Before Smurftech
Learning by making it useful.
The earliest surviving material was never intended as a product. It began with a personal site, then became a practical way to capture support knowledge and let people step through unfamiliar Windows settings visually.
Personal web
Geocities
An early hand-authored site made while learning HTML, complete with frames, galleries and late-1990s browser-era experiments.
- Survives
- 149 files
- Role
- Starting point
Internal tool
OzEmail worksite
A compact collection of dial-up errors, modem strings, drivers and points-of-presence references built for day-to-day support work.
- Survives
- 36 files
- Role
- Direct precursor
Interactive guide
Windows 98 virtual
A browser-built imitation desktop with a taskbar, sidebar and setup screens—an early attempt to make remote support visual.
- Survives
- 165 files
- Interface
- Frames and image maps
Interactive guide
Windows 2000 virtual
A later walkthrough focused on system identity, hardware, networking, modems and dialling rules.
- Survives
- 72 files
- Interface
- Linked screenshots
The idea that carried forward
The technology changed, but the working pattern did not: solve the problem once, explain it clearly, and leave something another person can reuse. The worksite’s audience expanded beyond one desk, and that practical library became the reason Smurftech existed.
How the sites are presented
Each link launches a working copy in an 800 × 600 pop-out suited to its original design. Internal pages, frames, image maps and local assets remain usable. Dead advertising, counters and executable server integrations are disconnected.