John C. Dvorak, Veteran Tech Journalist and ‘No Agenda’ Podcaster, Dies at 80

The Hollywood Reporter ^ | July 27, 2026 | Mike Barnes

[TheDon]

John C. Dvorak, the longtime technology journalist, cultural commentator and co-host of the No Agenda podcast, died unexpectedly on July 20 in Albany, California, a family spokesperson told The Hollywood Reporter.

Dvorak also wrote the influential , long-running column Inside Track for PC Magazine, was a contributor to the 1995-99 CNET Central series, hosted radio shows including NPR’s Technically Speaking and authored more than a dozen books, ranging from tech history titles to “how to” guides.

He and Adam Curry hosted the No Agenda podcast since its October 2007 debut. An episode last week — No. 1,888 — celebrated his legacy with stories and anecdotes from his family and friends.

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[TheDon]

Sad days. RIP JCD.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

I remember reading him in InfoWorld back in the 80s. Quite the career he fashioned for himself (on Wiki).

[Chickensoup]

Yep he was the first column to turn to.

[moviefan8]

RIP Dvorak.

Used to listen to his radio show (Dvorak on Computers?) and Leo Laporte’s computer shows ages ago. It was hit and miss for because of when they airing. Kim Kommando’s show wasn’t a must listen show.

[Dr. Sivana]

I remember reading him in InfoWorld back in the 80s. Quite the career he fashioned for himself

I remember the references to his home (Chaos Manor) and an endless line of workstations all named "Cheetah".

He was made out to be a contrarian, but he really wasn't.

His inforworld teammate Don Crabb worked a few feet from me when I was Usite Computer Center at U of Chicago. He was a very large man. Died too young.

I also was in a pro-life rescue in Chicago with Hiawatha Bray. (IT writer Boston Globe?) He was hilarious. And yes, that is his real name.

[ConservativeMind]

I always first turned to his column in InfoWorld issues.

Those were great times.

RIP.

[ConservativeMind]

Chaos Manor was not John. It was the writer Jerry Pournelle.

https://www.jerrypournelle.com/

[meatloaf]

I remember reading his column on the Clary UPS that stopped a lightening strike from damaging his computers when everything else plugged into an outlet was toast.

Back then they sold retail units including the Zenith which was rebranded. Now they sell critical use only.

Guess what’s under my desk.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

Wasn’t “Chaos Manor” Jerry Pournelle?

It’s interesting to think back to that era 40 years ago and how we devoured Byte Magazine, ComputerWorld, InfoWorld, MacWorld.

The closest today is reading about AI developments, but it’s more abstract and farther removed than the day-to-day usage of the early PCs, peripherals and networks.

[Poser]

I met him in Boston back in the PC Mag days. Smart fellow. RIP.

[thegagline]

I have been consistently listening to the podcast he co-hosted, The No Agenda Show, since 2008. In the morning to you John…

[FrankRizzo890]

I have a personal story about him. I’ve been against the bad forms of copy protection on PC software since the beginning. I read John’s column in PC Magazine where he advocates for copy protection in whatever form. A few months later I go to a computer show in San Fran and run into him. I say “I disagreed with your column on copy protection”. His response: “What column on copy protection?” I tell him “The one in PC Magazine from a couple of months ago”. “Huh. What did I say about it?” I explained what the column said and he looks confused. “I don’t like copy protection. I think it only hurts the users and is a mild speed-bump for the pirates”.

So, we agreed. And yet “he” had written a column 2 months before taking the other side of the issue.

Then, one of his guys shows up and starts telling John about something he saw in one of the other halls. John seemed to have no idea what this guy was talking about, so the guy gave him a full technical breakdown. John just nodded. This lead me to believe that John was the NAME on the column, but that he had people write them for him.

[Chickensoup]

Could be true.

Could be weed.

[FreedomPoster]

Yep, I was an InfoWorld subscriber back in the 80s and 90s, enjoyed his columns.

[FreedomPoster]

2nd that. I was, and am, a huge Pournelle fan. I miss Jerry, and wonder what he’d think of things in the #TDS era.

[ConservativeMind]

I have many of his books and an email he sent me as a response to one I sent him.

I am most honored by that simple email. He was posting on that website, through that time.

[FreedomPoster]

Agreed. He posted two or three of my emails in Chaos Manor posts, and I was quite pleased with that.

I read all his Byte columns, all his Chaos Manor posts, and all his science fiction. If anyone reading has not read his collaborations with Larry Niven, they should. In particular The Mote in God’s Eye, an excellent first contact work.

[DouglasKC]

The guy’s name was practically a legend for us early pc enthusiast. The Dvorak kb layout was something I messed with early on.