Category: Nonfiction Books

General publishing announcements

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Kansas or Minneapolis Fundraiser

My country is in trouble, and I’m just a tiny rat dude making a marginal living writing about stuff very few folks care about. Not much I can do directly.

My 1 April Kickstarter required some unusual tests, so I produced a physical artifact of interest to a certain subset of sysadmins. I have that artifact. It’s a real thing. I have to make a couple tweaks and add tidbits here and there, but the thing exists.

You want proof it’s real? Here you go!

Mildly redacted to preserve the surprise. Also, this photo is legitimately a hint.

Folks have started asking what it is. I’m not saying until the Kickstarter launches.

I am, however, auctioning off the prototype for charity.

Yes, I’m asking folks to give money for a sysadminny thing sight unseen. The money doesn’t go to me, however! I want you to support a worthy cause. I have a choice of worthy causes: supporting Minnesota folks trapped by ICE, or helping trans folks in Kansas.

What do you get?

When you send me the receipt for your donation, I will mail you the thing and send you a Kickstarter preview link. I will also include a letter declaring that your direct financial support of charity grants you moral superiority. Once the final product escapes, I’ll ship you one of those. So really, the physical good will be unique for only a few weeks.

Intangibly, though? Ah, the intangible benefits! BRAGGING RIGHTS. You’ll know what the thing is before anyone else! You’ll have grounds to call me a dumbass before anyone else! People will call me a dumbass anyway, but your comments will be evidence-based and thus folks will take you seriously.

I will pay for standard Priority Mail shipping. That’ll be three days within the US, and a couple weeks overseas. (If you’re outside the US and want fast shipping, I’ll ask that you send me a few bucks for the upgrade. Sorry, but overnight to Germany or Australia ain’t cheap.)

All I ask is that you don’t ruin the surprise for folks. If you blab, I can’t do much. Sure, I’ll never do a fundraiser like this again and I’ll call you a jerk, but that’s about it. Unless you live within wedgie distance.

I am, of course, perfectly fine if you post something like “holy crap Lucas is a jerk this thing is a total ripoff like I’ve never seen before don’t you dare go to https://mwl.io/ks and follow it you’ll only encourage his next lame travesty.”

Bid by leaving a comment on this page.

The auction runs from now until 5PM EDT on 9 March 2026. If the bidding goes nuts in the last few minutes, I’ll leave it open until it settles down. There’s no sniping this auction at the last moment, as I want bids to escalate beyond all sensible limits.

The winner gets to pick a charity off of https://www.standwithminnesota.com/ and $a_Kansas_trans_charity_I’m_picking_with_the_help_of_folks_on_the_fediverse and donate their bid. Send me the receipt and I’ll send you the thing. I want you to be able to enjoy knowing the secret for as long as possible, so I’ll ship it ASAP.

Bid early! Bid often! Bid to be the first one disappointed!

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“OpenZFS Mastery” device names options

The original FreeBSD Mastery: ZFS books recommended managing disks by labels based on serial number.

  pool: vm
 state: ONLINE
config:

	NAME                   STATE     READ WRITE CKSUM
	vm                     ONLINE       0     0     0
	  gpt/WD-WCC4N0JSJDKF  ONLINE       0     0     0
	  gpt/WD-WMC4N0M8NRXM  ONLINE       0     0     0

errors: No known data errors

I do this on hosts with multiple storage devices. It’s great for reality, with copy-and-paste terminals. It’s terrible for an educational book. The brain cannot absorb this easily. I see two ways around this. There’s the method used in the original books:

  pool: compost
 state: ONLINE
  scan: none requested
config:

NAME       STATE READ WRITE CKSUM
compost    ONLINE   0     0     0
gpt/zfs0   ONLINE   0     0     0
gpt/zfs1   ONLINE   0     0     0

Easy to understand. A terrible example. Readers of the first book did this, despite the copious warnings not to.

It was suggested that I could use truncated fake serial numbers from different manufacturers.

  pool: vm
 state: ONLINE
config:

	NAME             STATE     READ WRITE CKSUM
	vm               ONLINE       0     0     0
	  gpt/WD-WCC4N0  ONLINE       0     0     0
	  gpt/SEA-4N0M8  ONLINE       0     0     0
	  gpt/TOSH-9262  ONLINE       0     0     0
	  gpt/NCC-1701A  ONLINE       0     0     0

errors: No known data errors

This is obviously fake. It also obviously represents serial numbers.

So, the question for my nonfiction readers is: how does the latter example stick in your brain? Is it not only readable but absorbable?

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“Networking for System Administrators, 2nd ed” is out, except on Amazon’s Kindle store

The headline says most of it, but:

The new edition of Networking for System Administrators is out. Most stores should have it now. Apple is being a pain, but that’s pretty usual. I’ll fill in missing stores over the next few days, as the databases finish churning.

You might notice that it’s not in Amazon’s Kindle store. Why is that?

Oh, wait. Let me put that in SEO format.

Why is Networking for System Administrators not in Amazon’s Kindle Store?

There. That’ll do. The short answer is for the same reasons that Run Your Own Mail Server and OpenBSD Mastery: Filesystems aren’t, but on the off chance a search engine actually brings someone here, I’ll spell it out.

You can get Kindle-friendly versions of N4SA2e from my store or Gumroad. You can get a Kindle-friendly ebook from any number of other retailers, but while they’re all supposed to be DRM-free I can’t advise on prying the file out of another vendor’s ecosystem. The one place you cannot buy it for Kindle is Amazon’s Kindle bookstore.

TLDR: Amazon pays roughly 70% of retail price for books priced up to $9.99, and 35% for books $10 and over. Amazon is the only retailer that does this. Other retailers, I make somewhere around 65%-70% no matter the retail price. Everything follows from that math, but if you want the details read on.

According to economists, prices have gone up about 40% since I started releasing the Mastery books. According to my wallet, not so much. In 2012 my wife and I could get an inexpensive lunch for $10. Today, no. But let’s go with the official numbers. Just as “dime novels” now cost $10, I must raise prices. While book pricing is hotly debated, $12.99 is a reasonable price for a short tech book like Networking for System Administrators. (If I followed inflation I would charge $13.99, but I’m an idiot.)

If I charge $9.99 for this ebook, I make about $7.

If I charge $12.99 for the ebook, I make about $9 everywhere but Amazon. At Amazon, I make $4.50. For me to make that $9 at Amazon, I must charge about $26. I’m fond of the book, but it ain’t worth that! And if I did, giving Amazon a $17 slice of every sale for no reason sticks in my craw.

Charge $26 at Amazon and $11.99 elsewhere? Amazon’s program has a Most Favored Nation clause. They can price match any other major vendor.

Will Amazon change their business because of this? No. Authors are plentiful and of low value. I am not worth Amazon’s time.

Amazon’s business model is based on squeezing prices down, and they play a long game. I expect them to ever raise that $9.99 limit. A novel might sell tens or hundreds of thousands of copies. If I’m lucky, a book like Networking for System Administrators might sell eight thousand over the next ten years. The few extra bucks I’ll make by raising prices are important. That’s also why I’ve focused so hard on disintermediation through my Patronizers, sponsorships, and Kickstarter.

I have expected this for years. I do not expect to publish future Mastery books on Amazon’s Kindle store, unless by some chance I write another very short one.

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“OpenZFS Mastery” sponsorships now open

I’ve shipped all the Networking for System Administrators, 2nd ed sponsor gifts. I’m getting copies for the Kickstarter backers out the door.

By popular demand, I’m opening sponsorships on OpenZFS Mastery, by myself and Allan Jude.

Epub sponsors get their names in the epub/mobi versions of the book. They will receive a free copy of the completed ebook in epub and a PDF of the print version, all DRM-free, once we finish writing it.

Print sponsors get their names in the ebook and print version of the book, the DRM-free ebook, and a physical gift that might or might not be the book. The gift will be personalized. Please provide a shipping address and a phone number that can receive SMS! My shippers are asking for phone numbers even in the US, so I’m asking you.

Once the book exists there will also be a Kickstarter, but that will act more as a pre-order. Sponsors support me as I write and test the manuscript. The print sponsorship (or Patronizing) will also be the only way to get a personalized gift mailed to you.

Here’s the book description.

OpenZFS Mastery

by Michael W Lucas and Allan Jude

Data Storage for the 21st Century

ZFS, the fast, flexible, self-healing filesystem, revolutionized data storage. Leveraging ZFS changes everything about managing Unix-like systems.

“Thanks for making ZFS knowable by everyone” — Matt Ahrens, ZFS co-creator

“Thanks for doing this… now I don’t have to” — Jeff Bonwick, ZFS co-creator

With OpenZFS Mastery you’ll learn to:

  • select hardware for ZFS systems
  • arrange your storage for optimal performance
  • configure datasets that match your enterprise’s needs
  • repair and monitor storage pools
  • expand your storage
  • use compression to enhance performance
  • determine if deduplication is right for your data
  • understand how copy-on-write changes everything
  • snapshot filesystem
  • automatically rotate snapshots
  • clone filesystems
  • optimize how ZFS uses and manages space
  • Use boot environments to make the riskiest sysadmin tasks safe
  • Delegate filesystem privileges to users
  • Delegate ZFS datasets to containers
  • Quickly and efficiently replicate data between machines
  • split layers off of mirrors
  • optimize ZFS block storage
  • handle large storage arrays
  • select caching strategies to improve performance
  • manage next-generation storage hardware
  • identify and remove bottlenecks
  • build screaming fast database storage
  • dive deep into pools, metaslabs, and more!

Whether you manage a single small server or multinational data centers, OpenZFS Mastery will simplify your life.

What’s Changed?

This might be considered a second edition of FreeBSD Mastery: ZFS and FM: Advanced ZFS, so: what’s different.

The old stuff still works, but OpenZFS has grown many features in the last ten years. The OpenZFS project now considers Linux a tier-one platform. RaidZ arrays can be expanded. ZFS rewrite. Rebalancing arrays. Native encryption. Compressed ARC. Deduplication is less useless. Even compression has changed. Gobs of stuff.

This edition will be published as a single volume.

Why Sponsor?

It’s a terrible deal, but people find reasons.

I’m hoping to get this book done in just a few months. Sponsor while you can.

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“Networking for System Administrators, 2nd ed” is arriving

The printer notified me that they’ve shipped the Patronizer and signable Kickstarter copies of Networking for System Administrators, 2nd ed to me. UPS hasn’t received them yet, but tracking numbers exist. I’ve added it to my web site, the front page gallery, and–of course–the SNMP MIB.

I’ve put the ebook, paperback, and hardcover up in my store. If you order print in the next few weeks, it should arrive before the December Solstice Holiday Of Your Choice.

It releases to retail channels 1 December 2025. While Kindle versions will be available from many retailers, it won’t be in Amazon’s Kindle store for the same reasons as my last couple of tech books (RYOMS and OMF). So you might as well buy it from me.

If you are getting a print book from me as either as a Patronizer or sponsor: be dang sure I have your address and SMS-capable phone number. Email me with any corrections or updates.

If you backed the Kickstarter for print: 17 of you still owe me current shipping addresses and SMS-capable phone number. Please fill out your survey.

I will spend Wednesday prepping shipping labels so that I can slam the books out assembly-line style. After that, I’ll check for stragglers and ship every couple of weeks.

Thanks to all of you for your support! I’m looking forward to getting this book into your hands.

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N4SA2e Fulfillment Status

The N4SA2e production process is proceeding apace.

The print books are finalized. Books for me to sign have been ordered. The printer tells me that they’ll ship to me in about 10 days.

When the printer tells me they’ve shipped, I will prepare shipping labels for Patronizers, sponsors, and Kickstarter backers. You getting an email with a tracking number doesn’t mean your book has shipped; it means I am awaiting your book. When the books arrive, the assembly line kicks in and I start packing.

Next week, I order drop shipments for Kickstarter backers. This means your survey answers will be finalized. Hopefully few of you have moved unexpectedly in the last few weeks. Remember, drop shipments do not get tracking numbers. (See “Fulfillment” at https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/mwlucas/networking-for-system-administrators-2nd-edition/ .)

Some of you sent corrections to the ebook. Those corrections have been uploaded.

Ebooks are fulfilled. I still have to write the stretch goal advice column. It’ll be exclusive to my backers and supporters, at least until the 10-year collection comes out.

Oh, and: the special edition looks pretty decent. I am pleased with it.

Once I ship the books, I will open sponsorships on OpenZFS Mastery.

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N4SA2e Print Sponsor Address Check

Anywhere from 1%-5% of sponsors move before I ship print sponsor gifts. (Yes, they’re gifts, not preorders. Because I send sponsors things.) In the past, I’ve eaten the cost of reshipping these. With hundreds of print sponsors, that small error rate becomes an expensive pile.

So I went into my store system, extracted all the sponsor orders on “Networking for System Administrators, 2nd edition,” and converted them to a GoShippo postage ordering spreadsheet so I’m all set to order postage for sponsor gifts. I then wrote a script to extract sponsor addresses from the file and email them to request address verification and a shipping phone number.1

If you’re a print sponsor of this book, you should have an email requesting you verify your address and phone number. If address and phone number are correct, ignore the mail. If something is wrong or missing, please reply with corrections. Yes, some folks will miss the verification. I’ll wind up eating some reshipping cost. But with your help it’ll be less than otherwise–and you’ll get your books earlier!

If you didn’t get the email, you probably also didn’t get the email with the ebook links. Email me with your order number and I’ll try again.

I’m also amused to note that for the first time since I started offering book sponsorships, several print sponsors left the United States. I charge extra shipping for overseas sponsors. I’m not doing chasing people for extra, though. Those folks have my sympathy, envy, and gratitude.

I probably need to set a “so you fled the US” policy for future sponsorships, though.

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“Networking for System Administrators” Kickstarter closing soon

If you back the campaign, you also get copies of FreeBSD Mastery: ZFS and SSH Mastery.

I wouldn’t be shocked to break the $ git commit murder stretch goal.

I would be surprised to break the Advanced ZFS goal.

Plus there’s the online “launch party,” which is a highfalutin’ way to say “I’ll open a Zoom and we can hang out for an hour.”

This is also your last chance to get the backers-only special edition. It will never be commercially available. I’ll have a few extra to solve fulfillment problems, yes. They’ll go up for charity auctions.

I’m biased, so here’s Ray with an outside opinion.

Listen to the network manager. Back this book.

Thank you.