SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
I can no longer sustain the level of activity needed to run SoylentNews, and so I have resigned as leader.
In the end, I was literally begging people to step back and let the site "just run" for a few days while I caught up... alas, to no effect. Issues must be resolved "right here and right now" continuously throughout my day with no end in sight.
NCommander has taken over as project lead - he has access to everything from the registrar down. I understand he has a different vision for the project, which will soon be revealed.
I'm sorry to leave like this, but there's really nothing for it. I'm going back to my AI studies, which happen at a more leisurely pace.
John Barrabas
(And yes, this was an amicable transfer of power. There's no hard feelings on my side.)
[Ed. Note: this is a word for word article based on Barrabas's journal entry.]
(Score: 5, Insightful) by Common Joe on Thursday March 06 2014, @06:25AM
Barrabas, it's sad to see you go, but (even without the full details), I can also understand. I wish you luck in your endeavors and hope to see you around both on Soylent News and the 'Net. You're a pretty good guy.
Those who don't know me can look at my UID and know I was involved early on in Soylent News, but sometimes life and personal things get in the way. I wanted to be more involved with Soylent News than I was. I actually spoke with a friend about forking Slashdot back in October, but I knew I didn't have the energy and time reserves to do so.
When Barrabas came along and did what he did, I was fully on board. There were and are hiccups for sure, but overall, I am pleased with what I have seen and think there is great potential here and a lot of enthusiasm to do so.
I chatted several people up a good bit before Soylent News went live and I am impressed with NCommander. He's seems to be a pretty good guy with a good head on his shoulders and I encourage everyone to give him a fair chance. I look forward to hearing what he has to say and contributing in any way I can. I don't want to put words in his mouth, but I believe NCommander has the same concerns we all have and his intentions were to make a site superior to Beta... and he has. NCommander has been instrumental in making this site what it is, both from a technological point of view and from a leadership point of view. I am impressed with his skills and tenacity.
There are those who are expressing concerns about the leadership and direction of the site. I think we're in good hands despite what has transpired. There are legitimate concerns about burnout. I'm sure NCommander is taking heed as to what is transpiring and keeping that in mind.
I'm quite sure this has been a learning experience for everyone who is intimately involved with this project. It's not easy to take Slash code, fix it, and turn it into a what Slashdot was back "in the ol' days" without running into a few major snags. (Frankly, I'm surprised there haven't been more major snags because of the sudden success.) There has always been the very real possibility that it could collapse, but amazingly, it hasn't.
I kindly suggest everyone look at the emblem in the top left corner of the page. "Soylent News is people." Barrabas was our first leader, but you and I and the thousands of other users on this site make it what it is. Even though I'm just a Common Joe, I was there a few weeks ago at the start and I watched this site come together. There was another "common joe" who put in a lot of time and effort to turn this site from an idea into reality. I look forward to working with NCommander.