David Both is an Open Source Software and GNU/Linux advocate, trainer, writer, and speaker. He has been working with Linux and Open Source Software since 1996 and with computers since 1969. He is a strong proponent of and evangelist for the "Linux Philosophy for System Administrators."
He has written articles for magazines including, Linux Magazine, Linux Journal, and OS/2 Magazine back when there was such a thing. He currently writes prolifically for OpenSource.com. He particularly enjoys learning new things while researching his books and articles, building his own computers, and helping his grandchildren build their computers. He has found some interesting
and unusual ways of problem solving, including sitting on one computer on which he was working.
David has published five books with Apress. Four solo works, “The Linux Philosophy for SysAdmins,” August 2018, and a three volume self-study training course, “Using and Administering Linux — From Zero to SysAdmin,” released in December, 2019. He has also written one book with co-author Cyndi Bulka, "Linux for Small Business Owners" that was released in 2022.
David currently lives in Raleigh, NC, with his amazing and supportive wife, Alice.
He can be reached via email at LinuxGeek46@both.org or on Mastodon at @LinuxGeek46@linuxrocks.online.
Authored Comments
Having attended many in-person events over the years and a couple virtual events this year already, I think all the reasons listed above are valid. As much as I do like hanging out with people when live-attending these events, I find that there are plenty of advantages to virtual events.
I like not having to travel. This is partly about cost but it is also about the fact that travel is almost always a hassle when flying. I have always appreciated All Things Open because it is held in my home town, Raleigh, NC, and I can just drive downtown. Easy-peasy. Driving to Columbia, SC, for Open Source 101 was not too bad but still requires a few hours on the road.
The cost of some conferences like Open Source 101 and All Things Open are small and I don't mind paying for them Other conferences are significantly more expensive and when combined with other travel costs can be out of my financial range unless I can combine them with travel for pleasure.
I like being able to pick the presentations I want to see most and viewing them as they go live. I also like being able to view the other presentations in that same time slot at a later time or date. I don't need to miss anything I really want to see.
There is also some level of comfort in viewing sessions from my own favorite home office chair. And with my allergies I won't disturb others when I sniffle, sneeze, and cough. This can prevent a few unappreciative looks in public spaces. I also don't have to worry about sitting near an exit to ensure that I will get to the next session on time.
I miss seeing vendors and their demos and I miss talking to them. I miss seeing friends some of whom I have met up with quite regularly over the years. I miss the general ambience of a technical conference where we are all diverse in many physical and cultural respects and yet united in our interest in and love for open source.
As a speaker, I miss seeing the faces of the attendees and being able to tell from that when I need to see if there are any questions because I am not being clear enough. Sometimes just seeing a puzzled look on one person can tell me I need to do something different.
So mixed feeling for me overall but I like and can live with virtual conferences.
Yes it can. Thanks.
I will go into more depth with journalctl in a future article but, in this one, I did want the context of the journal entries relating to the hello.service to be visible, too.