

Whyday is Friday - AccordionGuy
http://www.shopify.com/technology/3822402-whyday-is-friday

======
forsaken
This makes me happy. I think the python community could use a dose of whimsy
as well. At work we're having a Free Friday that was pre-planned, but lines up
well with Why Day. I think it's time to do something awesomely unorthodox.

Just need to stretch my brain in that direction, it's been too long.

~~~
niels
Exactly. Beeing a python dev, I definitely get jealous by the creativity shown
by the Ruby community.

------
bryanh
Call me shallow or insensitive, but _why's "poignant guide to Ruby" never did
much for me. It was certainly whimsical I suppose.

~~~
mechanical_fish
I believe it was J. Michael Straczynski who once pointed out that even
Shakespeare's work probably only achieves a 50% approval rating.

There's nothing wrong with having taste, and having some things that appeal to
you and some that do not.

Of course, when people gather to honor things you dislike it is polite to
quietly walk away. It is generally rude to interfere with their fun, unless
innocent kittens are being injured or there's some other extenuating
circumstance.

~~~
michael_michael
Additionally, to quote _why: "When you don’t create things, you become defined
by your tastes rather than ability. Your tastes only narrow and exclude
people. So create."

------
sp332
_why isn't a recluse. I thought he just didn't want strangers poking around
his private life, and quit when people wouldn't stop prying. That's not really
like Hughes, or Salinger, or even Bill Watterson.

~~~
sabat
You have to admit that his sudden disappearance was a little strange. OK, he
didn't want his real name known; understandable. But -- as much as I miss him
-- I'll never fully understand why he would shut down most/all his sites and
nearly deprive us innocent fans of all his previous work. That smacks more of
a hissy fit than a logical decision about personal privacy.

~~~
tptacek
Net net, entrance to exit inclusive, _why has been a win for the Ruby
community; an asset, even in his absence.

Respectfully, and notably like myself, I can't see comparable contributions
from Steve Abatangle. I looked. Maybe I missed them; if so, I'm sorry.

If I didn't, though, let me suggest that you be more cautious about
attributing "hissy fits" to people who clearly bent over backwards to help
other people, just because they removed their own web pages without warning
you first.

~~~
sabat
You're right, I have not contributed to the degree that _Why did. I think you
misunderstand my point, though. When you do contribute to a high degree, and
people begin to use and depend on your work, then it's not especially cool to
just take it all away in a huff. _Why didn't just remove his web pages; he
took a lot of his code with him. People managed to put up mirrors and
otherwise reproduce what he took.

_Why is indeed a win for Ruby. I'm sorry he's gone, and I wish he had not. I
also wish he'd chosen not to leave in the manner that he did -- whether you
call that a "hissy fit" or just an abrupt exit.

------
MaxGabriel
After reading this I started reading the poignant guide, and I came as close
to tears as I've been in a long time. This book is a treasure and after
reading a few 'chapters' I already know that this is one of my favorite books

------
callmeed
Given there are pictures of _why, how is it possible that no one knows (and
has revealed) his real name?

I'm not asking because I want to know–it just seems odd in this day and age
that someone _actually could_ remain anonymous (especially someone in
technology circles).

~~~
cdr
His real identity becoming more widely known quite possibly had something to
do with his disappearance.

~~~
wyclif
What I find amazing about _why is not that he was able to use an assumed
identity for so long, but that people who knew his real identity kept it under
wraps because they enjoyed his contribution so much. Kind of like Santa Claus.

------
mmahemoff
I can't imagine Why's happy about this annual tribute by his fans.

Still, it would be a shame if his contributions were forgotten. The link in
the article preserves about all of it: <http://viewsourcecode.org/why/>

~~~
dasil003
Or he really appreciates it, we'll never know either way, but in any case
_why's opinion about online happenings in 2010+ is pretty much null and void
at this point.

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palish
Incase anyone was wondering, it seems like this was one reason _why chose to
leave:

[http://www.rubyinside.com/nokogiri-ruby-html-parser-and-
xml-...](http://www.rubyinside.com/nokogiri-ruby-html-parser-and-xml-
parser-1288.html)

(_why wrote Hpricot. Imagine how that post must've felt from his perspective.)

<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=774170>

~~~
mvzink
I can't help but doubt it; did you see the link in that very article about
"Hpricot striking back"? As I recall, _why seemed pretty good-humored about it
(but human memory is quite fallible).

~~~
pygy_
Before disappearing, he posted at least two tweets lamenting bitrot and the
short lifespan of code.

His conclusion was that if you wanted your code to last, you had to write
games, since people make huge efforts to preserve them through time
(emulation, etc...).

~~~
Natsu
> His conclusion was that if you wanted your code to last, you had to write
> games, since people make huge efforts to preserve them through time
> (emulation, etc...).

Wonder if he'll reappear someday with a highly-original game like Dwarf
Fortress or Minecraft? I bet he could make something awesome.

------
djd
As awesome the _why's guide to ruby, is we shoudnt forget other things like
Shoes,Hackety hack,camping among other things _why has contributed. BTW any
one has read "nobody knowns shoes?" It is all a worth while read.

------
starpilot
Leah Culver is really hot.

------
jobu
That's just great. Now people are going to start flooding HN with Erlang
stories again.

------
emp_
_why somehow reminds me of Nattramn from Silencer (band) but in a very
lightweight way, where he mixed his work with a bit of 'cool insanity' until
he had to go all out and it was just not something for 'an audience'. People
seem hungry for this sort of behavior, and it amazes me how harmless they
think it is.

~~~
jamesgeck0
What harm did _why's behavior cause?

