The About Page
Ahhh yes, the About page. A staple of every gloriously overengineered homepage. I’ve been putting things on the internet since the 1990s, and apparently I still haven’t learned when to stop. McRetro.net is part hardware workshop, part internet scrapbook and part evidence of my inability to leave old computers alone.
Click a section below to explore the wreckage!
My Internet History
“Zap it here”
After a decade or so of moving homepages, I’ve decided this is where my internet home will be. I’ve had an online presence in one form or another since the mid-1990s. Born in the 80s and living for the 90s!
And what a time they were! Chatting on Mirabilis ICQ, blasting MP3s at 128 kbps in Winamp 2.x, playing Mega Drive games through Genecyst and KGen, and using GetRight to resume downloads after somebody picked up the telephone.
There was WS_FTP LE for uploading websites, Sausage Software’s HotDog Professional for creating them, and far too many hours spent trying to make everything work. Wonderful stuff!
The Homepages That Came Before
Sonic the Hedgehog Homepage
August 1994 to June 1997
One of my earliest websites, dedicated to Sonic and friends. Some of its history survives through file timestamps, FTP logs and the Wayback Machine.
- 6 October 1996, approximately 11:51 am:
cap.jpg,caps.jpg,knuc.jpg,robutt.jpgandsal.jpg. - 27 October 1996, approximately 2:30 pm:
slogo.gif,slogo.jpg,srun.gif,swalk.gif,trun.gif,twalk.gifandsiern.gif. - The Wayback Machine shows these images on 10 June 1997.
- The surviving
ws_ftp.logrecords dates from94.08.03 16:51through95.10.28 14:23, but does not list the later Sonic logo and animation files.
Space / Planets Webpage
November 1996 to June 1997
A little homepage about the planets. File timestamps from 9 November 1996, around 8:15 pm, include mercury.gif, venus.gif, earth1.gif, mars.gif, jupiter.gif, saturn1.gif, uranus.gif, neptune.gif, pluto.gif and orbiter.gif.
The Wayback Machine also shows these images on 10 June 1997.
Emulation Realm 124
February to April 1999
Referenced by the parent website that housed it. Unfortunately, no images survive. It lives on in memory!
The Glitch 9/9/99
Mid to late 1999
Another website known from surviving references on its parent site. No images survive from this one either.
RetroJunkie.net
February 2012 to December 2014
RetroJunkie.net hosted an array of information. Well, mainly YouTube videos! Much of that material eventually made its way into McRetro.net.
McRetro.net
July 2015 to the present incarnation
The place you’re visiting right now. We’ve got a blog, historical videos, repairs, projects and a collection of other things I probably should have thrown away years ago.
About McRetro
“Self Portrait of McRetro (1988)”
Recently I realised that my gender identity aligns better with that of a woman. That makes me a transgender woman. I’ve got a lot of work to do. I still enjoy a relatively (junk-food) vegan lifestyle. I have two aloe vera plants that aren’t dead. I believe in quality over quantity of life.
Make Contact
You can find me on Bluesky or Tumblr. Two perfectly good places to send a message without having to know my ICQ number!
Super Secret Recipes
A few old favourites from the kitchen. Some of the original recipes still need to be added to the website.
- Garlic Roast Potatoes (not yet available)
- Quick Mix Chocolate Cake (not yet available)
- Mars Bar Slice (not yet available)
- Soft Pretzels