What this section contains

This archived page represents content from a tilde directory (~username/), a Unix-based web hosting convention from the 1990s and early 2000s. This preservation maintains URL integrity for historical citations.

About tilde directories

The ~username/ path structure indicates:

  • Unix user directories: Personal web space on shared hosting servers
  • Direct home directory access: Apache's UserDir feature mapping /~user/ to /home/user/public_html/
  • Academic hosting: Common on university servers and research institutions
  • Decentralized hosting: Individual control over personal web space

Historical significance

Tilde directories represent:

  • Pre-social-media web: Individual publishing before platforms
  • Academic culture: University students and researchers hosting documentation
  • Technical communities: Sharing knowledge without commercial intermediaries
  • Web archaeology: Studying early internet organizational structures

Technical implementation

Tilde directories worked via:

Apache configuration:

UserDir public_html
UserDir enabled username

Filesystem structure:

/home/kvn/
  └── public_html/
      └── haiam2.htm  →  accessible at: ~kvn/haiam2.htm

The haiam2.htm naming

Cryptic filenames like "haiam2.htm" suggest:

  • Project codenames: Internal naming conventions
  • Sequential versioning: Number suffix indicating iteration
  • Personal shorthand: Abbreviated references meaningful to author
  • FTP workflow: Quick typing for command-line file management

Preservation approach

Historical tilde directory content is maintained with:

  • Exact path preservation: Including the ~ character in URLs
  • Original filename: No modernization of cryptic names
  • Attribution respect: Acknowledging original hosting context
  • Link integrity: Supporting existing citations and bookmarks

Modern alternatives

Contemporary personal documentation typically uses:

  • Static site generators: Jekyll, Hugo, Eleventy
  • Platform hosting: GitHub Pages, Netlify, Cloudflare Pages
  • Cloud storage: Notion, Google Drive, Dropbox Paper
  • Personal CMSs: WordPress on managed hosting

For current documentation practices:

Related topics

Note on archived content

This page represents historical content from tilde directory hosting. Information may be outdated. For current technical documentation, consult the main wplus.net hubs (Infrastructure, Operations, Security, Connectivity).