Internet activist, ThoughtWorker and my colleague, Aaron Swartz, committed suicide today. A sad day for us all. I knew that every ThoughtWorker stood behind him and would have done anything to help him. And we will carry forward his flag, and try to make this world a better place to live, much like how he wanted it to be.
I didn’t know him personally. I wish I did. It would have made me a better person. I knew him from his acts and his writings. His writings were profound, and gave much insight into the thought process of a person who contributed to the RSS specification when he was 14 years old. His writings have, and continue to, provide inspiration to young and old alike. I would like to honour him by remembering few of his writings that inspired and moved me and definitely changed my life in more than one way.
How to get a job like mine
In this article, Aaron demystifies and deconstructs his own success, while also talking about the problems faced enroute.
https://aaronsw.jottit.com/howtoget
Raw Nerve
These are a bunch of articles on how to improve life. “Believe you can change”, one of the articles in the series, is a truly thought provoking and inspiring read.
http://www.aaronsw.com/weblog/rawnerve
HOWTO: Be more productive
This article is full of sane advice on how one can be more productive. Simple and clear. It really shows the strengths of his reasonings, and his ability to express them. I have not read a better piece on how to overcome procrastination and bbecome more productive.
http://www.aaronsw.com/weblog/productivity
What Happens in The Dark Knight
Impressive analysis on the Dark Knight story. Even the ardent followers of Nolan and Batman will come out learning something new.
http://www.aaronsw.com/weblog/tdk
His writings will forever continue to inspire and amaze. So will his code and libraries that he wrote like web.py
RIP Aaron Swartz