This will be my last column as editor-in-chief of LinuxWorld Magazine. It's been a lot of fun and a great ride, but I guess all good things must come to an end.

It doesn't seem that long ago when I was working with the folks at SYS-CON Media to launch this magazine and get things off the ground. We worked for six months before we put out the first issue. That was over a year ago and we've put out over a dozen issues since then. We've built a great team of editors, assembled a great group of writers, and worked with some of the best layout and graphics people that SYS-CON has. We've won awards, published some great material, and, best of all, we had a lot of fun along the way.

I think the high point for me was attending the Public Relations Society of America's annual conference in Philadelphia with Dee-Ann LeBlanc to accept the 2003 Award for Excellence in Technology Journalism. Over 100 articles were entered and Dee-Ann won for an article that was published here in LinuxWorld Magazine (see www.prsa.org/_News/press/pr050304.asp). Sitting in the audience at their annual meeting and seeing Dee-Ann go up and accept the award was great.

Dee-Ann's winning article was about how the Linux Kernel team worked together. The premise of the article was that they shared a common set of values that defined the way they worked together. It was a great article and it deserved to win. Looking back, I think that the same ideas in that article really apply to how we've tried to run the magazine. We've done our best to build a team of people and authors who all share the same ideas of what's important about Linux and open source.

That means we all believe our readers want useful, practical information about Linux and open source. We all want to make the magazine readable for people who are new to Linux, but also make it interesting for the old-time hackers (like most of the editors) who have been around Linux for a long time. We all want to expose people to new ideas and applications and make sure they understand the amazing value that Linux delivers. We want every one else to get as excited as we do!

Before I go, there are a few people I need to thank. First, I need to say thanks to all the authors who have contributed to making the magazine what it's become today. I also need to say thanks to our International Advisory Board - these people have done a great deal to help form the ideas behind the magazine. It's been great working with them all. All the folks at SYS-CON Media have been a dream to work with as well.

The editorial team behind the magazine has been amazing to work with too. They're an amazing group and the smartest bunch of people I've had a chance to work with. They also have high journalistic standards and I think that's shown itself in how we've put things together.

The new editor-in-chief of LinuxWorld Magazine will be Mark Hinkle. Regular readers know Mark from his ongoing Dr. Migration column. Mark was the very first member of the editorial team after myself, so it's fitting that he's able to step in and take my place now that I'm moving on.

Not that I'll be "moving on" very far. I'll be staying on with the magazine as open source editor, which will allow me to focus on an area that I think is really interesting while giving me a break from the responsibilities of being editor-in-chief.

Finally, I need to thank you, our readers. You've stuck by us and supported us and you've voted with your dollars to help make us successful. In the end, you're what's made it all worthwhile. Thanks again, and keep on reading!