This is the journey of how a failed URL shortener project launched my entire tech career — and why I’d do it all again (well, maybe without the scammers).
The $156 Dream That Vanished
It was 2015. I had a vision: build a mass URL shortener and make it the next big web tool. I had little coding experience — just some basic HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. So I did what most hopeful entrepreneurs do: I hired a freelancer.
That $156 I paid to an Australian dev? Poof — gone. No files, no code, just radio silence. Burned once. Determined, I gave it another shot. I hired another freelancer from India, who claimed the project was done and asked me to release the milestone. I did. He vanished too. Burned twice — this time for $93.
Down to $63 and a Whole Lot of Determination
I could’ve quit right there. But I didn’t. I stripped down the features, hired one last guy to build a basic URL shortener with iframe redirection for $59 — and this time, it worked. I tested everything carefully and even tipped him the remaining $4.
That barebones app became my roadmap. I studied the code like my life depended on it. At the time, even writing a for loop in PHP to handle multiple URLs felt like solving a Rubik’s Cube blindfolded. I felt like a dog piloting a plane — confused, stressed, but somehow still flying.
Every Line of Code, a Lesson
Stack Overflow? Rude. ServerFault? Brutal. But one hero stood out — Barry, a kind soul in his 60s who emailed me directly after my question got downvoted to oblivion. He helped me set up Apache and get NS SYSTEM to support multi-domain shortening with a shared web root. No more cPanel hand-holding — just direct control. My kind of fix.
“I’ll Take It from Here”
Later, I tried hiring someone to help with geo-targeted AdSense. I didn’t like the mockup. I didn’t like the vibe. So I said it: “You know what, I’ll take it from here.” That was the last time I ever outsourced anything.
NS SYSTEM May Be Gone, But I’m Just Getting Started
By 2019, NS SYSTEM stopped generating revenue. But it left me with something way more valuable: skill. Experience. A full-stack mindset. Today, I work as a system administrator, managing multiple VPS servers (shoutout to Contabo, despite their flaws here and there), setting up secure, scalable hosting environments for clients, and keeping everything malware-free and updated.
My clients no longer pay bloated prices for shared hosting — I set them up with affordable VPS infrastructure that gives them power and gives me full control. Everyone wins.
The Server That’s Also My PC
My personal rig is no joke. It’s more server than desktop. I run Windows 11 Pro with WSL2, host services like Jellyfin, Jellyseer, Radarr, Sonarr, Uptime Kuma, and more, and keep my system tuned like a racecar. You can see the full specs here if you’re curious.
So, What Did I Learn?
- Outsourcing is fine — until it isn’t. Know your core. Own it.
- Failure can teach you faster than success ever could.
- Sometimes, the best way to learn is to break stuff. Just don’t stop rebuilding.
- The sunk cost fallacy is real — but so is the reward of perseverance.
From NS SYSTEM to Now
I didn’t just build an app — I built a career. NS SYSTEM was my launchpad. It was messy, painful, and frustrating, but it gave me the technical DNA to be the system administrator I am today. That’s why I say it proudly:
If you want something done right, you learn to do it yourself — then you do it better than anyone ever could.
Thanks for reading. If this sounds like your kind of journey, stick around — there’s more to come at blog.ahmednsane.com.