Why Have a Web Site in 2019?

- Adam, why on earth do you have a website? Wait... Is this a - blog? It's 2019, why don't you just use Facebook?! -

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- I've wanted to have my own website for a long time mostly because I like - playing with technology. I think it's cool that I can make a few files - on a computer in my closet available for the entire world to see. The - web has become a near-necessity in our daily lives and it's only been - around for a couple of decades. That has always fascinated me enough to - drive me to see if I can do it on my own. I started self-hosting my own - web server about a year ago now and it's been an awesome study in the - way all of the tech we use on the web works. -

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- A written website is also a good way to keep up on my writing skills. - I've graduated college and won't be writing essays for the foreseeable - eternity. Which is fine except that I have no reason to write creatively - or formally anymore. Having this site encourages me to continue turning - thoughts into words, even though it's more casual than a term paper. -

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- This extends into the professionalism of a personal website. Normally - you can't point your employer towards your Twitter profile as the - distillation of your online footprint. Having a website, especially one - that separates professional and personal interests, is ten times better - than a resume, especially in the world of technology. It lets you tell - people exactly who you are and what you do, without forcing them to - navigate through an auth wall or a bunch of puppy photos. Your - professional and personal lives don't bleed together quite as much and - it makes for a kick-ass business card. -

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- Most importantly however, I enjoy the level of control that I gain with - creating and operating my own website, something I have also sought for - a long time. In high school I set up an old Dell from my school's - recycling center with Windows XP and Microsoft Internet Information - Services. It didn't have SSL or even a domain name but it was reachable - over the WAN. I set up an upload system so that my friends and I could - 'post' memes and funny messages for each other on raw html pages written - with Microsoft Word. That was the extent of its functionality. It was - slow, insecure, and went offline every time the router got a new IP - assigned to it. But I didn't care. It was a site the school couldn't - block. It had no name and no rules and nobody could tell us what to do - with it because it was ours. And we called it the - Troll Nexus Center because that's what you do when you're 15 -

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- My reasons then for building the Troll Nexus Center still stand now. - Having your own website is having your own piece of internet - property. - I first heard this wording from - Luke Smith over on his YouTube channel - and it's one-hundred percent true. Tumblogs, Google Sites, Facebook - profiles, and GitHub Pages are all like renting an apartment. Sure, - there are some really nice apartments out there but it's not the same as - owning your own home. You have to pay rent obviously, and rent is - subject to change once your lease is up. If anything breaks you text - your landlord and wait to have it fixed. You aren't allowed to fix it - yourself and sometimes it doesn't get fixed at all. And of course you're - limited by how much you can customize things to your own liking. Whether - it's painting walls or knocking them down. -

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- These limitations may or may not apply to you. Whether you're paying for - storage, server space, metrics, or watching an ad every five seconds, - these services aren't free either. And you certainly can't fix - everything that goes wrong with them. I started on Google Sites. It's a - truly fantastic system. Building a site is like putting a PowerPoint - slide together. I just plain outgrew it. There were too many things I - wanted to do that I simply couldn't. I was also at the mercy of Google's - constant change. After I finished constructing my first site, Google - announced they would be shutting down the old Google Sites in favor - of an entirely new platform under the same name. Weeks of work got thrown out the window. You might also not care - about ads or customization. You may be intimidated by doing things - yourself and prefer that the landlord take care of everything. - Personally, I like the challenge and the craftsmanship that comes with - doing something myself. And I like being in total control of my server, - site, and content. Not from a tinfoil hat perspective but from a "gosh I - really wish I could just share more than 15 gigabytes of family video - with my relatives in New York and Ohio" perspective. -

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- So that's why I created my own website. If you want to know - how I host my own website, look for another post about my - server setup where I'll explain everything I'm hosting and how I got it - all hooked up. And that's a wrap. Now you know why I'm here instead of - somewhere else online. Sure, I do have Facebook and YouTube accounts but - I don't frequently update anything on either of them. This site is my - home online. It's where I keep all of my interests, hobbies, and - memories for sharing with others. -

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- Now you know where to find me. If you want to keep up with me, be - old-fashioned and subscribe to my RSS feed. -