The Return of the One-Armed Code Monkey

By: Ron Hall

Last week I broke my wrist. Ouch.

Funny thing, I am not for sure that it even makes the top five in "major things to hit me in the last month." Life has been crazy lately to say the least. However, God is still good and, fortunately, life (for me) should become much more normal in a couple of months. Until then I will just have to hang on.

Because of life challenges I have been a little slow lately in my blog entries and, of course, breaking the wrist has set me back an additional week. But I've now returned to the keyboard typing, actually pecking, with one hand.

One good thing about being forced to lay around for a week is that I have been able to pursue a deeper education in TYPO3. I have read several documents, watched 8+ hours of Kasper's podkasts and experimented with some new techniques. All of this has given me some new things to blog about over the next few weeks. However, the greatest thing I have gained is a deep appreciation for this powerful CMS and the fantastic community behind it.

For me, TYPO3 has become like a living, breathing thing. I know that sounds silly, but hear me out. The commercial packages I use come to me in colorful, shrink-wrapped boxes--logo-adorned but faceless. They feel mechanical and rigid.

In contrast, TYPO3 feels organic. Through Kasper's podkasts, the mailing lists, e-mail interchanges and a few face-to-face meetings, I have come to know and appreciate the people that make this system exist. They're friendly, committed to the system and create each new feature because they personally want it or need it--not because an overbearing boss has assigned it to them. This is why TYPO3 has kept that personal touch and been able to maintain a sense of community even as it has grown in complexity. That is no small thing.

Is TYPO3 and its universe often chaotic and confusing? Yes. Living, rapidly-growing things usually are, but they are also adaptable, resilient and ever-evolving into something better. I can get excited about that.

So thanks to all you who code the core, develop the extensions, monitor the mailing lists, write the documentation and squash the bugs. All who use the system are indebted to you.

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