On a personal note…

A combination of medical concerns, family obligations … and a screaming desire to turn my attention to interests outside the computer industry have nudged me into retirement.

And it’s my great pleasure to announce that “Patch Lady” Susan Bradley will be taking up the cause here at Computerworld  with a new blog: Microsoft Patch Lady. She will also be major-domo of AskWoody.com, managing editor of the AskWoody Newsletters, as guiding light of the @AskWoody twitter charge — and, most importantly, as a spiritual advisor to gazillions of disenfranchised Microsoft customers.

I’ve known and worked with Susan for decades. Part of the original Windows Secrets team and a regular contributor to the AskWoody newsletter, she also moderates the patchmanagement.org mailing list and writes pivotal security columns for CSO. In her day-job guise, Susan is an IT admin and forensic investigator at a well-known CPA firm.

Susan’s well-known in the industry for her perspicacious pursuit of patching problems…and their resolution.

What a long, strange trip it’s been

Life’s changed in extraordinary ways since my first “meatspace” book “Windows 3.1 Programming for Mere Mortals” appeared 28 years ago. Windows has evolved from a rickety infrastructure built atop a wobbly operating system to a wobbly operating system in its own right.

I don’t miss the original bug-ridden incarnations of Windows. But I do miss the fire and vision that drove the unqualified success of Windows XP and Windows 7. And I’ll continue to rail against the flaws that are introduced — and sometimes re-introduced — with every round of updates.

Microsoft has a long history of Windows patching issues. Some things never change, eh?

On a personal note, I’m back in Thailand. We managed to get through two weeks of quarantine and are now free to visit family and friends all over the country. I think of it as an extended vacation, camping out while the U.S. struggles with the pandemic. Eventually, we’ll be back in the States, but the “when” is an open question.

Most importantly, rest assured that the “Open for business” sign remains lit at AskWoody. We’re still standing up for the little guy and I’ll drop in from time to time  to contribute my two cents. But the ongoing effort to guide and help all PC users here is now in new and much more capable hands.

I’ve already been warned by Susan that I must pop in every now and then to offer insights about technology outside of the Redmond bubble. Challenge accepted.

So long, and thanks for all the fish!

Always feel free to join us on AskWoody.com.