23 Years of Glimmernet: A Quick Pause, Then Back to It
So apparently, it’s been 23 years since I started Glimmernet.
No confetti. No party. No humblebrag on LinkedIn. Just me, taking a second to look back before diving into the next client request, which will inevitably be titled something like “QUICK FIX!!!” (spoiler: it never is).
How It Actually Started
Back in 2002, I was working for a company in Greenbelt doing federal and enterprise projects. They were good people. Really good. I started picking up some small gigs on the side – with their full blessing, mind you. They gave me hardware, software, and even a few clients that didn’t quite fit their model.
Eventually, I left and thought: hey, what if I gave this full-time thing a try? Took what I learned building big, complicated systems and used it to help businesses that needed solid tech but didn’t want a 40-page proposal and a government PO to get started.
That’s how Glimmernet was born.
And to that original team in Greenbelt – seriously, thank you. You set me up well.
First Project? Couldn’t Tell You.
Someone asked me the other day what my first project was. Honestly? I have no idea. That was a dozen laptops, three offices, and a couple of server racks ago.
But I do remember building a site for a local author who wrote a children’s book about her German shepherd, Miracle Max. The book’s on Amazon now. So that one stuck.
I also remember building a membership system for a nonprofit. It had more logic and edge cases than a tax code rewrite. Around 2:00 a.m., I got bored and decided to hide the one and only Easter egg I’ve ever put in a client-facing system.
If you typed :K into your profile, El Kabong would pop up on the screen and yell “KABOOOOOONG!”
Dumb, I know. But hilarious when sleep deprived and running on fumes!
(And no, I have no idea if anyone ever found it.)
What We Actually Do (Other Than That)
We build websites. We host them. We fix the stuff that breaks. We write clean code. We secure infrastructure. We document things (yeah, we’re those people). We explain what we’re doing in plain English.
We don’t ghost clients. We don’t pretend bugs are your fault. We don’t disappear after launch.
We do get screamed at sometimes.
Once, a guy asked us to post some stolen content on his site. When we said no, he called me – on a Saturday morning – while I was standing in line at security for a Maryland basketball game. He screamed. Loud. Other people in line definitely heard and security was giving me the side-eye.
We didn’t post the content. We didn’t keep him as a client. We didn’t get sued.
And the Terps won. So, overall, great day.
The “Best Part” People Always Ask About
People love asking: What’s the best part of your job?
It’s the variety. I get to jump between industries I’d never normally be exposed to. One day it’s e-learning, the next it’s tax forms, then emergency operations or a global dance floor brand. Keeps things interesting.
The clients are what really make it fun. We work with people who are doing cool stuff. Some are wildly creative. Some are just trying to stop their inbox from imploding. But they’re all trying to move forward in their industry, doing what they love, and trying to make a difference in their world. And we get to be part of that.
That said: if you’re wondering what the most exciting thing we’ve built is… I don’t know.
Most of the time, a client brings us a “wild idea” and we’re like… yeah, that makes sense. Let’s build it.
We also have internal red-flag phrases we listen for. Like:
- “You know what would be cool?” = Might be cool. Definitely will be complex.
- “Just a quick change” = Never is.
- “This is probably really complicated and expensive” = It’ll take five minutes.
Clients don’t always know what’s hard or easy – and honestly, that’s fine. It’s part of the job. We joke about it, but at the end of the day, we’re here to get it done and make it feel easy for you.
We Don’t Do Trophies
No awards. No pay-to-play agency rankings. Never spent a dime applying for one of those made-up internet badges.
Our version of a win?
“Hey! We launched! No surprises, no stress. Everything just worked. Thanks – seriously.”
That. Right there. That’s why we do this.
Glimmernet 2002
- Notepad and HTML
- Nutscrape Navigator
- Floppy disks
- One screen resolution on a monitor the size of a Winnebago
- Hope the AC stayed on in the server closet, or the hardware would set itself on fire
Glimmernet 2025
- Content Management Systems
- Responsive design
- Remote management tools
- Multiple device testing
- Fixing client sites from a moving train going 150 MPH with just a cell phone
We’ve upgraded a little.
Why Glimmernet Still Works
We didn’t chase every trend. We didn’t flame out. We didn’t scale so fast we lost track of the work.
We stayed lean. We built smart. We applied enterprise-level practices to small business problems.
Clients don’t always see everything we do – the backups, the security, the cleanup behind the scenes. But they feel the difference.
What We’ve Been Up To Lately
These days we mostly focus on:
- Custom web design and dev
- Managed WordPress hosting
- App development
- Accessibility and compliance
- Monitoring and security
Stuff in the works:
- UptimeVision – So we know before you do when your site goes down or your SSL cert is about to die.
- Glimmernet Links – Smart QR codes, minus the creepy tracking.
- Referral Program – May or may not launch today, depending on how this afternoon goes.
Year 24 and Beyond
No vision statement.
No hype.
No promises to become a synergistic, AI-powered disruptor of the next-gen digital transformation economy, whatever that means.
None of that crap.
Just more of what we’ve always done:
Good work. Good people. Solving real problems.
Thanks to everyone who’s been part of the ride – clients, contractors, late-night emailers, referral champions, all of you.
Here’s to what’s next.
Still need help? Want to refer a friend? Just wondering if we’re still around? We are. glimmernet.com Same as always.
We’ve upgraded a little.
0 Comments