From: Robert Klemme Date: 2007-11-10T00:15:36+09:00 Subject: Re: Current Quizmaster Retiring 2007/11/9, James Edward Gray II : > When I started the Ruby Quiz project, I made some off-hand comment > along the lines of, "Surely I can keep it going for a couple of > years…" No matter how you measure, we have passed that goal. > > The Ruby Quiz has now run for over three years calendar time. If you > prefer to count quizzes released, we're ten shy of three full years > of quizzes. That's beyond anything I ever imagined. > > I cannot properly express how much I've enjoyed running the quiz. It > is, quite literally, how I learned the Ruby programming language. > Summarizing the solutions each week had me reading through countless > examples of great code where I picked up idioms, learned new > algorithms, and just generally saw what good programming looks like. > That's just what I personally got out of it. > > Externally, the quiz grew well beyond my expectations. It spawned a > book, some of the quizzes have been translated into other languages, > and I've seen it referred to in many places as a terrific source of > "Getting Started with Ruby" projects. > > I say it a lot, but I want to once again thank all who have > contributed to the quiz in any way. You have created an amazing > resource. > > If there is a downside to running a project like this, it would have > to be that it eats time. I've automated the Ruby Quiz as much as I > am able to, but it still takes several hours a week for me. That's a > combination of all that it requires: generating quiz ideas, working > with contributors to get their ideas ready, preparing a problem for > release, collecting solutions as they come in, playing with the > solutions enough that I understand them, and summarizing what I saw. > I also try to participate in the discussions. > > I've gladly maintained this continuing commitment, but I think we all > knew I couldn't keep it up forever. I'm involved in many Ruby > projects now and I would like to give some of them the time and > attention I've given to the Ruby Quiz these last three years. > > Beyond the constraints of time, I'm running out of good quiz ideas. > The well isn't bone dry just yet, but I'm sometimes scrambling to > keep the ideas flowing now. > > Given all of that, I've decided that the end of my watch over the > Ruby Quiz has come. I will run ten more quizzes, so we can say that > I covered three years no matter how the count is done. Quiz 156 will > be my last challenge. > > Don't make the mistake of thinking this means the quiz is winding > down. We're going to have some great content in our last few months, > starting with this week's problem which I think is great. We're > going out at the top of our game like all the greats projects do. > > My hope is that we'll see a new quizmaster grab the reigns and launch > Ruby Quiz 2.0. I often have to sit out problems I really want to > play in just because there isn't enough free time left for solving > after running the show, so you could count on the fact that at least > one person here would be an active contributor. Besides, if you want > to learn a whole lot of Ruby voodoo, I can assure you there's no > better way. Think it over. > > I'll close this long message now and get back to running the quiz. > Send me your great ideas for our homestretch run. > > Thanks again to all quiz fans. > > James Edward Gray II James, thank *you* for the efforts you have put into this! I am really surprised to hear that the quiz has been running for *three years* now. Since I still clearly remember the first discussions about creating this quiz this probably means I am a . Unfortunately I never managed to try to solve quizzes as much as I would have liked to. Time is tight on my side as well... Thanks again! robert -- use.inject do |as, often| as.you_can - without end