Editing Patrick Volkerding (section)

==Slackware Linux==
Michael Johnston of Morse Telecommunications paid Volkerding $1 per copy sold. After that six-month contract, Robert Bruce of [[Walnut Creek CDROM]] began publishing Slackware as a CD-ROM set. Robert Bruce later became Volkerding's partner in ''Slackware Linux, Inc.'' with Volkerding owning a non-controlling, minority, 40% share.<ref name="smh-2002-10-04">
{{cite news |title=The Linux distribution that's always in the black |url=https://www.smh.com.au/technology/the-linux-distribution-thats-always-in-the-black-20021004-gdfp05.html |access-date=20 July 2021 |work=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]] |date=4 October 2002 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181124010150/https://www.smh.com.au/technology/the-linux-distribution-thats-always-in-the-black-20021004-gdfp05.html |archive-date=2018-11-24 |language=en |quote=Slackware started in early 1993, but it wasn't until the middle of 1994 that I was contacted by Michael Johnston of Morse Telecommunications and asked if I was interested in having them publish Slackware commercially...Since then, Slackware has always made enough money through publishing arrangements to be my full time job. I didn't stay with Morse long because they were only giving me $US1 per copy sold. When the initial six-month agreement expired, I moved on to Walnut Creek CDROM since they were better established and were willing to give Slackware a fair share of the profits. Their founder, Robert Bruce, is my current partner in Slackware Linux, Inc.}}
</ref> Due to underpayment, Patrick Volkerding, "told them to take it down or I'd suspend the DNS for the Slackware store".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://store.slackware.com/cgi-bin/store/
 |title=Slackware Linux |website=store.slackware.com |access-date=12 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190314103755/http://store.slackware.com/cgi-bin/store/
 |archive-date=14 March 2019 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="linuxquestions-4175634729">
{{cite web |title=[SOLVED] Donating to Slackware |url=https://www.linuxquestions.org/questions/slackware-14/donating-to-slackware-4175634729/#post5882751 |website=LinuxQuestions.org |access-date=20 July 2021  |archive-date=April 7, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190407050827/https://www.linuxquestions.org/questions/slackware-14/donating-to-slackware-4175634729/#post5882751 |url-status=live |language=en}}
</ref><ref>
{{cite news |author1=jake |title=Financial woes for Slackware's Patrick Volkerding |url=https://lwn.net/Articles/761004/ |access-date=20 July 2021 |work=[[LWN.net]] |quote=Patrick Volkerding, who is the founder and benevolent dictator for life of the Slackware Linux distribution, posted a note at LinuxQuestions.org detailing some financial problems. It appears they mostly stem from a deal that he made with the Slackware Store that has gone badly awry....Note that there is at least one person out there soliciting Bitcoin who is not affiliated with Volkerding, in what looks like a scam of some sort; it is particularly sad because that is similar to what he alleges has happened with Slackware Store as well.}}
</ref><ref name="itwire">
{{cite news |last1=Varghese |first1=Sam |title=Slackware creator in strife, claims store has not paid him |url=https://www.itwire.com/open-source/83757-slackware-creator-in-strife,-claims-store-has-not-paid-him.html |access-date=20 July 2021 |work=iTWire |date=25 July 2018 |language=en-gb |quote=Volkerding said he had discovered how bad things were in 2017 when he managed to get some numbers out of the people running the store.  "I thought the sales were just that bad, and was really rather depressed about it. Another side note – the ownership of the 60% portion of the store changed hands behind my back. Nobody thought they needed to tell me about this. At that point I'd say things got considerably worse for me."  The commercialisation of Slackware was initially undertaken with Michael Johnston of Morse Telecommunications in 1994. After that, Volkerding moved to a venture with the founder of Walnut Creek CDROM, Robert Bruce.  Later, Volkerding teamed up with Bruce to set up a Slackware company. iTWire has written to the Slackware store, seeking comment on Volkerding's claims.}}
</ref><ref>
{{cite news |last1=Baader |first1=Hans-Joachim |title=Patrick Volkerding in finanziellen Schwierigkeiten |url=https://www.pro-linux.de/news/1/26132/patrick-volkerding-in-finanziellen-schwierigkeiten.html |access-date=20 July 2021 |work=Pro-Linux |language=de}}
</ref><ref>
{{cite news |last1=Schürmann |first1=Tim |title=Geldnöte: Slackware-Erfinder Patrick Volkerding um Einnahmen betrogen |url=https://www.linux-magazin.de/news/geldnoete-slackware-erfinder-patrick-volkerding-um-einnahmen-betrogen/ |access-date=20 July 2021 |work=Linux-Magazin |date=27 July 2018 |language=de-DE}}
</ref><ref name="distrowatch-8743">
{{cite news |title=Slackware's finances |url=https://distrowatch.com/dwres.php?resource=showheadline&story=6489 |access-date=20 July 2021 |work=[[DistroWatch]] |date=2018-07-25}}
</ref><ref>
{{cite news |title=Slackware seeks support through Patreon |url=https://distrowatch.com/dwres.php?resource=showheadline&story=8743 |access-date=20 July 2021 |work=[[DistroWatch]] |date=2019-08-14}}
</ref>

[[Walnut Creek CDROM]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.polaris.uwaterloo.ca/FreeBSD/crl_networ_1.html|title=Yahoo - CRL Network Services Carries the Traffic of the Record-Breaking Walnut Creek CDROM FTP Site}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.softwaremarketingresource.com/article47.html|title=Software Download Deals|access-date=2021-07-21|archive-date=2021-07-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210721045700/http://www.softwaremarketingresource.com/article47.html|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | url=https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/01/7b/fe/cf067bc70313cc/US7991347.pdf | title=Patent No.: US 7,991,347 B1 - System and method for accessing set of digital data at a remote site | date=2011-08-02 | publisher=United States Patent}}</ref> 60% owner of ''Slackware Linux, Inc.'', was sold to [[Berkeley Software Design|BSDi]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://alllinuxdevices.com/news_story.php3?ltsn=2001-04-04-002-03-NW-BU|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010408165915/http://alllinuxdevices.com/news_story.php3?ltsn=2001-04-04-002-03-NW-BU|archive-date=2001-04-08|title=Home}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | url=https://media.lasvegassun.com/media/pdfs/blogs/documents/2011/09/07/emaillinkpatent.pdf | title=Patent No.: US 7,840,176 B2 - Information Distribution and Processing System | date=2010-11-23}}</ref> and later to [[Wind River Systems]].<ref name="itwire"/><ref name="smh-2002-10-04"/>

Chris Lumens and others worked for Slackware, but due to underpayment, these people lost their jobs.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.freebsdmall.com/cgi-bin/fm/history.html|title=Company History}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://linuxtoday.com/news_story.php3?ltsn=2001-04-04-019-20-NW-SL-BD |title=Linux Today - UPDATED: AllLinuxDevices: BSDi Acquired by Embedded Computing Firm Wind River |website=linuxtoday.com |access-date=12 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050103144527/http://linuxtoday.com/news_story.php3?ltsn=2001-04-04-019-20-NW-SL-BD |archive-date=3 January 2005 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://linuxtoday.com/infrastructure/2001041701420NWSL |title=Linux Today - Slackware Commercial Distribution Left in Doubt as Developers Are Laid off |website=linuxtoday.com |access-date=12 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050105142440/http://linuxtoday.com/infrastructure/2001041701420NWSL |archive-date=5 January 2005 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="itwire"/><ref name="linuxquestions-4175634729"/><ref name="distrowatch-8743"/>

For the last several years,{{when|date=July 2018}} Volkerding has managed Slackware with the help of many volunteers and testers.