security
We've read so many sad stories about communities that were fatally compromised or destroyed due to security exploits. We took that lesson to heart when we founded the Discourse [https://discourse.org] project; we endeavor to build open source software that is secure and safe for communities by
router
When we initially deployed our handbuilt colocated servers [https://blog.codinghorror.com/building-servers-for-fun-and-prof-ok-maybe-just-for-fun/] for Discourse in 2013, I needed a way to provide an isolated VPN channel in for secure remote access and troubleshooting. Rather than dedicate a whole server to this task, I purchased the inexpensive, open source firmware
swift
I saw in today's news that Apple open sourced their Swift language [https://t.co/KpC9xID5kU]. One of the most influential companies in the world explicitly adopting an open source model – that's great! I'm a believer. One of the big reasons we founded Discourse
open source
Eric Raymond, in The Cathedral and the Bazaar [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cathedral_and_the_Bazaar], famously wrote > Given enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow. The idea is that open source software, by virtue of allowing anyone and everyone to view the source code, is inherently less
internet activism
When Joel Spolsky, my business partner on Stack Overflow and Stack Exchange, asked me what I wanted to do after I left Stack Exchange, I distinctly remember mentioning Aaron Swartz. That's what Aaron was to us hackers: an exemplar of the noble, selfless behavior and positive action that
routers
About a year and a half ago, I researched the state of routers: about as unsexy as it gets but essential to the stability, reliability, and security of your Internet connection. My conclusion? This is boring old plain vanilla commodity router hardware, but when combined with an open source firmware,
markdown
I'm a big fan of John Gruber's Markdown. When it comes to humane markup languages for the web, I don't think anyone's quite nailed it like Mr. Gruber. His philosophy was clear from the outset: Markdown is intended to be as easy-to-read
programming languages
Remember that Stack Overflow thing we've been working on? Some commenters on a recent Hacker News article questioned the pricing of Stack Exchange -- essentially, a hosted Stack Overflow: Seems really pricey for a relatively simple software like this. Someone write an open source alternative? it looks like
unix
Unix turns 40: The past, present and future of a revolutionary OS is fascinating reading. Forty years ago this summer, a programmer sat down and knocked out in one month what would become one of the most important pieces of software ever created. In August 1969, Ken Thompson (pictured at
open source
I'm a big advocate of learning on the battlefield. And that certainly includes what may be the most epic battle of them all: open source software. Contribute to an open-source project. There are thousands, so pick whatever strikes your fancy. But pick one and really dig in, become
software development
Have you ever considered paying for, or sponsoring, a * bug fix * new feature * plugin * small tweak to existing functionality ... for software that you use? I don't mean waiting for a new release of the software, which will contain a bunch of new features you may or may not
open source
The book Producing Open Source Software: How to Run a Successful Free Software Project [http://www.amazon.com/dp/0596007590/?tag=codihorr-20] is a fantastic reference for anyone involved in a software project – whether you're running the show or not. [http://www.amazon.com/dp/0596007590/?tag=codihorr-20]