He graduated from Mission Bay High School in 1995, enlisted in the United States Air Force in July 1995 and served for six years.

As a Foreign Service employee, he lived in The Hague, Netherlands, with his wife, Heather, and children, Samantha and Nathan.

[4][5] Smith was a leading player and member of the Council of Stellar Management in the Eve Online gaming community (as "Vile rat") and was a moderator on the Something Awful forums (as "Vilerat").

[9] On the day of his death, Smith typed a message to the director of his Eve Online gaming corporation that read, "Assuming we don't die tonight.

"[5] Spontaneous reactions from the Eve Online player base included a mass renaming of outposts throughout its universe.