How Did It All Start?

Where It Began

My journey on the internet started about 15 years ago with a free introductory page on Tripod when I was still living in my home country. After I moved to the US, I was able to host a server at home, register a domain, and use it for personal purposes. My first page can still be found at thinkman.tripod.com — though it is somewhat broken today due to old Tripod JavaScript add-ons.

Why I Put Up a Page

I just wanted to provide information — about almost everything in and around this world, irrespective of its nature. In this Electronic Age, the person who has the most information is considered one step ahead of the other. So I thought it worthy to share what I know and float it out on the web. I hoped people would find useful things, useful links, and maybe something worth following.

My first stint here was for a communication medium that could be global and at the same time personal — effective for me to convey my messages to those who already know me, and to those who wanted to know who I am. A bit confusing, is it not? To put it plainly: I wanted a place to put my personal details for professional purposes — something anyone around the world could look at. But I quickly realised that a global communication medium deserved more than just a resume. So I decided to make myself useful to the internet family in whatever way I could. Whatever you find here is the result of that thought.

About the Nickname

When I entered the software arena I had apprehensions about whether I would survive in the field for long. But once I was in, I found the people and the broader computing community to be welcoming and friendly, and I relaxed. One of the greatest things I found was the communication medium that computers had established — something I had not felt the full extent of until I was inside it.

Once on the internet I came across IRC (Internet Relay Chat), for which I needed an effective nickname to project myself among the crowd. My first attempt — Willy — was an utter failure. Then a friend suggested I use one of my strong personality traits as a nickname. After some thought, Thinkman emerged. It stuck, and it has been my identity on the internet ever since.

A Few Good People Along the Way

None of this journey happened in isolation. Over the years — through school, college, work, and the internet — I have met some remarkable people. A few deserve a mention:

• A college friend who is one of the brightest minds I have encountered
• A friend I have known since school who followed a similar path all the way to the US
• A colleague from my early government posting who has remained a friend
• A mentor and well-wisher at a national IT body who guided me early in my career
• A colleague who introduced me to IRC and, indirectly, to this whole journey
• Friends made on chat from Malaysia, Canada, and the US — proof that the internet genuinely connects the world

To all of them — thank you for being part of the story.