I read that WordPress, the software that I use to make Letters Blogatory, is turning twenty this month. I’ve been using WordPress since 2011, and I want to take the occasion of the anniversary to give a shout-out to the many people who contribute their time to developing and maintaining the software. If you think about it, it’s amazing that this software, which empowered me to write for the world (or at least the really small corner of the world that cares about international judicial assistance and my other geeky interests), and that has played a big role in the path my professional career has taken, is absolutely free. The same is true for all the software that underlies it. Once you pay the nominal cost of renting a virtual server and registering a domain name, you can be your own publisher. Okay, the idea of “blogging” has a very 2000s air, but the idea of being able to write and publish what you want, without asking anyone’s permission, so that anyone with access to a computer, anywhere in the world, can read it, is still immensely appealing.