An Orlowski article? With comments enabled???
Heaven forfend. And, that is going back a bit to be fair...
Good luck in the future Mr O, I'll be sure to intermittently annoy you on Twitter, I'm sure....
Steven R
Veteran vulture Andrew Orlowski is offski after 19 years at The Register
Bill Clinton was president of the United States when I first started at The Register, mobile phones (and anything else "mobile") were low-rez monochrome chunks of plastic, and politicians were slack-jawed children when it came to technology. Some things don't change, but today one thing does. After 19 years – the first seven …
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Thursday 9th May 2019 11:12 GMT Anonymous Coward
"You'll be missed."
Not by everybody, I guess <G> but I'll miss Andrew, even when I didn't agree with him. But if you one always agrees, where's the fun? And moreover, where's the real journo who can give you an independent point of view?
El Reg loses one of its sharpest talons, though
Thanks for all the good articles read in those years - they were always well written, informative and helpful to understand the IT world and build new knowledge.
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Monday 13th May 2019 07:49 GMT Chronos
Re: "You'll be missed."
No, Piers is just a professional shit-stirrer with a face born to slap, clueless about whatever subject he's meddling with and fuckwitted in his willingness to consider he may be wrong, which is pretty much all the time. Jeremy Vine is of the same ilk.
You do Andrew a grave disservice. At the very least, Andrew's articles were thought-provoking and had a human angle rather than just being an opinion-diktat on how we all should think. Unlike Piers, you could persuade him to reconsider with facts rather than uninformed opinion.
Whether you agree with some of his opinions or not, his talent will be missed and I, for one, wish him all the best in his future endeavours.
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Thursday 9th May 2019 10:35 GMT Charlie Clark
Re: Well...
Isn't that what we need more of? Not the silly polemics, but thought-provoking disagreements and discussions.
To Andrew's credit you also can see that it's been very much a two-way thing and that he's read and absorbed criticism and adjusted his position, much as many of us have as well.
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Monday 13th May 2019 07:45 GMT Intractable Potsherd
Re: Thank you Andrew
I sometimes agreed with you, Andrew, but not always. I remember a few years ai when you responded personally by email to a comment I'd made - I was surprised and touched that you had read my comment.
I'll be following you on Twatter to see what is next in line for you.
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Thursday 9th May 2019 09:54 GMT big_D
You've been here...
almost as long as me. I was reading El Reg from the get-go.
It was always interesting to read and article, without looking at the author. After a few sentences I would generally think, "hmm, that must be from Andrew!" Scroll back to the masthead and look and 99/100 times I'd be right. I once mistook one of your stories for a Dabsy, nobody is perfect, I suppose.
All the best in the future!
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Thursday 9th May 2019 11:49 GMT Aqua Marina
Re: I agreed with you on almost nothing ....
I was going to say pretty much the same thing, but then I realised that despite that, I always did read the articles, and then the comments (when they eventually became enabled) so I'm guessing he was doing his job right.
Good luck wherever you end up and feel free to come back to the comments where we can continue to disagree!
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Thursday 9th May 2019 13:40 GMT amanfromMars 1
Re: I agreed with you on almost nothing ....
Good luck wherever you end up and feel free to come back to the comments where we can continue to disagree! .... Aqua Marina
Or where we can continue to share with Andrew, Almighty AIdDevelopments . It's in the DNA of the Register. ITs Raison d'Être.
Would you disagree, and Driver A.N.Other Course with Myriad Sources?
The Question to Ask is ..... Are they Almighty? ...... for that is Heavenly and Opens Pandora's Box Full of Delights to Pacify with the Supply of Insatiable Immense Satisfaction. :-) ..... which is believed to be Unbelievably Addictive and Soul Consuming
Hmmmm? Heaven above or Perfect for Hell?
LOVERule. Advanced IntelAIgent Systems Programs Assuming Lead Command with Remote Virtual Controls in Live Operational Virtual Environments Toasting to El Reg and All Registering here.
Questions we love to ask to never doubt the perfect answer. Which is always the Absolute Truth ..... the Whole Truth and Nothing but the Truth Thing ........ is something of a Register Specialisation/Biting the Hand that Feeds IT Niche Tour de Force.
:-) GBIrish at its finest salutes you, AO.
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Thursday 9th May 2019 10:35 GMT Michael H.F. Wilkinson
You will be missed ...
by the many many people who have depended on you for their daily or weekly dose of being annoyed about something
and of course by those who have enjoyed your articles (the intersection of these groups is non-empty, I gather from the above).
I'll buy you a pint if ever we should meet
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Thursday 9th May 2019 11:12 GMT Down not across
So long and thanks for all the articles
As few have said, I have thoroughly enjoyed your articles whether I agreed with you or not. Disagreement is a good thing anyway, there is much more to talk about and to learn if we don't all just agree.
I wish you the best on your endeavours, and hey you could always become a commentard.
I'd also like to thank for reminding me of some of Sarah's best lines. It hasn't been same here without the Moderatrix.
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Thursday 9th May 2019 15:31 GMT I ain't Spartacus
Re: Phone reviews
I'd just come on here to say that. In fact I was even considering creating a sock-puppet account called something like Andrew Orlowski's Postbox in order to complain about him going.
How will the poor thing ever get attention now?*
I've found myself agreeing with Andrew O far more times than I've disagreed, so I've defended him in the comments a few times from the raging mobs. For example, he was one of the early voices being rather rude about Google, when most of the media had their tongues so far up the Google collective arsehole that they could clean their Google Glasses for them...
Although I'm pretty sure that Andrew is also the one to blame for me buying a Windows phone. Well 2 in fact. He was very clear about both the upsides and downsides of the system, and I'm still a happy Win Phone 8.1 user - still haven't bothered to upgrade to 10, also on his original recommendation.
Andrew, you are the Cassandra of mobile phone OSes. Or is that the Jonah? Your Blackberry (and lesser) Windows Phone love have entirely failed to keep them at the top. Which is a shame.
I hope post-Reg life treats you well, and fills your life with pink fluffy unicorns dancing on rainbows. Or beer. Or whatever...
Cheers!
*And by that I obviously meant the said post box, not Andrew O himself. Heaven forfend!
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Thursday 9th May 2019 11:51 GMT Anonymous Coward
End of an institution
...okay, not really - but think of the pathos!
Okay, seriously now: thank you for all your hard work, Andrew. The Register wouldn't have been the same without you, and while this has already been mentioned in several other comments let me be yet another one to state that while I have on many occasions disagreed with the points you have made in your articles, they have generally (the polite way would be to say "always" but we all make mistakes at times) been well written and I have enjoyed reading them.
Good luck in your future endavours!
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Thursday 9th May 2019 13:01 GMT TaabuTheCat
OK, I'll admit
You had an usual way with words Andrew - and not always in way I could understand. Many times I'd have to read a paragraph or two more than once to figure out what it is you were saying, but nonetheless, it's this diversity of style that makes a place like The Reg unique. Hope whomever follows you will have the same passion you brought to your stories, and will be just as inclined to kick the hornet's nest on a regular basis (copyright anyone??). Good luck!
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Thursday 9th May 2019 13:02 GMT Dan 55
Official Register Contrarian
Are there plans to announce the successor for this most illustrious of posts? The commentariat need to know!
In my self-centered view may I say that my workplace time-wasting will be far less satisfactory than it has been over these past 20 years. I also hope this does not start a brain drain at El Reg which will see the likes of Verity Stob also leaving for for pastures new.
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Thursday 9th May 2019 13:02 GMT Kubla Cant
Sad day for us; great day for you
Best of luck, Andrew.
And although I'm eight years too late, I nearly bust something when I read about the Mystique school of Javascript development, where coders are forbidden from ever checking the return value of a function.
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Thursday 9th May 2019 13:21 GMT Alexander J. Martin
It was a pleasure working with Andrew
Andrew is a great journalist. As all my fellow commenters are very aware, he's a fiercely independent thinker, often contrary, but never aggressiv.e. And very funny. He's easily among the best company in a newsroom or pub you could wish for. It was a great pleasure to work with him during my stint at El Reg.
Best of luck to you to in the future mate.
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Thursday 9th May 2019 13:38 GMT Martin Summers
Best of luck Andrew. I've been reading this site for about the same amount of time as your tenure and never understood why people got themselves so worked up about what you wrote. You've been kind enough to reply back to me about my crap news tips a few times which has been a nice touch.
I'd completely forgotten about the Moderatrix. Still actually someone we'd love to have back I'm sure.
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Thursday 9th May 2019 13:39 GMT Sir Runcible Spoon
Ta ta!
As many others have said, haven't always agreed with your articles but I've always appreciated that you wrote what *you* believed in. Don't think you deserved all of the stick you got in the comments, but I reckon most of it was akin to good-natured banter between brothers - a bit like the time mine shot me in the arse at point blank range with an air pistol - oh how he laughed!
(I see you've taken the sensible precaution of turning on moderation for this article)
Anyways,
John F Kennedy once said that if he hadn't had sexual intercourse by midday, he'd get a splitting headache. Writing is like that for me a bit – I get itchy.
Most people get itchy from too much, not too little, but to each their own :)
Fare thee well, and best of luck for your next indentured servitude to the huddled masses.
(That's me wiping away the single tear that just leaked from my ocular apparatus) ->>
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Thursday 9th May 2019 13:41 GMT Stuclark
Somebody say NO
Andrew was one of the reasons I started (kept) reading elReg - I remember well(ish) those days and evenings at the variously titled Symbian... / Nokia.. / "OMG, Apple just launched a bloody phone" expos and shindigs - the AAS story (which I believe I quoted you in) about which vendor gave away the best mints - the endless WTF related to Sendo & Microsoft - then your brilliant writing in the ensuing years.
I've always tended to pay more attention to a Reg article if it had Mr. Orlowski's or the late and sorely missed Mr. Haines' names under the headline - what am I going to do now... read everything???? *Geez*!
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Thursday 9th May 2019 13:44 GMT EvilGardenGnome
Cheers
There's much to be said about someone who speaks their mind. There is more to be said for those that actually think about it first.
Can't say I've always agreed with you, but I've always been able to see your reason and point. That, sir, deserves more than a few tips of the elbow.
Sláinte.
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Thursday 9th May 2019 15:32 GMT Big_Boomer
Damnit!! After BOFH yours were my favourite articles. A chance to read someone else's disillusioned views on this particular frame of reality. Yes, you will be missed. If you are writing books or larger pieces, make sure to get El Reg to mention them so I can get a copy. I would follow, but I don't do Twatter and LinkedIn seems to be turning into just another data mining exercise. All the best and Keep On Snarking
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Thursday 9th May 2019 21:33 GMT Michael Jarve
Well done!
Andrew, you've been here since I started visiting the site, like a regular at the local, and I'm going to miss seeing you. I've enjoyed your writings and musings over the years, as well as your well-informed opinion pieces (which I did not always agree with, though I could not argue that they were poorly written- just that the conclusions didn't always mesh with my own, given the facts). My hat off to you for your work and dedication to critical and timely journalism, and not being the least bit timid about calling a spade a spade (as many of The Register's contributors have also done).
I now wonder who will feature as El Reg's senior curmudgeon, as they are some large shoes to fill. One of my other favorite (print) publications, Stereophile, is also transitioning to a new generation, although John Atkinson is staying on as a technical editor, and he's groomed his replacement for some time. I wonder if Andrew has done the same, finding another writer of wry wit, with a hard-nose and critical eye to follow in his footsteps.
All the same, I wish you the best on your future, and the gods bless whoever takes over as the Reg's voice.
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Thursday 9th May 2019 22:59 GMT The Nazz
A distant relative?
Thanks for all your articles Mr O. and good luck and fortune elsewhere.
I noted recently that the writing credits for some of Bobby Vee's early 1960's songs is given as Anne Orlowski ( which i believe to be Gene Pitney using his mother's maiden name).
Not the most common surname and given that you're particularly strong on copyrights i did wonder** if you had an extra interest in that, being a relative of said Anne and Gene. Or just a coincidence?
** even more so now you've written that you started in the San Francisco office.
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Friday 10th May 2019 13:32 GMT anoco
You always made me think...
...once I finished the first paragraph, "Wait, is this another Orlowsky piece?"
Then I continued thinking, "What is wrong with this guy?", "Did the forceps pinch an important part of his brain?", "Is he a Russian troll?", "How can he be so smart and so dumb at the same time?", "Is the Reg keeping him here to say they're diverse?", "What is wrong with this guy?", "Doesn't he know that he acts like click bait in this site?", "He writes so well, why is he writing to the wrong audience?", "Does he enjoy pissing people off?", "Wow, I agreed with him once!!!", "What's wrong with this guy?".
Well, I enjoyed your articles as much as walking on a rocky road with no shoes. I can't say I'll miss your opinion, but I wish you good luck with your life transition. Maybe now is the time to take some Lysergics, and hope to re-wire that part damaged by the forceps. Or take the red pill and start writing for the good side.
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Sunday 2nd January 2022 18:22 GMT Tom Paine
Thanks
...for forcing me to go read the actual science of climatology so that I /knew/ the denialist BS was BS, rather than merely strongly suspecting it.
I stopped reading El Reg for, what, 5? 6? years because it was so enraging. Delighted to find the new-old-Reg doesn't make me want to take bite out of my coffee mug any more.
PS ...but bring back the "Integrity? We've heard of it" and "YOUR PC is broken and I'VE got a problem?" schwag!
Biting the hand that feeds IT
