Slashdot Mirror
Ask Rob Malda
We last interviewed CmdrTaco, along with Hemos, in January 2000. Slashdot's 10th anniversary seems like a good time to put Rob back on the hot seat. He's older now and married, his former hobby site now has well over one million registered user IDs, and Linux has gone from "upstart" operating system to a normal part of the IT landscape. So ask away, one question per post. Expect to see answers to at least 10 of the highest-moderated questions next week. And if you miss your chance to participate in this interview, don't worry. We'll probably do another one with CmdrTaco sometime between 2014 and 2017.
CT: Also the clock is ticking if you want to sign up for a Slashdot 10-Year Anniversary party if you want a T-Shirt or a shot at the $1k ThinkGeek gift certificate.
I assume that through the ether you have met Kevin Rose, but do you two get along or is it pistols at dawn?
liqbase
Rob,
Q: How many of those one million registered user IDs are active?
Explanation: I have seen a fair number of folks that have defected to other platforms/communities to find resources or tools that Slashdot does not provide. I've continued to hang around as I appreciate what Slashdot has to offer, but are there any plans to change anything?
Oh, and congratulations on 10 years.
Visit Jonesblog and say hello.
Ok, that was a little antagonistic, but in all seriousness, why do you allow the kind of unprofessional editing that Kdawson engages in?
I only go to buffets for the unlimited soft serve.
When will the over/underrated mods be mettamodded?
Thanks
Do the editors bet on which option will win in /. polls and are half of the votes for the CowboyNeal option actually by CowboyNeal repeatedly clicking his mouse. Inquiring minds want to know.
Joe Llywelyn Griffith Blakesley
[This post is in the public domain (copyright-free) unless otherwise stated]
If you were to redo Slashdot all over again, what would you change? I'm not just talking Slash, I'm talking the entire thing.
Colin Dean Go a year without DRM
Why has the number of technical articles dropped so much over the years? IOW - why are you trying to turn /. into Digg?
Wil Wheaton has written about meeting a famous author, I think it was Larry Niven, and being completely blown away that Niven was at least as jazzed about meeting Wil as vice versa.
I'm sure you've met lots of folks that us normal mortals only see on TV. Anyone in particular that you were really excited to meet who hyperventilated when they realized who you were?
Craig Steffen
http://www.craigsteffen.net
In the recent Wired interview, it was said that the interview was conducted over the phone, so my question is...
Does saying "OMG!" out loud make you as much of a dork as I think it does?
Considering the FAQ hasn't been updated in almost a year, could you explain exactly what tags do these days? At one time, it seemed to be a vote-based system, now I have no idea how tags show up on articles. Frankly, since I didn't understand it and my tags didn't seem to affect anything, I gave up on using the feature.
Could we get a definitive answer to how tags work?
Sometimes it's best to just let stupid people be stupid.
Something I've been sort of curious about for ages:
Can you talk a little about how you experienced some of the dotcom insanity, specifically as it unfolded here at Slashdot? For a while, it seemed like Slashdot was about to become wunderkind central -- the sale to VA, the infamous ESR post about uber-wealth, etc. I'd be interested to hear about how that experience translated from your side of the ball.
Thanks. And nice site you got here.
Every year during my review, I just pray the words "slashdot.org" aren't mentioned.
Without getting into a flamewar over what is a highly controversial subject, slashdot runs on mysql, and you've been quoted as saying you would do it with postgres if you could do it all again. I'm just wondering, is that true, do you still feel that way and why?
Do you have any stores of annoyed sysadmins writing/phoning you and complaining that a link on Slashdot crushed their machines?
Alternatively, anyone whose exposure on slashdot boosted their popularity/traffic enough that they could retire/change jobs/make a major job change?
Craig Steffen
http://www.craigsteffen.net
Why do you look like such a psycho?
Seriously, Rob looks like he escaped from the nearest infirmary.
Time for a better hair cut, Rob.
(posted anonymously for obvious reasons)
Sincerely,
Kevin Rose
Related follow-up/Put another way: If you could go back and do one thing differently what would you do?
"It takes considerable knowledge just to realize the extent of your own ignorance." - Thomas Sowell
What "Top-5" websites are in your daily/hourly must-read rotation? (Not counting RSS)
"The price good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men." ~Plato (427-347 BC)
Ever since GiS went away you've become a sort of man-behind-the curtain type persona, and we don't see much in the way of journal updates or news posts about Slashdot or you yoyrself much. One of the last things most of us knew about the "Real Rob Malda" was the article in Wired years ago regarding the Andover-cum-VALinux-cum-OSDN-cum-Death-keiretsu IPO.
Just what the hell do you do all day now, anyway?
Hilary Rosen's speech was about her love of money and her desire to roll around naked in a pile of money.
What do you actually do? If someone were to follow you to work every day for a month, what would they see you spend your time doing?
What kind of revenue does Slashdot make?
Your recent journal entry talks about Slashdot becoming very popular very quickly. But at some point later, you realize that transferring slashdot over to a commercial enterprise would make you actual money that you could live off of. We'd love to hear the story of that meeting/phone call/e-mail/whatever.
Craig Steffen
http://www.craigsteffen.net
What'd you vote to the current poll? What's YOUR favorite Slashdot "meme"?
I bet it's Soviet Russia. (In Soviet Russia, CmdrTaco bets on you!)
When were you most tempted to give up?
Dealing with a bunch of creative, resourceful, tenacious, stubborn, and sometimes outright hostile nerds, I'm sure there were MANY times when you were tempted to just give up on the whole thing. e.g. page-widening trolls; Church of Scientology; Microsoft source code, or even the release of slash code to the community and the barrage of insults.
I'm really glad you held on and persevered, but I'd like to know when you were most tempted to throw in the towel, and even more importantly, I'd like to hear the story around how you held on and kept things going.
With the anneversary of Slashdot just celebrated and an entire decade having passed since you created the site, do you ever wonder what Slashdot will be like in another decade; specifically whether after twenty years you'll possess an active role?
I was thinking what with a family on the horizon plus a lot of other side projects you may bow out after a time; but then again it was kind of inevitable as there's a lot to life besides Slashdot. But nonetheless your insight over tenure is appreciated.
Anyway, thanks for this site Rob; the amount of laughs and great reads it has given in the four years I've browsed here is beyond measure and a lot of people here would agree that despite flaws this place is unique.
This is another controversial subject, and the parent will probably be modded down, but it is a good question (when phrased properly): How do you feel about the political/whatever climate on slashdot and do you feel that all viewpoints are respected?
Can you give us any insight into the hardware/platform that slashdot runs on? How many servers does it use? What did you code it in? (a half drunk, coked-up deaf guy screaming HTML into a tin can on a string?) How much bandwidth does it use?
I know this is more than one question, but my MAIN question is just: "What does it take to run slashdot, hardware/software/bandwidth wise?"
NewslilySocial News. No lolcats allowed.
These are probably pretty cliche questions, but I am interested in the answers.
What is a normal day at slashdot like? How much time do you spend improving slashcode vs picking stories vs the normal computer admin tasks vs other stuff. How are the workload/responsibilities split up among the different staff members? How has this changes over the years?
I also remember back in the old days, the work you did with Enlightenment, as well as the animated short you made (Duckpins?). I was wondering if you get the chance to do much programing outside of slashcode, or what other hobbies you spend your free time doing now (besides being married).
Mm, or more to the point.
What sites are you most proud of slashdotting?
Probable impossibilities are to be preferred to improbable possibilities.
Aristotele
If you were in Soviet Russia, would a Beowulf cluster of Natalie Portmans and other insensitive clods as our 1337 new goatse overlords (confirmed by Netcraft as dying) have you naked and petrified with hot grits poured down Cowboy Neal's pants (profit!!!) ?
--- The American Way of Life is not a birthright. Hell, it's not even sustainable.
Do you find it ironic when cmdrtaco.net gets /.'ed?
Or
What are your thoughts on the so-called 'slashdot effect?'
There are no loopholes. It's either legal or it's not.
What do you think the exact turning point was for Slashdot that got the ball rolling. Maybe it happened when it was Chips and Dips, but how did word get out to the professional engineers that told their friends and so on? Did you announce your creation on usenets, was there one loudmouth who advertised for you, do you have any idea how it came to be that this was a mecca for nerds online when it could have just as easily been ignored?
"I only speak the truth"
Karma: null(Mostly affected by an unassigned variable)
Have you ever regretted starting Slashdot, or invested so much of your time in to this site? Did any actions by your peers, by the community or by your colleagues, as a result of a story posted on Slashdot or related to one, made you ever regret your decision to start Slashdot.
Anyway, been here a guest since 1999, and a member for the last seven. Enjoyed being part of this community, every single day (or when its non-xenophobic).
Rapid Nirvana
That's my question. Please include pics.
Would you publish a follow-up story on Junis?
I found Jon Katz's Message from Kabul truly mesmerizing.
Junis surely must have some interesting thoughts on the state of Afghanistan and his feelings towards the USA today. I'm also interested to know if he ever upgraded from that Commodore he was using to download movies - the one he hid from the Taliban in his chicken coop.
-Isaac
I am not a lawyer, and this is not legal advice. For Entertainment Purposes Only.
If Google comes to you with a huge pile of cash and says "we want to add Slashdot to out stable of products," perhaps as some kind of competitor to Digg, would you a) be tempted but decline because this is, after all, your baby, b) talk to them a while, negotiate, but ultimately call it off, or c) buy that island you've always wanted and start your own country?
GetOuttaMySpace - The Anti-Social Network
Slashdot is successful by any measure. You've certainly pioneered many things we now take for granted. Many "slashdot killers" have been attempted and failed or found a different niche. What are the biggest threats to /. success today and going forward?
-- @rjamestaylor on Ello
Do you still read Slashdot yourself regularly?
If so, what are your favorite and least favorite things about the community?
How much do you love tacos?
Or is the threat of the goatse.cx simply too severe?
Kwisatz Haderach
Sell the spice to CHOAM
This Mahdi took Shaddam's Throne
When will Slashdot stop posting unsubstantiated, or (sometimes) completely merit-free stories with a question mark at the end, as if that was some kind of excuse?
Chris
who of course reads such things anyway
Comment removed based on user account deletion
My question is simple: Do you like the discussions that appear on Slashdot stories? Do you read them?
My question originates from the fact that, apparently, you've only commented 368 times. Considering that you've been here "since the beginning," that's not a lot of comments. Avid Slashdotters make about that many comments per year.
So why don't you participate more in the discussions? Do you not like Slashdot discussions? Or is it just because you prefer reading? Is it because you're too busy? (Aren't we all?) Is it because you worry that any comment you make will be unduly scrutinized, because of your peculiar status within this community? (Do you sometimes post under a different name?)
Do you run a Linux box as your primary desktop?
If so, which distro? If not, what do you run?
Many readers seem to have a lot of animosity over certain editors, both in history and present day.
Years ago, it was JohnKatz and what we considered his pointless inflamatory articles that were rewritten 5 times yet all 5 said the same thing.
Nowadays, it's people like Zonk and his complete lack of editing, posting the most slanted version of an article or a version which gets the summary completely wrong.
My question is how to do deal with these complaints? Do you deal with these complaints in any way with more than the filters in preferences that allows you to block articles by a certain editor?
"All great wisdom is contained in .signature files"
What is the purpose for the "Overrated" and "Underrated" mods? They are exempt from metamoderation, and as such are an open invitation for abuse by moderators looking to bury opinions with which they disagree.
"Ask not what your country can do for you." --John F. Kennedy
First, thanks for a great site. I read something about "20 hour days" keeping the site afloat, and I believe it was required. For those of us who enjoy it daily (along with Dwight Silverman's column) it can be a real lifeline, especially when work is ultra-boring.
Just a few questions:
1. You oversaw the "internet revolution." Beyond Al Gore inventing it, beyond the dot-com hype, beyond the spam and the sockpuppets, what do you think is the future of networked communication? Is it the cloud OS and social networking, or are we rounding another bend?
2. You've mentioned liking Postgres DBs. What other underrated hardware and software do you enjoy and employ on a regular basis?
3. What emergent technologies do you watch?
4. In the Wired interview, you mention a balance between wise crowd tendencies and dumb crowd tendencies:
"When you're building a system like this you're balancing the wisdom of the crowds versus the tyranny of the mob. Sometimes a crowd is really smart, but some things don't work so well by committee. Crowds work when you have a tightly knit group of people with similar interests, but when you have a loosely knit community you get 'Man Gets Hit in Crotch With Football.'"
What have you learned is the balance of this duality? For all of its attempts to be crowd-wisdom propelled, Slashdot does lean on the theory of exceptional individuals, because it has picked editors to filter what makes it to the front page, which cuts down on the "site-rhymes-with-bigg" tendency to put rosy garbage on the front page. Are you satisfied with the balance of your responses to whatever psychological fulcrum keeps a crowd wise and not mobbish?
5. What if any fiction authors do you enjoy?
6. I'm a technical writer, and am curious what you think about the current state of software and hardware documentation. Is it getting better? What are its common failings? Does anyone read it? Will single-sourcing (documentation that appears in print, online help, web sites, flash cards and text messages but uses the same text) change documentation's effectiveness radically?
7. In the CNET article, you talk about Slashdot as a community.
"But to some of our readers, it's a community that's here to discuss issues that are relevant to this community. There is a lot of value. The bulk of our content comes from other people. There are 6,000 or 7,000 comments on a busy day that other people write and just a dozen stories of just a paragraph or two that we actually generate, that are ours."
As you started out in BBSs, you probably had a prexisting idea of this being important to a resource on technology. Why do you think this is?
8. In the same interview, you talk about the ability of low-tech websites to take on big roles:
"I think that it really comes down to the content. If you have content people want, they will tolerate a system that is inferior. Now our system is solid, but back in the day, it wasn't. Look at eBay: That system is the most hodgepodge and clumsy user interface that you will ever find. People use it because it was first and it worked."
In the world of advertising, people call this branding. What do you think Slashdot's brand represents, and is it something IT workers will always have in common?
9. In the Network Administrator interview, you compare Slashdot to bulletin board systems favorably.
"Strangely not that far. It's all just a matter of scale. At some level it's all identical."
You mean in twenty years, not much has changed except the technology? I'd like to hear more on this if you find it compelling.
10.
technical writing / development
You've probably followed more news stories and trends over the past decade than just about anyone else.
Based on that, what are your predictions for the next 10 years?
Some technology is obviously going to die a quick and painful death. Some of that technology will be good and some deservedly bad. What's going to catch on? What has staying power? Google has been a golden child the last few years, will that continue? Are there any big turnarounds coming? Who's got good stuff in the pipeline? Don't you dare tell me 2008 is the year of Linux (and I know you won't) - we've both been hearing that marketing crap for the past 10 years.
----- obSig
What part of "one question per post" did you not understand? :P
There are certainly some interesting questions there, but there's no way the editors will choose all of them.
Was slashdot ever intended to be a source of income? What caused it to become such?
How about an 'explanation' field on downmods? So when a person wants to know why he got modded down, with one click he can read "you called parent a fucktard." This tend to promote more polite behavior, IMHO.
You've been doing Slashdot for a while, so congratulations for that. But have you had any ideas you've wanted to experiment with or work on if it weren't for Slashdot? Perhaps another type of website or maybe just some fun type of application, or something not computer or tech related at all.
Thanks.
Yeah, it was Larry Niven.
I wrote about it in my blog, thusly:
Around 1987 or 1988, I saw Larry Niven at a convention. I was officially there to be the Star Trek guy, but I didn't have to go on stage for a few hours, and rather than sit in some suite with the rest of the Star Trek people who didn't want to get too close to the masses, I grabbed my backpack and wandered around the convention as nerdy fanboy number 42.
I bought a ton of crap in the dealer's room (mostly FASA sourcebooks, and some bootleg anime videos IIRC) and on my way down a hallway toward the gaming room, I saw this guy who was dressed in a Space Shuttle flight suit (blue) sitting behind a table that had some books on it.
Holy shit, it was Larry Niven.
I walked up to him and the conversation went something like this:
Me: OMG YOU'RE LARRY NIVEN!
Him: OMG YOU'RE WESLEY ON STAR TREK!
Both: CAN I HAVE YOUR AUTOGRAPH!
Both: YOU WANT MY AUTOGRAPH?!
Both: YES!
Me: I don't have a pen.
Him: It's okay, I have several.
He pulled a pen out of the shoulder pen-holding pocket thing on his blue Space Shuttle flight suit. I was so out-nerded, it wasn't even funny. I tried to counter-attack by producing my own copy of Ringworld that I had in my backpack, because I carried it with me everywhere in those days, just in case, you know, I felt like reading it. (I am not exaggerating at all. I loved -- and continue to love -- that book that much. For reals.)
Kwisatz Haderach
Sell the spice to CHOAM
This Mahdi took Shaddam's Throne
The people have spoken, and yet he's still here.
Nah, I bet most posters couldn't care less. Don't mistake a noisy 5% for the whole. I wonder if that's a seed for a question?
Mr. Taco: You have access to stats, such as number of pageviews, active posters, and so forth. This lets you objectively measure a lot of things that we can't see. What do you think are some misconceptions that we have about slashdot? Maybe we're really still mostly IE users? Is 'videogames' the most read section? Perhaps the tech and science articles that everybody seems to clamor for are really the least read?
Ok, what's the real story behind the Slashdot PT Cruiser?
Do you even lift?
These aren't the 'roids you're looking for.
You borrowed your Net Handle from the old management article's throwaway suggestion.
If someone was so inclined, would you like to be involved in relations with a Commander Taco restaurant?
(Taco Bell meets Slashdot with Linux Terminals and cheap food...)
My first Journal Entry ever, in 8 years! http://slashdot.org/journal/365947/aphelion-scifi-fantasy-horror-poetry-webzine
10 years worth of comments, at thousands a day, seems like it could be a potential treasure trove of data for geeks if not academics. What do you think about a possible mechanism for people to be able to have access to it beyond the amount that subscribers have?
If brevity is the soul of wit, then how does one explain Twitter?
How often do you post comments on Slashdot? I guess I mean: do you post under sockpuppet accounts?
10 years is a long, long time... How much would you say time has affected your personal feelings and drives related to slashdot content?
The Universe is shrinking all around my head.
I'm glad you post on Slashdot even though you also have a Digg account.
I don't subscribe to the notion that we should only have one account in one place, and participate in one community. That attitude is one of the myriad reasons I don't waste my time on Digg any more. In addition to that annoyance, the comments and interaction at Digg is worse than useless, and even as an aggregator it's become inferior to Reddit and Propeller (where I'm a scout - full disclosure.) Digg could have been really cool, if it had the kind of leadership that Slashdot has via editors. Instead, those who would lead Digg seem more content to cash the checks and let the Digg Mob run out of control down every tube on the Internets.
For truly useful and worthwhile discussion and insight, nothing comes close to Slashdot. In fact, if I were to ask Rob a question, it would be about the commenting and moderation system: does he agree that Slashdot has the best moderation online, and why doesn't every community use the same model?
This has always bugged me since (my personal) day one: why don't slashdot articles display a year, along with the month and day, in their date? Every now and then I happen upon a link to an article on slashdot (or search back) and have to try to guess at what year the article is from. What gives?
We're dying to know - what WOW server are you on?
Thongs Designed by Me!
"I like how you let the post sit at +5 all weekend so the people who want to make sure your loser ass gets fired stop paying attention, then you come in and mod it down sunday night so no one will have to answer the question.
You're a pathetic fucking loser dawson."
You're still a pathetic fucking loser dawson. Keep censoring people because you hate that they're right, while pretending you're anti censorship."
Modding it down doesn't make it less true you cunt.
I only go to buffets for the unlimited soft serve.