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I-shall-toil-quietly.md (2837B)

    

  1. ---
  2. title: I shall toil at a reduced volume
  3. date: 2022-12-01
  4. ---
  6. Over the last nine years I have written 300,000 words for this blog on the
  7. topics which are important to me. I am not certain that I have much left to say.
  9. I can keep revisiting these topics for years, each time adding a couple more
  10. years of wisdom and improvements to my writing skills to present my arguments
  11. more effectively. However, I am starting to feel diminishing returns from my
  12. writing. It does not seem like my words are connecting with readers anymore.
  13. And, though the returns on my work seem to be diminishing, the costs are not.
  14. Each new article spurs less discussion than the last, but provides an unwavering
  15. supply of spiteful responses.
  17. Software is still the same mess it was when I started writing and working, or
  18. perhaps even worse. You can't overcome perverse incentives. As Cantrill once
  19. [famously noted][0], the lawnmower can't have empathy. The truth he did not
  20. speak is that we all have some Oracle in our hearts, and the lawnmower is the
  21. size of the entire industry.
  23. [0]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=2483&v=-zRN7XLCRhc
  25. I have grown tired of it. I will continue my work quietly, building the things I
  26. believe in, and remaining true to my principles. I do not yet know if this is a
  27. cessation or a siesta, but I do know that I will not write again for some time.
  28. Thank you for reading, and good luck in your endeavours. I hope you found
  29. something of value in these pages.
  31. Here are some of the blog posts I am most proud of, should you want to revisit
  32. them today or the next time you happen upon my website:
  34. - [Cryptocurrency is an abject disaster](https://drewdevault.com/2021/04/26/Cryptocurrency-is-a-disaster.html)
  35. - [Don't sacrifice the right ideas to win the right words](https://drewdevault.com/2019/09/17/The-wrong-words-but-the-right-ideas.html)
  36. - [Framing accessibility in broader terms](https://drewdevault.com/2022/02/13/Framing-accessibility-in-broader-terms.html)
  37. - [It is important for free software to use free software infrastructure](https://drewdevault.com/2022/03/29/free-software-free-infrastructure.html)
  38. - [Open source means surrendering your monopoly over commercial exploitation](https://drewdevault.com/2021/01/20/FOSS-is-to-surrender-your-monopoly.html)
  39. - [Sustainable creativity in a world without copyright](https://drewdevault.com/2021/12/23/Sustainable-creativity-post-copyright.html)
  40. - [The complete guide for open sourcing video games](https://drewdevault.com/2021/03/23/Open-sourcing-video-games.html)
  41. - [Utility vs usability](https://drewdevault.com/2020/11/06/Utility-vs-usability.html)
  42. - [We are complicit in our employer's deeds](https://drewdevault.com/2020/05/05/We-are-complicit-in-our-employers-deeds.html)
  43. - [Why I use old hardware](https://drewdevault.com/2019/01/23/Why-I-use-old-hardware.html)