It is with extreme shock and sadness that I have to announce that one of our own has passed away. David, known at LQ as mcleodnine, died September 14 2006. David was a long time member here at LQ and was one of the first mods we had (he was also on the first ever episode of LQ Radio). He was an extremely respected member of the LQ team and will be missed. As you can imagine the mod team (many of use whom have been friends for a long time now) are more than a bit shaken by the news. I am going to leave this thread open as a tribute to mc9, but I do ask that you respect the privacy of David and his family during these grievous times. Later today, LQ will be closed for a short time as we observe a moment of silence.

You'll be missed David!

--jeremy

While I've posted this privately, I'd like to also say it publicly.

While I've only been a mod for a short period of time and I did not know him that well, it still comes as quite a shock to hear of his passing. He was an asset to the LQ community and to the Linux community as a whole. My thoughts are with his family.

This is shocking news. I remember mcleodnine quite well in my early days at LQ.

May his soul rest in peace.

I think this should be posted as a global announcement.

With all due respect, I wanted to share a piece of John Donne's Meditation XVII poem:

"No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were: any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bells tolls; it tolls for thee. Neither can we call this a begging of misery, or a borrowing of misery, as though we were not miserable enough of ourselves, but must fetch in more from the next house, in taking upon us the misery of our neighbours. Truly it were an excusable covetousness if we did, for affliction is a treasure, and scarce any man hath enough of it. No man hath affliction enough that is not matured and ripened by and made fit for God by that affliction. If a man carry treasure in bullion, or in a wedge of gold, and have none coined into current money, his treasure will not defray him as he travels. Tribulation is treasure in the nature of it, but it is not current money in the use of it, except we get nearer and nearer our home, heaven, by it. Another man may be sick too, and sick to death, and this affliction may lie in his bowels, as gold in a mine, and be of no use to him; but this bell, that tells me of his affliction, digs out and applies that gold to me: if by this consideration of another's danger I take mine own into contemplation, and so secure myself, by making my recourse to my God, who is our only security."

This is terribly sad news, and although I never met him personally, I learned an awful lot from David's posts here at LQ. mcleodnine, you will be missed.

I don't really remember (personally) seeing many of his posts, but the news is still sad and I send my condolences to those particularly close to him.

I've been away from Linuxquestions for quite some time, busy with a new life after my first child was born. Upon hearing the news, it was shocking and I couldn't believe it at first.

Although I never met David in person, trying many times to drag his butt to a LinuxWorld, I knew him better than some of my own family members for a few straight years in the early days here at LinuxQuestions from chatting online, on the forums and thru email. I truly feel as if I lost a family member and I'm saddened that I cannot pay my respects in person.

From the many sleepless nights I'd have, you'd always be online to chat with, a workoholic who never took a day off. I can't count the many times I'd find myself up at 5am still talking Linux and geek stuff with you. I remember the one cool thing was we shared the same birthday, although most of the time I'd poke fun that you were 11 years older than I claiming you were an old man, it was all fun and I would have never expected this to happen to such a great person.

You will be missed but not forgotten mc9.. may you rest in peace.

-tk

Thinking about this over the last few days has really made me think about the skewed perspective this form of communication can provide. I would like to think i knew him, knew what made him laugh and such. We would talk about absolute nonsense for a long long time. I would also force music upon him, which it turns out he kept on a dedicated playlist. I remember celebrating when his company turn a financial corner and got into the black. Yet at the same time I don't know what he looked like, what his views were on the big issues, what his other passions in life were. I know there's a vast amount about me personally that no one else here knows. not that it's a secret, more that it's just not relevant, and mostly boring. So faced with this news i have a definite sadness, and not 30 minutes has passed where i've not thought about him, yet at the same time realised i don't have much to think about. so the thoughts don't get much further that "man, he's was a funny sod." and then i have to move on as i run out of memories.

You think about how you never got to say goodbye, things like that. But again back in a real world context this all seems fairly irrelevant. why should I have deserved that over other people? well, obviously i don't. This is the first time something like this has come this close in my life. I thank whoever necessary that I've had a very comfortable and happy life all round, and i can barely start to imagine how this would feel were he someone i personally knew in the real world, a friend, or a relative.

So goodbye Dave, thanks for encouraging me through my degree and being interested in my boring stuff when no one else was. I hope you've found some peace now and things make more sense.




but then ... man, he's was a funny sod.

The loss of a life so young is always a tragedy.
My condolences to Dave's family.

David had earned my respect, which is impressive considering how little we interacted. The world doesn't seem right, knowing he's gone.

I will miss him.

Although I didnot know him personally but death of such a person so young is a tragady but it would be worse if I mourn his death , I will celebrate that such a brilliant person lived and mourn that I never got to know him...

A sad day indeed... Although I never met him, I too want to offer my condolences to his family and friends. I hope they can find comfort in the knowledge many share their loss.

May His soul rest in peace.