New look, familiar stories — and hopefully fewer uninvited visitors!

Welcome to the renewed Koopmans Family website!

After many years of faithful service, our old website, built with Joomla, has finally been retired. It served us well, but maintaining it had become increasingly complicated. And when we discovered signs of a PHP-related security attack, it became clear that it was time for a fresh start.

Fortunately, the damage appears to have been limited, but it was a useful reminder that even a small, non-commercial family website can attract unwanted attention. Apparently, hackers don't distinguish between international banks and family photographs!

Out with the old, in with the new

Instead of simply repairing the old website, I decided to rebuild it using Publii, a system that generates static web pages.

The main advantage is that ordinary pages no longer need a database or server-side PHP to display their content. This makes the website simpler, faster to maintain and considerably less exposed to certain types of attack.

We've also reviewed and strengthened the Raspberry Pi web server's security configuration. The photo gallery and genealogy database remain available as separate websites, and the new contact form runs independently with additional security measures.

Of course, no internet-connected system is completely immune to attacks, but the new arrangement has a much smaller attack surface.

What happened to the old articles?

Not everything from the old website has disappeared!

I've transferred a selection of older articles and stories to the new website. Some may look a little different, but their content has been preserved.

Over time, I may restore a few more interesting articles from the archives. Others will probably be allowed to enjoy a well-earned retirement, just like their author.

Still the same purpose

Although the technology behind the scenes has changed, the purpose of this website remains exactly the same: sharing family stories, photographs, experiences and the occasional observation about life.

There is no advertising, no commercial ambition and certainly no plan to become the next social-media empire.

Just a privately maintained corner of the internet for family, friends and anyone else who happens to be interested.

Have a look around!

I hope you enjoy the new website. Some details may still change as everything settles into place.

If you find a broken link, notice a mistake or simply want to say hello, please use the Contact link in the menu.

And if you happen to be a hacker reading this: sorry, there's not much of value here. Perhaps try a nice hobby instead!

Enjoy browsing!

Henk Koopmans