Angels from the Linux Community in 2008

I'm back after a pretty long vacation but before I get the ball rolling for this year, I'd like to start by expressing my gratitude to people who made the previous year a great one as I entered the world of blogging.

It's been quite a safe & fun-filled ride so far, and I have the following top 10 individuals/sites to thank for:

1. Linux Today - This blog's primary source of traffic. I never fail to get at least a thousand visitors from that site whenever I publish an article that is link-posted there.
   
2. Susan Linton of tuxmachines.org - She's the one most responsible for making me believe that this blog has what it takes to generate traffic. When she first link-posted one of my articles in her Today's Leftovers section, my one day traffic jumped from a high of 10 to almost 200. Without her, I would never have been motivated to post more articles.
   
3. Jun Auza of Tech Source from Bohol - Here's a guy who continues to influence me with the type of articles that I post. Even before he asked me to guest post on his site, I already frequented Tech Source because of his articles. For the masses to take interest in Linux, it has to be presented to them as an OS that can be fun and down-to-earth and not one reserved for geeks, and Jun can show you how it is done if you drop by his site.
   
4. linux.com - Definitely a tough nut to crack as I believe I've only been link-posted there once. But when they did, this blog also got some respectable traffic. I do hope I'd be able to write more articles that would qualify for link-posts there.
   
5. http://mylro.org - Here's a Romanian site that link-posted to me at least once, driving in some Romanian visitors into my blog. They were very accommodating and prompt to respond when I inquired on the possibility of being link-posted again. This is a non-English speaking site, so be ready with your online translator before you click on that link.
   
6. http://www.opennet.ru - Still another non-English speaking open-source site that link-posted to one of my articles.
   
7. java.blogs - The only java connection I have and has been giving me a steady supply of traffic. I'm hoping to increase my Java connections this year but I guess I have to up my Java postings first.
   
8. Amiya Sarkar of Physiology Physics Woven Fine who gave this site its first ever inbound link, and I didn't even have to ask him for it. This blog was supposed to discuss Linux, Java and Physics as is evident in my first few posts. After having read more about blogging I realized the importance of narrowing down my niche. As such, I plan to eventually launch a separate blog for my Physics posts. And yes, Amiya, I'll still continue to link to your site there.
   
9. Google for starting the year by finally giving Steaming Open Cup a PR 3.
10. All those who have visited this blog at least once and those who continue to drop by.
    

I guess that wraps up my first post for the year. May we all have a GREAT YEAR AHEAD OF US!