Manhattan Beach, CA 90266 | kirk (at) icapsolutions.com

With over 30 years of experience spanning DevOps Engineering, Cloud Infrastructure, Software Development, Database Administration, and Unix System Administration, I’ve built a diverse and robust technical foundation. Among my proudest accomplishments is the development of an online email marketing service —a project I solely conceived, developed, and launched.

At the time, there was a growing demand for reliable bulk email solutions to support corporate and commercial marketing efforts. As an expert in Mail Transfer Agents (MTA), it felt natural to tackle this challenge by building a scalable service from the ground up. My platform featured a fully functioning, self-managing architecture, with a base configuration of four servers:

• Web front end (Apache, modperl API, Python, Shell scripts).
• Database (AWS Aurora DB).
• Primary mail server (customized outbound MTA using Qmail).
• Bounce processor and Image server (Linux, Python, Perl).

The system’s scalability was a key strength, allowing additional qmail servers to be seamlessly integrated for multi-node, multi-domain distribution based on traffic demands. While the service gained traction and secured several small-business clients, generating a modest monthly revenue, it ultimately couldn’t compete with industry giants like ConstantContact, which had the backing of significant investors.

At one point, I considered pursuing outside funding to scale and compete, but with a young family to support and a second child on the way, the risks felt too high. Instead, I allowed the platform to grow organically. Though the service eventually fizzled out, the experience remains one of my most valuable professional milestones.

The original system still exists, running on a single server in my office as a personal project. It’s functional, though limited to small-scale activity—for example, the signup process and client pages are accessible, and it can send out a few test emails (capped at 10 or 20 to prevent misuse). The platform lives on at MailAddiction.com, where it serves as both a nostalgic piece of my professional history and a learning opportunity for my son.

Recently, my son, who’s been exploring art and web design, began contributing graphics to the site. He’s already added his first image to the homepage and is working on creating more visuals for headers and additional pages. It’s been rewarding to watch him dive into the project, blending creativity with technical skills while breathing new life into something I built years ago.