Brian Proffitt (virtually) sits down with us and talks
Heard about Brian Proffitt? Perhaps you read Linux Today?
Brian is the managing editor of several Linux- and free software-related sites, including Linux Today — arguably the biggest and most visited Linux-related resource on the Web these days.
Today, we have the wonderful opportunity to talk to him. It bears mentioning that Linux Today has published quite a few blurbs on its front page, pointing to stories on this blog, so you’ll forgive me if I’m partial towards Brian.
He’s a great guy — and his Linux Today editorials are always great reads. Thus, it’s no surprise that this interview is (if not too controversial) one of the best interviews we’ve had the pleasure to publish.
Without further ado:
The interview
Hello, Brian! We here at Rudd-O.com would love to hear about you. How would you describe yourself? How old are you? Are you single or married? Any children? Are you happy?
First off, I think your choice of interviewees is a bit suspect. 
But
if you’re gluttons for punishment, here goes. I am a 40-year-old native
of Indiana, born and raised. I currently live back in my hometown of
South Bend with my wife and best friend of 17 years and my two
daughters, ages 14 and 10. I had a full head of hair once, but sadly,
that left me about, oh, 17 years ago. (Hm, funny how that works out.)
I am very happy with where my career has taken me; I started out as a small-town newspaper editor, and that’s really how I see my role on LT–only now it’s a much larger town, and instead of school board meetings, I get to cover the politics of technology.
Brian, correct me if I’m wrong, but I think you’ve been with Linux Today practically since it started. How long have you been associated with Linux Today?
Actually, that’s not the case. I officially began my tenure as an LT editor on March 11, 2002–I remember the date pretty well, because I took my family to New York that weekend while I met with the Powers that Be at (then) Internet.com. It was six months to the day after 9/11, and the city was still recovering in many ways.
Prior to my employed tenure on LT, I was a freelance writer for LT and some other open source Internet.com sites: LinuxPlanet, JustLinux. I also had a brief tenure as editor of BotSpot and BrowserWatch.
What do you do at Linux Today, daily? Have your responsibilities changed with time?
Basically, I am the managing editor for all of the Linux and open source sites owned by Jupitermedia, which include: Linux Today, LinuxPlanet, JustLinux, Enterprise Linux Today, AllLinuxDevices, and LinuxPR. I am the sole employee managing all of those sites. As you might expect, LT takes up most of my day, though the activities of ELT, ALD, and LPR dovetail quite nicely into my LT duties.
Much of my day is finding news, either to link to or write about. I write far less than I care to, but in order to generate LT’s newsfeed, I don’t have time to write as much as I would like. I have a small cadre of freelance writers that handle features and tutorials for LP (always looking for more!), and managing them and JustLinux comprises much of the rest of my time.
In your opinion, what were (or are) the most exciting times for LT — and why?
The redesign we did a couple of years ago was fun, and the behind-the-scenes re-tooling of the talkback system in 2006 was a godsend for my sanity, since I wouldn’t have to moderate every single talkback anymore.
Editorially, the times that been really exciting were when we were able to break stories before anyone else, or go into real detail on an issue. I think Dee-Ann LeBlanc’s 2002 interview of Peruvian Congressman Villanueva was a huge moment of pride for us, and then the passing of an open source bill in Peru in 2005 was a nice closing to a story.
Of course, “exciting” runs both ways. We’ve had criticism leveled at us over the years, some deserved and some not. My approach to all of this has been to be honest and give everyone the straight answers to their questions. That’s a big part of who I am as a person, and a journalist.
How did Linux Today start?
LT was actually started in 1998 by Dave Whitinger and Dwight Johnson, In August of 1998, Dwight and Dave put their heads together and designed a Linux news site, with advertising to generate revenue. (Irony, indeed, since Dave made a big fuss about our advertising when he started LXer a few years ago.)
Dwight, Dave, and a whole host of editors, including one of my best friends, Michael Hall, really built up LT to where it is today, before and after the site was sold to Internet.com (now Jupitermedia). I feel like I am just the lucky guy who won the lottery when I was asked to take over the site in 2002.
So, really, this has been a group effort, and even though I get a paycheck from a single employer, I try my best to maintain as high a level of community involvement as I can. I want people to make suggestions and criticisms; the site is free for all to use, and I want people to feel they can contribute.
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