Originally published at: Take Control Author Charles Edge Dies - TidBITS
It is with heavy hearts that we share the news of the passing of Charles Edge, a prolific author, blogger, and podcaster who was one of the best-known figures in the Mac admin community.
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This is terribly sad news. Every Take Control author has enriched our lives as readers. The balance you all strike between technical detail and everyday relevance is special. I feel like I’m getting a message from a friend when I see any of your bylines. Please accept my sympathy.
Very sad, and so very young. Thoughts are with his friends and family.
Wonderful tribute Adam. Clearly a generous man with a lot to give. There’s not enough published on the history of computing, looking forward to that, hopefully the publisher stays on track.
Tonya found this screenshot from when we were editing Charles’s book—we loved the phrase “toxic hellstew” when applied to running your own mail server. We think of Charles whenever we use the term, and now so more than ever.
Charles was absolutely correct about email servers…yet, as a reader who was dumb enough to run one anyway, he was willing to answer my questions and provide me with invaluable assistance in my attempts to torture myself by so doing. From the server book and that little interaction, it was obvious that he was both funny and brilliant, and those that were close to him are going to miss him dearly.
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Oh my gosh, I just emailed him on Friday. 
Posted by Chip Person on LinkedIn
Charles Stephen Edge Jr, Age 48, of Minneapolis, MN passed away April 20, 2024 of a cerebral aneurysm. Born July 10, 1975 in Atlanta, Georgia to Stephen and Cathy Edge. Charles grew up in Dahlonega where he attended Lumpkin County High School and the University of Georgia in Athens, where he graduated in 1997 with a degree in Sociology and Computer Science and was a member of the Phi Kappa Theta fraternity. Charles was a true polymath and was a computer scientist, author, podcaster, musician and artist, making impacts wherever he bent his considerable talents. He was also a devoted son, brother, friend and, most importantly, father to his two children Kace and Violet. Anyone who met Charles knew that these two amazing humans were the center of his world.
Charles’ professional accomplishments and influence were felt around the world. He spent 15 years as the Chief Technology officer of 318 Inc. in Santa Monica and 5 years at Jamf, in Minneapolis. At the time of his death, he was the Chief Technology Officer of Bootstrappers.mn developing a new security product called Secret Chest. He was also the author of over 20 books, including the yet to be published four volume History of Computers. Charles was known throughout the computing and Apple SysAdmin community for selflessly sharing his time and expertise with friends around the world. He maintained three podcasts, including the MacAdmins Podcast and The History of Computing, and over the years spoke at many conferences including Defcon, Blackhat and MacSysAdmin. Colleagues universally recognize his generosity, good humor and incredible intellectual capacity in helping others and solving problems. Quickly writing an app, a script, or bit of code or building a website or database to solve a problem or to satisfy his own curiosity could happen at any time and you tried not to be too surprised by anything he would do. Charles acted ethically and generously with his knowledge and talents and embodied the ideal that with great power comes great responsibility.
Charles leaves a huge hole in the hearts of all who knew him, but none more than his close friends and family. He made his home in the north but went back to Georgia to spend time in Dahlonega with his father Steve and sister Nicole regularly. His devotion to the Georgia Bulldogs never flagged. He was a supportive friend and epic tabletop gamer whose adventures will always be remembered. His most important role, however, will always be that of devoted father. He was incredibly proud of his two children and would do whatever he could to spend time with them, greeting Kace with laser rifles at home or 3-D printing a dollhouse for Violet.
Charles is survived by his children Kace and Violet, father Stephen, sister Nicole Edge and many beloved extended family members and friends. Memorial gathering will be held Saturday April 27, 3-5 p.m. at Town and Country Club, 300 Mississippi River Road, Saint Paul, MN, 55104.
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