It’s wild to me that I’ve had a presence on the Internet as long as I have.

A Brief History

I started my web journey back on America Online (AOL). AOL introduced a way for users to upload their own webpages called AOL Hometown. Back with whatever version of Microsoft Office I had, complete with Microsoft Frontpage, I began WYSIWYG-ing into web design.

I remember setting up a forum, a Shoutcast radio station, and even a cupholder feature where an exploit in Internet Explorer allowed a web button to open the end users’ CD-ROM tray.

Even though I didn’t have the domain name until 2001, I’ve been on the web a long time. And I’ve always had my look nook/corner carved out in it. I’m not going to say I’ve ever posted anything profound. My love of the personal web and just being goofy has shown me that I’ve learned a lot in time as things evolved, and I’m actually impressed with my younger self for taking that plunge all those years ago.

Back to Now

While this website hasn’t always been a WordPress site, it has for almost been for almost 20 years.

There has been a lot of change, and I think the last time I updated my website was in 2016.

WordPress has updated its capabilities for visual-based design without having to manage a bunch of custom CSS with Gutenberg and Full Site Editing, which basically means I’m not as limited by the template.

I’ve replicated much previous theme because I liked it, so if you’re here, and you’re like “what’s changed?”: not much.

But I have some more flexibility now, and I’ve shaved off many rough edges for some cleaner pages¹.

So if you’re here again in a long time: welcome back. Here’s to another decade on the what’s now being called the IndieWeb. I bet you’ve never even heard of this website.

1. Maybe I’ll starting writing more again? ↩