Edit, very important!: I made an idiotic mistake and the headline makes it look like this happened because of Opera Software. The truth is that I have a genetic condition and the stroke happened by chance at the time I was hired at Opera. The following problems were caused by further progression of the illness which tends to elaborate in your mid-20s, just when I was hired at Opera. Before this happened, it was unknown to me that I had this condition.
First of all: Everything I say is my own opinion and do not reflect on Opera Software.
June 2007 I was hired by Opera Software after I've had two summer internships with them during my studies. The 10th of August 2007 I had a TIA, what is also referred to as a mini-stroke right after work on a Friday, while us colleagues we were having some beers. I was taken to the hospital where I stayed four weeks. Anne Christiansen, being a sort of "well being manager" for the employees, visited me often during this time, bringing stuff I wanted, flowers, colored balloons with get well messages on them, etc. I had to admit it really spruced the bland surroundings up. During this time, Jon S. von Tetzchner lent me a 3G modem since there was no Wifi at the hospital (I had to promise I wouldn't do any work with it).
It was at this time I started using Reddit after a colleague of mine made a post about me there, linking to a comment I made on Slashdot. Reddit was probably about the size of what Voat is now at that time, and the post made it to the top of the front page. I became a Redditor since then and now I'm about to become a Voater, moving on from Reddit. Times change, but still history seems to repeat itself.
For 6 years I went with a heart that became worse and worse. I clamored onto work with a 20% position there, but the last 2 years I don't think I was even doing that. I became a "repeat offender" at the hospital, so much that the doctors told me I didn't have to go to via the emergency ward first, just go straight to the hospital since they always passed me on anyway. It was also found in 2009 that the reason for the heart disease was a rare muscle disease which weakens certain muscles. I can still walk today, but only on a flat surface since it's mostly my skeleton holding me up. I can't climb stairs and if I stumble I usually fall to the ground, where I need help getting up. I have a wheelchair that I also use, but as long as I can walk, I'll continue to do so whenever practical even if it hurts a bit. I suffer from chronic pain now and with a small limp, a cane and strong painkillers, I'm sometimes referred to as "Dr. House" by my friends :P
In April/May 2013 (I can't reveal the exact date), my phone called and it was the surgeon informing me they had a heart for me. I followed the plans I had made with my family, called my brother so he could inform the others, and then packed a bag of clothes and took with me the most important thing ever: my laptop. You might laugh, but seriously - a form of entertainment while you're going to be bound to a hospital for several months is important for your mental well being. I learned this during the interim time, since my first "visit" in 2007, I had spent over 4 months in total staying at hospitals.
I've moved back to my home town now where all of my childhood friends still live and my parents. Life is much easier here, i.e. parking is much easier than in the capital, and friends show up to help if I need anything. They are all awesome people and true friends.
Addendum: Why do I make an AMA here instead of Reddit? Because I move here for the same reason a lot of you do, I don't like the new direction Reddit is taking. Voat needs original content. I also had a brief exchange with @Atko back in march where he asked if I could hold it here, which I said yes to, so here I am holding my promise.
I'll answer questions as long as they come, apart from when I need rest, which might be a sudden hour or two pause, so don't fret. Mod verification is coming.
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[–] Gordam [S] 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
I don't have any privileged information on this bit, so I'm both free to say what I know here, but also don't take this as gospel (add to that I haven't been there for quite some time)
This was a decision made by the new management after Jon S. von Tetzchner left (he didn't leave by his own choice, by the way. It was a decision made by the board). Lars Boilesen is the new CEO and while he's a nice guy, he has a very different perspective on the business plan than Tetzchner. Opera is getting much more involved with advertising for one. They're using the knowhow of the browser and surrounding technology to support that business, for instance the compression that happens on mobile devices when you use Turbo, use some parts of the engine to read the full webpage and strip away a lot of clutter (that would be wasted bandwith). Opera also sell services to carriers, and I'm pretty sure I can't say which, but I have written code to read and summarize logs for Turbos performance for a large US carrier.