Matt Mullenweg started open source blogging software platform, WordPress (along with a bunch of very smart guys) ten years ago today. I switched to WordPress exactly a year later in May 2004 and have been on the WordPress platform ever since. A lot has happened in those ten years. We both quit our jobs and we both started companies (that were both seed funded by the same investors.) And though there is big difference in our ages, we have become close friends.

When Matt first moved to San Francisco to work for C/net, his mom made me promise that I will look out for him. I don’t think I need to do that anymore! It is wonderful to see him transform from a shy gangly youngster from Texas into a confident, articulate and thoughtful leader of the open web publishing movement. Congrats Matt, Toni and thousands of others who make WordPress happen. As someone who makes his living from blogging, I owe you guys big time for making the software that makes it happen. Just like I owe a debt of gratitude to others before Matt and his crew.