarding and intellectually stimulating (not many people get to work on their PhD work for so long with a team they’ve built around them and I’m very grateful.) But then what? What are you doing to feel alive and to know that you matter? How do you fit into something enduring and bigger than yourself? The Army challenges me every week, and those challenges better me and make me happier. I know that people are depending on me, and that if I don’t turn up and lead my Squadron then nobody’s going to do that for me." Like you, not sure what to think.
  - wnolens 4y ago
    Indeed, he seemed to have all the things that generally is believed to combat that trend towards darkness. However, I recall my absolute lowest and the first time I entertained the thought to end it, the 'it' was specifically what it felt like to be in my body. It wasn't a matter of self-worth, it was to stop pain. The strongest reason I could come up with to wait for it to pass was the pain it would cause my mother. So, I don't know.
    - rdrake98 4y ago
      "The strongest reason I could come up with to wait for it to pass was the pain it would cause my mother." You got hold of the right reason. And sometimes we need to hold on to that reason - the pain we would cause to others - for dear live. So to speak.
nnoitra 4y ago
ngd 4y ago
When I was 15 I had to move high school after the death of my mother. I started to socialise at school and joined the investment club. It was a tough time for me and I desperately wanted to make friends and fit in. I wasn’t really into investing but a young man by the name of Chris Seaton was building their website and I loved computers so I wanted to help. Chris taught me how to program, first HTML websites, then PHP based apps, then C# and VBA native apps. Im pretty sure Chris invented the password manager before it was a thing too. I spent the next few years at high school and sixth form trying to sit near Chris in lessons and talking to him on MSN Messenger and ICQ incessantly about programming, he taught me a lot and set me on a path to choosing computer science as my degree, I just copied him to be honest. I’ll miss you Chris
- aphrax 4y ago
  This a beautiful thing to share. I wish I’d known him and I’m sorry for your loss.
- djur 4y ago
  Thanks for sharing this. Please take care of yourself. There's something uniquely painful about losing someone who you look up to as a mentor.
- GrahamSeaton 4y ago
  As a teenager, Chris (or Kit as some of his family knew him) wrote a computer programme, in his bedroom in Chandlers Ford, he called Password Safe. RIP Kit
  - rdrake98 4y ago
    So sorry for the loss you must be feeling. I met and talked to Chris just once, after a talk he gave in London, and found him utterly delightful as well as lucid on all things technical. Blessings and comfort to all who knew and loved him.
- aliswe 4y ago
  I just *memcopied him to be honest
ilrwbwrkhv 4y ago
If you have a lower baseline of happiness, please do yourself a favour and read Albert Camus' The Myth of Sisyphus. It starts with: There is but one truly serious philosophical problem, and that is suicide. Judging whether life is or is not worth living amounts to answering the fundamental question of philosophy. All the rest— whether or not the world has three dimensions, whether the mind has nine or twelve categories—comes afterwards. These are games; one must first answer. Absurdism is a great way to live life and understand that nothing is worth killing yourself for.
d3nj4l 4y ago
A few days ago chris responded to a silly comment of mine on here (completely unrelated to ruby or compilers), and when I saw it I thought, "oh, it's Chris Seaton! I hope he's doing well!" It's so unfortunate he was not. RIP.
MaxBarraclough 4y ago
He'll be missed. I didn't know him, but learnt something every time our paths met here.
vidarh 4y ago
I only met him once, fairly briefly, and exchanged a few messages about our shared interest in compilers. But he seemed like a nice guy, and it's incredibly sad to see this.
ridicthrow 4y ago
- djur 4y ago
  My experiences as a person who has been suicidal, who has been close to suicidal people, and who has had friends who committed suicide all tell me that it's not as simple as "wanting to die". The same person can feel completely different about their continued viability as a living person within the same hour. The version of that person who wants to continue living is just as worthy of respect. And we can only reach out to and support the people who are still alive.
  - taberiand 4y ago
    The most apt analogy (to my experience) is that in general, suicidal people don't want to die, but it's like they're trapped on the 20th story of a burning building and sometimes the fire seems to be under control but right now they're nearly overwhelmed with smoke and the heat is bearing down, and they're at a point where jumping seems like the best alternative. And how relieved they could be if a fireman could put out the fire, or pluck them from that ledge to safety. In the same analogy, there is still a time when jumping really is understandable; there are situations (Robin Williams comes to mind) when suicide really is a rational option.
- HideousKojima 4y ago
  >like it’s somehow wrong and an intervention is needed. >When someone wants to go, let them go. Strong disagree, especially in cases where they have family and loved ones. Children and grandchildren have a moral right to continue seeing and enjoying time with their parents and grandparents. Spouses have a moral right to continue enjoying life with their beloved best friend. Outside of family I would say there probably isn't a moral right, or at least a significantly diminished one, but suicide takes away the positive influence and presence that someone has on their friends and community. The only part of your post that I do agree with is that we should stop euphemizing news about suicide. I had a friend from high school who committed suicide while serving in the army in Iraq, and the official press release from the military made no mention of his cause of death. He was in a non-combat role that wouldn't have put him in any danger of getting shot or blown up. It wasn't until a few years later when I ran into his sister that I found out the real reason (though I had my suspicions).
GrahamSeaton 4y ago
As a teenage, Chris (or Kit as some in his family knew him) made pocket-money from a programme he wrote in his bedroom in Chandlers Ford call password safe. RIP
- schneems 4y ago
  Between the childhood information and username, it seems like you're related to Chris. Are you related? I appreciate the little detail. It seems he's always been ahead of his time. Know that he's had a huge impact on the Ruby community and the world. I knew him online for years, but met in person for the first time last week. He spoke fondly of his ongoing trip and spoke with passion about tech projects. The lunch was at a taco truck. He ordered a meal made of fries covered with various taco toppings. I remember pickled red onions at the very top. He left before the group was finished saying he had to go pair with someone. I felt uplifted about the interaction. I even brought it up to my spouse and my visiting parents when I got back from the conf. I can only guess how he was feeling at the time, he seemed busy but cheerful.
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
rootusrootus 4y ago
His suffering is over, but that of his wife & daughter has just begun. My heart breaks for them.
aidog 4y ago
I just opened my first issue two weeks ago in concurrent-ruby and he kindly offered me help. In the end I feel like I have wasted his time, because it was a different problem. I wish I expressed more gratitude. I'm grateful for everyone in the Ruby and OpenSource community
- schneems 4y ago
  > In the end I feel like I have wasted his time, because it was a different problem Every issue is an investigation. It's normal for the breakage to be in some place non-obvious. Don't beat yourself up over it or let it hold you back from opening issues in the future. If you can provide a good reproduction you'll speed up the time to get to "oh here's the bug" or "not my problem" which is really helpful to maintainers. > I wish I expressed more gratitude. I'm grateful for everyone in the Ruby and OpenSource community There's never enough in hind site. Let's all pay it forward a little more
smcl 4y ago
I saw the headline, read all the words, saw "Chris Seaton" and thought "oh this is about one of our guys!" before properly processing the final bit. God damn what a fucking shame, I hate this. RIP chrisseaton
greenpeas 4y ago
what a terrible waste...
nkurz 4y ago
Apologies if this is the wrong time to ask, but there probably won't ever be a better one. I didn't know him, but often read his comments here. I frequently found them to be... frustrating. He seemed to have a particularly literalist bent, and would often seem to focus on small seemingly irrelevant inconsistencies rather the bigger argument. He usually wasn't wrong, but it made me wonder whether he was autistic, or otherwise out there on the Asperger's spectrum. I'd been meaning to ask him, but never found the right opportunity. For those of you who knew him in real life, did this carry over? Or was I misreading him, as is so easy to do online. I don't ask this flippantly. I lean in the literalist direction myself, and often am unduly frustrated by the imperfections and inconsistencies of the world. Life's not easy if your mind demands a world that makes sense. It makes me wonder if this outlook was part of what pushed him over the edge. Thoughts?
- coletonodonnell 4y ago
  Seems that the testimonials from others on here show that he was nothing but lovely, I don't think that making observations like that on a post like this is terribly appropriate though.
  - system2 4y ago
    It is probably cultural. In some it is forbidden to talk behind people who died other than positively. In some, possible to say things like this. I guess.
  - sitkack 4y ago
    I don't think Chris would have minded.
  - justin66 4y ago
    This: > Seems that the testimonials from others on here show that he was nothing but lovely is because people behave like this: > I don't think that making observations like that on a post like this is terribly appropriate though.
- rootusrootus 4y ago
azhenley 4y ago
His dissertation about Ruby: https://chrisseaton.com/phd/specialising-ruby.pdf https://chrisseaton.com/phd/specialising-ruby.pdf
slgaikwad 4y ago
This is devastating. I worked with the same supervisor as Chris after he finished his phd. He interviewed me and played a key role in getting me the scholarship. I often joked that he raised the bar so high that it's not worth trying to meet it. I always admired his drive for learning and ability to do things at high quality. RIP, Chris.
krishvs 4y ago
Terrible news. He will be missed. My heart breaks for his wife and kid. RIP Chris.
renewiltord 4y ago
Damn, I hated this guy's HN comments but he seems to have been a fine person who people loved. I probably come off the same way to everyone else here, but the people around me love me. Makes me wonder if this is a property of the interaction mechanism. Let me set an unacceptable maxprocrast and leave this place alone. RIP my fellow dude.
sitkack 4y ago
Well this sucks. We didn't always see eye to eye, but I always enjoyed our exchanges. Already missed.
ohadrau 4y ago
Years ago when I was around 14, I stumbled upon Chris's Katahdin project and thought it was such a cool idea I had to try it out. I spent quite a bit of time trying to get set up with it, and not knowing much about C# couldn't really figure it out myself. I ended up reaching out to Chris before giving up on it, not expecting much. To my surprise, Chris spent several hours helping me out and answering my (probably very dumb) questions. I was shocked at how helpful and welcoming he was. Despite the relatively brief encounter I can easily say Chris was one of the kindest programmers I've had the pleasure of interacting with. It's hard for me to express how much this title hit me when I read it. Like many in this thread, Chris had an enormous impact on my path as a programmer and I'm quite sad that I never got the chance to properly thank him. RIP, Chris
karianna 4y ago
Chris was also well known in the London Java Community and contributed to multiple events, conferences, bringing his expertise in a thoughtful and kind way to folks who were often 1-2 stacks above the runtimes and compilers space . My conversations with him about JVM design, GraalVM and Ruby were some of the most memorable and fun times I’ve had running around the conference circuit. Thank you Chris for unselfishly sharing so much with us and leaving the world a better place, you will be missed. I’m off to go and hug loved ones now.
chris37879 4y ago
I didn't know of the man, but after a quick google search I know his work. My condolences.

557 points by iluzone 4y ago

I feel Chris was a very intelligent human, who conveyed complex information, in a human-digestable manner, that many others of us struggle with. I saw him present in Manchester at our ruby meetup, and later online. We interacted a little about jobs at Shopify. But there didn't seem to be a part-time option for me. Something I need due to some health issues of my own. I wonder if we as a group of ruby loving people, and the wider tech industry, can learn from this? I don't know. It seems no matter what was said, the outcome would have been the same? I guess we'll never know. It's likely that those who worked with him, and were trusted, will perhaps say more intime. I hope they do not feel bad in any way. But perhaps there's aspects his family and close colleagues will be able to share intime, when things are less hurtful so we can learn a little from how to help others in this situation? Big hugs to those close to Chris. And big respect to those writing amazing blogs in his memory. Hugs to all.

cinntaile 4y ago

https://twitter.com/ChrisGSeaton/status/1599108759183577088 https://twitter.com/ChrisGSeaton/status/1599108759183577088 I didn't know him but recognized the name from HN.

ehPReth 4y ago
I saw this tweet just randomly in the AI timeline and brushed it off as him just being busy/done/taking a break from open source ruby work.. maybe moving on to something else or just picking a different hobby. Quite a shock to see this today
- freedomben 4y ago
  everybody did. it's horrifying now, but people as smart as Chris that are going to do it, are going to do it. They know that tipping the hand too early will result in forced prevention (something we as a society have messed up about but that's a separate post). He worded it that way on purpose. In my opinion as a kindness so he could say goodbye rather than just disappearing without a sound.
docdeek 4y ago
The tweet seems to imply this was not an unexpected death on his part. Was he unwell?
- djmips 4y ago
  A form of a suicide note possibly. I hope I'm not reading it wrong but that's what I took from his post especially in context of his sudden passing.
- bluerooibos 4y ago
  I saw photos of him presenting at the Ruby conference just a week ago and he looks pretty healthy.
yla92 4y ago
I saw this tweet and I was wondering about the language used there like "permanent rest" but was thinking he was going to delete his Twitter account. Will miss seeing his comments on HN and his contributions. RIP, Chris.

vips7L 4y ago

This made me incredibly sad. I didn’t know him, but always enjoyed his insightful comments here on Ruby, Truffle, and the JVM.

CHY872 4y ago

Oh man, it was always awesome to find something from this dude! He'll be missed.

infinitedata 4y ago

He basically announced his ‘permanent-rest’ via twitter. So sad but grounding for all of us to remember that there are things way more important past the marvelous inventions we can code or make. For learning purposes, anyone knows what was his major cause of frustration?

Mikeb85 4y ago
> For learning purposes, anyone knows what was his major cause of frustration? Suicide isn't because of frustration. Everyone has frustrations, most don't kill themselves because of it.
- OJFord 4y ago
  I do think it's interesting that it's so widely stigmatised (illegal even) though: like we've collectively decided life is meaningful and must be lived to the best of your ability, deciding there's nothing in it for you and you don't want to take part is not (with very niche old-age && ill-health exception) allowed. Weird, when you step back and think about it isn't it? If you're agnostic/atheist at least.
  - rob74 4y ago
    I guess it's the same as with the death penalty: it's a decision that's very permanent and irrevocable. Someone may be convinced that "there's nothing in it for them" now, but are you really sure they would feel the same in a few months or a few years?
    - WhackyIdeas 4y ago
      But if you have been feeling that way for many years, with non-stop feelings of dread, it’s hard to see things getting any better.
      - brigandish 4y ago
        Lack of hope is the real killer, that's why it's so important to give a depressed person hope. Not optimism, hope.

leetrout 4y ago

Please talk to someone if you are feeling hopeless. U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 800-273-TALK (8255) National Suicide Helpline UK 0800 689 5652 His HN profile was also just his name https://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=chrisseaton https://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=chrisseaton I wish the best for his family and friends over the next few months. This will be a tough holiday season for them. You never know what is going on in someone's life and no clue what was going on in his but I think working in tech is harder than people recognize / give credit (and may not have any bearing on Chris, I am not trying to speculate). Please talk to someone if you are feeling hopeless. U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 800-273-TALK (8255) National Suicide Helpline UK 0800 689 5652

naedish 4y ago
Support services for other countries below. https://meta.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mental_health_resources https://meta.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mental_health_resources
toomuchtodo 4y ago
You can also dial or text 988 in the US. https://988lifeline.org/ https://988lifeline.org/
noneeeed 4y ago
In the UK the Samaritans how have a short number 116 123.
altendo 4y ago
In the US, dialing 988 will also get you access to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. (Technically it is now the 988 Lifeline, but they both refer to the same thing[1].) 1: https://988lifeline.org/current-events/the-lifeline-and-988/ https://988lifeline.org/current-events/the-lifeline-and-988/
adamc 4y ago
Having been on the other end of it... the reality is harsh. People say they want to know, but in fact... they mostly don't. The reality of it is hard to deal with. It can go on and on. People have a lot of misconceptions, sometimes for good reasons (it makes life easier to endure). It's a lot like the pushback on #metoo or #blacklivesmatter or <almost anything linked to traumatic experience>. They want to make it your fault because then its not something they have to think about. I think depression is mostly orthogonal to where you work, although stress may make it worse.

aardvark179 4y ago

I worked with him on TruffleRuby for almost six years, and knew him for a few years before that. I think every one who knew him is shocked and saddened by this news.

kshahkshah 4y ago
I'm sorry for your loss then. We followed each other on Twitter and I tried to plug the TruffleRuby and Graal work wherever I could as I really believed it is the future of Ruby. Beyond that what a brilliant writer. This single article helped me understand so much more about a language I've cherished for nearly two decades: https://chrisseaton.com/truffleruby/deoptimizing/ https://chrisseaton.com/truffleruby/deoptimizing/

lordnacho 4y ago

He wrote a lot of thoughtful contributions here. Very sad to see him go.

nazgulsenpai 4y ago

His personal website for those, like me, who didn't know the name. https://chrisseaton.com/ https://chrisseaton.com/ Even without knowing of him, this is incredibly tragic and my condolences to all of those affected.

Edd314159 4y ago

It's not implausible that many of us who work with Ruby owe our livelihoods to Chris, and his relentless efforts to progress the language and not just keep it relevant, but thriving. He will be missed so much by the community.

adwn 4y ago

Really unsettling to think that just 4 days ago, right before his death, he was still posting here on HN. [1] [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/threads?id=chrisseaton https://news.ycombinator.com/threads?id=chrisseaton

orra 4y ago
It's a shock, yes, but worth knowing it's a common one. “They can't be dead: I just spoke to them” is a common response to death. Unfortunately, death can be rather sudden.
- petercooper 4y ago
  I find the statistics surrounding death to be quite sobering. I was at an annual event with 1000 other people and for whatever reason got to wondering if everyone would return the next year. Being a nerd, some calculations occurred and it turned out that would be pretty much impossible as at least a few attendees would die (of any cause) before then. It's rather stoic but makes me appreciate things a little more. The Ruby community has lost some fantastic people. Chris, Jason Seifer, Steven Bristol, Jim Weirich, James Golick, and Ezra Zygmuntowicz all come to mind. RIP.
  - jacquesm 4y ago
    The Ruby community also seems to attract a lot of fantastic people. I'm not a part of it and never have been but from the outside looking in it looks like one of the most welcoming eco-systems out there.
    - petercooper 4y ago
      You're not wrong, but I also think there are fantastic people in most communities oriented around creative, technical projects. I've just been getting into Python as wow, there are certainly some hyper productive interesting individuals there! HN too, of course ;-) One thing Rubyists were particularly good at, though, was rapidly adopting new methods of sharing ideas, such as screencasting, git, blogging, Twitter, etc. so a lot of Ruby and Rails ideas spread more quickly than they might have from other communities. Currently the Rust and ML communities seem to have this sort of edge.

wpeterson 4y ago

Ugh, what a loss for this community and the Ruby community. This should be worthy of a Hacker News black banner today.

kshahkshah 4y ago

My god this is awful. He was brilliant, accomplished, and kind. A few days ago he announced his 'permanent rest' (https://twitter.com/ChrisGSeaton/status/1599108759183577088 https://twitter.com/ChrisGSeaton/status/1599108759183577088). I'd thought it meant from the Ruby community and that the replies asking if he needed help were reading too much into the wording.

swader999 4y ago
The outpouring of love in the replies on that thread. It is tough to comprehend how that wasn't enough to prevent this.
- paufernandez 4y ago
  The depressed sees the same events quite differently, that's why it is so difficult to understand for many people (I can though).
  - swader999 4y ago
    Right, I've read that for them its not even seen as making a choice. Earth is too freaking hard sometimes.
    - sasattack 4y ago
      It's not a choice. It's not seen as a choice. The Choice is not between life-and-death but between suffering and ending your suffering. This is how the suicidal mind thinks. When suffering becomes greater than any other emotion it It's like a pressure that has to be relieved
      - colossal 4y ago
        "The so-called ‘psychotically depressed’ person who tries to kill herself doesn’t do so out of quote ‘hopelessness’ or any abstract conviction that life’s assets and debits do not square. And surely not because death seems suddenly appealing. The person in whom Its invisible agony reaches a certain unendurable level will kill herself the same way a trapped person will eventually jump from the window of a burning high-rise. Make no mistake about people who leap from burning windows. Their terror of falling from a great height is still just as great as it would be for you or me standing speculatively at the same window just checking out the view; i.e. the fear of falling remains a constant. The variable here is the other terror, the fire’s flames: when the flames get close enough, falling to death becomes the slightly less terrible of two terrors. It’s not desiring the fall; it’s terror of the flames. And yet nobody down on the sidewalk, looking up and yelling ‘Don’t!’ and ‘Hang on!’, can understand the jump. Not really. You’d have to have personally been trapped and felt flames to really understand a terror way beyond falling." - David Foster Wallace

jimnotgym 4y ago

Chris often challenged me on discussions about UK politics. It is always important to hear different viewpoints, and I will miss that. He lived within an hours drive from here. Which somehow makes it worse. This is not exactly Silicon Valley and people of his caliber are not everywhere to talk to. He was pretty high up in the Army Reserve as well as his day job. It is humbling how much some people fit into a short life. My thoughts to his family and colleagues

ksec 4y ago

About 10 years ago he started a project with Ruby running on Graal before it was known as TruffleRuby. I still remember those HN submissions. SubstrateVM, Graal, The VM to rule it all. And as far as I am aware, he was the only one putting all papers about Ruby and Compilers Design in a single place [1]. I still remember a thread which I have bookmarked somewhere, where you have the lead of JVM, Graal, TruffleRuby, JSC, V8 and Spidermonkey along with another compiler expert arguing ( or in a heated debate ) about Dynamic languages. And when ever you have compiler related submission on HN, you will see him contribute his expertise on the subject. He has been a valuable member of the Ruby and HN Community. I once joked "I am a simple man, I see Chris Seaton, I Upvote :)." I still remember I felt honoured when he followed me on Twitter. He will surely be missed by many. R.I.P [1] https://rubybib.org https://rubybib.org

freedomben 4y ago
As a fellow Rubyist and HN reader I know what you mean! There was always something mindblowing from Chris in the thread, usually multiple things. There's a big hole in my heart today.
meisel 4y ago
Can you link that thread? It sounds quite interesting
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]

graderjs 4y ago

Seeing some of the comments here how people valued him, it seems like maybe sometimes these sentiments of gratitude are not expressed until after someone passes. It works if folks cherish the time they have, and remind people of how they appreciate them while they're still on Earth in their body.

schneems 4y ago
I had lunch with him on Wednesday and wish I said more. I also worry about the hidden pressures of praise. A overly critical inner life can interpret it as “I like you as long as you are useful” which is of course not the truth. I have appreciation for the creators in my life, even when they no longer create.
- xtracto 4y ago
  >I like you as long as you are useful” which is of course not the truth. I think that's the problem with depression disease: no matter what most people tell you, your brain will find a way to use it to dig the hole deeper. My wife has battled with minor depression and anxiety her whole life. I learned that more than trying to say things to cheer her up in the moment, i was more useful by looking for treatment. It's a terrible disease.
  - whats_a_quasar 4y ago
    This is a point that is often missed in the conversation about depression. In the middle of a major depression, literally nothing you can say to the person will cheer them up. The best you can do is be near them, express love, and try to help them maintain sleep/eating/exercise and therapy.
  - JohnBooty 4y ago
    no matter what most people tell you, your brain will find a way to use it to dig the hole deeper. "I've got them fooled. I'm a fraud, they just don't know it." "They're just being nice." "This good person's kind words and actions are wasted on a piece of crap like me. If I wasn't around, they could 'spend' that kindness on somebody who actually deserves it. I'm hurting the world just by being here." "They're lying, and now I feel worse because they're lying" "I hurt so bad inside, and it hurts so bad to wear this mask and graciously accept the praise" "I hurt so bad inside that I wasn't able to accept the praise graciously, and now I actually feel even worse because I've been so rude to this nice person who praised me" Yeah. It's a struggle. Even when you logically know those things are false and it's "just the depression talking" it's very hard to break out of those thought patterns. (Which is why practicing positivity and gratitude -- keeping a gratitude journal, etc -- is actually an effective part of treatment for me. I'm not sure if it's because of specific neuronal pathways being reinforced by specific repeated thought patterns or what but, from a practical perspective, I try to treat positivity like a muscle that I need to exercise)

gozali 4y ago

Gone too soon #RIPChrisSeaton

foobazgt 4y ago

I wasn't privileged to know Chris personally, but I was always keenly waiting to hear his latest achievements and insights. He was clearly talented, passionate, and compassionate. It is so very sad to see him go. Depression is a full blown pandemic. For example, in the US in 2021, there were approximately as many suicide attempts as there were COVID deaths. It is so fucked up and so pernicious. We (rightfully) encourage folks to seek help, but the very nature of the illness makes it difficult for them. Let's all also do our best to recognize the signs of folks struggling so that we can be there for them - to help them recover when it's so hard for them to even reach out for help.

tiffanyh 4y ago

Internet Archive. Does anyone know how to recursively save his entire website to Wayback Machine? I submitted https://chrisseaton.com https://chrisseaton.com, but it doesn't appear any of the child pages are being archived.

toomuchtodo 4y ago
Done. Will take some time for any straggler pages to show up in the CDX indexes.
nirvdrum 4y ago
If it helps any, Chris's web site used GitHub Pages and its source is available at https://github.com/chrisseaton/chrisseaton.github.io https://github.com/chrisseaton/chrisseaton.github.io.
- eatonphil 4y ago
  There's no particular guarantee that this will stick around either as Github/MS changes policies down the line. Some guaranteed long-term archive like archive.org would be better.
  - nirvdrum 4y ago
    Right. I don't know if that GitHub account will be around forever, but you can clone it now and build the site. If it came to it, we could host on another domain. I'm just suggesting that we don't need to worry about archive.org getting every last bit of content.
mossity 4y ago
It looks pretty well archived to me, where are you seeing things missing?

gavinray 4y ago

What terrible news to wake up to. I hate when they say "passed away" -- here was a man in his prime, just the other week sharing knowledge of compilers at a conference, taken from the world. Chris helped me frequently on the GraalVM slack, and it was nice to see his face in the comments of many of the threads here on HN that had to do with compilers and compiler optimizations. I will miss him.

pjmlp 4y ago

What a loss, we discussed so many times about compiler related subjects. My sentiments and thoughts for the family and friends.

sbuccini 4y ago

This cuts deep. Chris had a big impact on my current life trajectory, one that is still playing out -- which is why I was holding off on reaching out with an update. Now I'll never get that chance. Chris seemed to be _everywhere_ and was always generous with his time, even to complete newbies like myself. He certainly set the standard, as one would expect from an Army officer. I'm not exactly sure what his experiences were like in active duty, but we lose way too many vets to mental health issues. If you know a veteran, consider checking in -- this time of year is particularly tough.

jacquesm 4y ago

Gah that so sucks. He left behind a wife and young daughter. Such a nice man, this really is painful.

noneeeed 4y ago

Absolutely tragic news. I met Chris at a couple of local Ruby meetups in Bristol when he gave talks. He was an extremely smart, but also very personable guy. He seemed to really love what he was doing and relished the opportunity to explain it to people and share what he knew. He had a knack for explaining things really well in a way that never patronised when talking to people who were not experts in his domain. He had a real love of communicating what he knew to other people and his passion for his projects was infectious and inspiring. He was younger than me (mid 30s?), but managed to pack an immense amount into that time. He was one of those people I've met who I've immediately thought "I need to be more like that". Genuinely inspirational. His death is a real loss to the community.

icedchai 4y ago

I didn't know him personally, but immediately recognized the name and always enjoyed his comments here. Very sad.

sicromoft 4y ago

Tenderlove wrote a nice tribute, "In Memory of a Giant": http://tenderlovemaking.com/2022/12/07/in-memory-of-a-giant.html http://tenderlovemaking.com/2022/12/07/in-memory-of-a-giant....

searls 4y ago
Aaron's post was incredibly touching and inspired me to share this https://blog.testdouble.com/posts/2022-12-07-the-best-kind-of-brilliant/ https://blog.testdouble.com/posts/2022-12-07-the-best-kind-o...
- noneeeed 4y ago
  That was lovely, and put much more eloquently how I feel about Chris than I've managed myself. We really have lost an exemplar of how to be a member of a community based on knowledge and learning. I hope he continues to be an inspiration to people in the Ruby world for many years to come.
noneeeed 4y ago
This bit really chimed with my brief contacts with Chris > As a college dropout, I’ve always felt underqualified. Embarrassment about my lack of knowledge and credentials has driven me to study hard on my own time. But Chris never once made me feel out of place. Any time I had questions, without judgement, he would take the time to explain things to me. I never once felt like he looked down on people who knew less than him, he just saw it as an opportunity to share what he knew with them. In an industry that can sometimes be dominated by arrogant certainty, or people trying to demonstrate their brilliance, he was a breath of fresh air.

HL33tibCe7 4y ago

Desperately sad news. I never met him, he never met Me, but https://chrisseaton.com/army/ https://chrisseaton.com/army/ made a real impression on me. It’s the kind of thing that sits in your head and pops up from time to time. I found the level of dedication here alongside his professional success incredibly inspiring. Tragically, part of that article is about his young daughter. Not really sure what to think now.

pwdisswordfish9 4y ago
This part had something about it that stuck out in light of the news (first just a bit, but then it kept going): "My fantastic job with Shopify meets my physiological and safety needs, and the job is rewarding and intellectually stimulating (not many people get to work on their PhD work for so long with a team they’ve built around them and I’m very grateful.) But then what? What are you doing to feel alive and to know that you matter? How do you fit into something enduring and bigger than yourself? The Army challenges me every week, and those challenges better me and make me happier. I know that people are depending on me, and that if I don’t turn up and lead my Squadron then nobody’s going to do that for me." Like you, not sure what to think.
- wnolens 4y ago
  Indeed, he seemed to have all the things that generally is believed to combat that trend towards darkness. However, I recall my absolute lowest and the first time I entertained the thought to end it, the 'it' was specifically what it felt like to be in my body. It wasn't a matter of self-worth, it was to stop pain. The strongest reason I could come up with to wait for it to pass was the pain it would cause my mother. So, I don't know.
  - rdrake98 4y ago
    "The strongest reason I could come up with to wait for it to pass was the pain it would cause my mother." You got hold of the right reason. And sometimes we need to hold on to that reason - the pain we would cause to others - for dear live. So to speak.

nnoitra 4y ago

ngd 4y ago

When I was 15 I had to move high school after the death of my mother. I started to socialise at school and joined the investment club. It was a tough time for me and I desperately wanted to make friends and fit in. I wasn’t really into investing but a young man by the name of Chris Seaton was building their website and I loved computers so I wanted to help. Chris taught me how to program, first HTML websites, then PHP based apps, then C# and VBA native apps. Im pretty sure Chris invented the password manager before it was a thing too. I spent the next few years at high school and sixth form trying to sit near Chris in lessons and talking to him on MSN Messenger and ICQ incessantly about programming, he taught me a lot and set me on a path to choosing computer science as my degree, I just copied him to be honest. I’ll miss you Chris

aphrax 4y ago
This a beautiful thing to share. I wish I’d known him and I’m sorry for your loss.
djur 4y ago
Thanks for sharing this. Please take care of yourself. There's something uniquely painful about losing someone who you look up to as a mentor.
GrahamSeaton 4y ago
As a teenager, Chris (or Kit as some of his family knew him) wrote a computer programme, in his bedroom in Chandlers Ford, he called Password Safe. RIP Kit
- rdrake98 4y ago
  So sorry for the loss you must be feeling. I met and talked to Chris just once, after a talk he gave in London, and found him utterly delightful as well as lucid on all things technical. Blessings and comfort to all who knew and loved him.
aliswe 4y ago
I just *memcopied him to be honest

ilrwbwrkhv 4y ago

If you have a lower baseline of happiness, please do yourself a favour and read Albert Camus' The Myth of Sisyphus. It starts with: There is but one truly serious philosophical problem, and that is suicide. Judging whether life is or is not worth living amounts to answering the fundamental question of philosophy. All the rest— whether or not the world has three dimensions, whether the mind has nine or twelve categories—comes afterwards. These are games; one must first answer. Absurdism is a great way to live life and understand that nothing is worth killing yourself for.

d3nj4l 4y ago

A few days ago chris responded to a silly comment of mine on here (completely unrelated to ruby or compilers), and when I saw it I thought, "oh, it's Chris Seaton! I hope he's doing well!" It's so unfortunate he was not. RIP.

MaxBarraclough 4y ago

He'll be missed. I didn't know him, but learnt something every time our paths met here.

vidarh 4y ago

I only met him once, fairly briefly, and exchanged a few messages about our shared interest in compilers. But he seemed like a nice guy, and it's incredibly sad to see this.

ridicthrow 4y ago

djur 4y ago
My experiences as a person who has been suicidal, who has been close to suicidal people, and who has had friends who committed suicide all tell me that it's not as simple as "wanting to die". The same person can feel completely different about their continued viability as a living person within the same hour. The version of that person who wants to continue living is just as worthy of respect. And we can only reach out to and support the people who are still alive.
- taberiand 4y ago
  The most apt analogy (to my experience) is that in general, suicidal people don't want to die, but it's like they're trapped on the 20th story of a burning building and sometimes the fire seems to be under control but right now they're nearly overwhelmed with smoke and the heat is bearing down, and they're at a point where jumping seems like the best alternative. And how relieved they could be if a fireman could put out the fire, or pluck them from that ledge to safety. In the same analogy, there is still a time when jumping really is understandable; there are situations (Robin Williams comes to mind) when suicide really is a rational option.
HideousKojima 4y ago
>like it’s somehow wrong and an intervention is needed. >When someone wants to go, let them go. Strong disagree, especially in cases where they have family and loved ones. Children and grandchildren have a moral right to continue seeing and enjoying time with their parents and grandparents. Spouses have a moral right to continue enjoying life with their beloved best friend. Outside of family I would say there probably isn't a moral right, or at least a significantly diminished one, but suicide takes away the positive influence and presence that someone has on their friends and community. The only part of your post that I do agree with is that we should stop euphemizing news about suicide. I had a friend from high school who committed suicide while serving in the army in Iraq, and the official press release from the military made no mention of his cause of death. He was in a non-combat role that wouldn't have put him in any danger of getting shot or blown up. It wasn't until a few years later when I ran into his sister that I found out the real reason (though I had my suspicions).

GrahamSeaton 4y ago

As a teenage, Chris (or Kit as some in his family knew him) made pocket-money from a programme he wrote in his bedroom in Chandlers Ford call password safe. RIP

schneems 4y ago
Between the childhood information and username, it seems like you're related to Chris. Are you related? I appreciate the little detail. It seems he's always been ahead of his time. Know that he's had a huge impact on the Ruby community and the world. I knew him online for years, but met in person for the first time last week. He spoke fondly of his ongoing trip and spoke with passion about tech projects. The lunch was at a taco truck. He ordered a meal made of fries covered with various taco toppings. I remember pickled red onions at the very top. He left before the group was finished saying he had to go pair with someone. I felt uplifted about the interaction. I even brought it up to my spouse and my visiting parents when I got back from the conf. I can only guess how he was feeling at the time, he seemed busy but cheerful.

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

rootusrootus 4y ago

His suffering is over, but that of his wife & daughter has just begun. My heart breaks for them.

aidog 4y ago

I just opened my first issue two weeks ago in concurrent-ruby and he kindly offered me help. In the end I feel like I have wasted his time, because it was a different problem. I wish I expressed more gratitude. I'm grateful for everyone in the Ruby and OpenSource community

schneems 4y ago
> In the end I feel like I have wasted his time, because it was a different problem Every issue is an investigation. It's normal for the breakage to be in some place non-obvious. Don't beat yourself up over it or let it hold you back from opening issues in the future. If you can provide a good reproduction you'll speed up the time to get to "oh here's the bug" or "not my problem" which is really helpful to maintainers. > I wish I expressed more gratitude. I'm grateful for everyone in the Ruby and OpenSource community There's never enough in hind site. Let's all pay it forward a little more

smcl 4y ago

I saw the headline, read all the words, saw "Chris Seaton" and thought "oh this is about one of our guys!" before properly processing the final bit. God damn what a fucking shame, I hate this. RIP chrisseaton

greenpeas 4y ago

what a terrible waste...

nkurz 4y ago

Apologies if this is the wrong time to ask, but there probably won't ever be a better one. I didn't know him, but often read his comments here. I frequently found them to be... frustrating. He seemed to have a particularly literalist bent, and would often seem to focus on small seemingly irrelevant inconsistencies rather the bigger argument. He usually wasn't wrong, but it made me wonder whether he was autistic, or otherwise out there on the Asperger's spectrum. I'd been meaning to ask him, but never found the right opportunity. For those of you who knew him in real life, did this carry over? Or was I misreading him, as is so easy to do online. I don't ask this flippantly. I lean in the literalist direction myself, and often am unduly frustrated by the imperfections and inconsistencies of the world. Life's not easy if your mind demands a world that makes sense. It makes me wonder if this outlook was part of what pushed him over the edge. Thoughts?

coletonodonnell 4y ago
Seems that the testimonials from others on here show that he was nothing but lovely, I don't think that making observations like that on a post like this is terribly appropriate though.
- system2 4y ago
  It is probably cultural. In some it is forbidden to talk behind people who died other than positively. In some, possible to say things like this. I guess.
- sitkack 4y ago
  I don't think Chris would have minded.
- justin66 4y ago
  This: > Seems that the testimonials from others on here show that he was nothing but lovely is because people behave like this: > I don't think that making observations like that on a post like this is terribly appropriate though.
rootusrootus 4y ago

azhenley 4y ago

His dissertation about Ruby: https://chrisseaton.com/phd/specialising-ruby.pdf https://chrisseaton.com/phd/specialising-ruby.pdf

slgaikwad 4y ago

This is devastating. I worked with the same supervisor as Chris after he finished his phd. He interviewed me and played a key role in getting me the scholarship. I often joked that he raised the bar so high that it's not worth trying to meet it. I always admired his drive for learning and ability to do things at high quality. RIP, Chris.

krishvs 4y ago

Terrible news. He will be missed. My heart breaks for his wife and kid. RIP Chris.

renewiltord 4y ago

Damn, I hated this guy's HN comments but he seems to have been a fine person who people loved. I probably come off the same way to everyone else here, but the people around me love me. Makes me wonder if this is a property of the interaction mechanism. Let me set an unacceptable maxprocrast and leave this place alone. RIP my fellow dude.

sitkack 4y ago

Well this sucks. We didn't always see eye to eye, but I always enjoyed our exchanges. Already missed.

ohadrau 4y ago

Years ago when I was around 14, I stumbled upon Chris's Katahdin project and thought it was such a cool idea I had to try it out. I spent quite a bit of time trying to get set up with it, and not knowing much about C# couldn't really figure it out myself. I ended up reaching out to Chris before giving up on it, not expecting much. To my surprise, Chris spent several hours helping me out and answering my (probably very dumb) questions. I was shocked at how helpful and welcoming he was. Despite the relatively brief encounter I can easily say Chris was one of the kindest programmers I've had the pleasure of interacting with. It's hard for me to express how much this title hit me when I read it. Like many in this thread, Chris had an enormous impact on my path as a programmer and I'm quite sad that I never got the chance to properly thank him. RIP, Chris

karianna 4y ago

Chris was also well known in the London Java Community and contributed to multiple events, conferences, bringing his expertise in a thoughtful and kind way to folks who were often 1-2 stacks above the runtimes and compilers space . My conversations with him about JVM design, GraalVM and Ruby were some of the most memorable and fun times I’ve had running around the conference circuit. Thank you Chris for unselfishly sharing so much with us and leaving the world a better place, you will be missed. I’m off to go and hug loved ones now.

chris37879 4y ago

I didn't know of the man, but after a quick google search I know his work. My condolences.