gulker.com was founded in 1995, initially beacuse of a joke told in the San Francisco Examiner newsroom. Then-publisher Will Hearst was explaining why he 'didn't like The Internet' (despite his obvious enthusiasm for it).

The conversation was something like this:

Will: "I'm a rich guy, I can afford printing presses, delivery trucks and labor contracts. That means guys like you and Rob Morse and the other people in this newsroom have to come to me and ask for jobs. And since a lot of people want to work here, I don't have to pay you a lot. Market economics.

"But in a world with the Internet, you can go straight to the reader. Why, you could start gulker.com, and cut me out of the picture entirely." So I did, that afternoon. A couple days later, as Will walked past my desk, I showed him my home page. Will was delighted "See, I told you!"

So it started as a joke, and while some contend that it continues to be a joke, gulker.com has really been an experiment, a place to try things out and to learn the ropes of a new and fascinating medium. Since late in 1995, it has contained a Weblog. Today it contains my 'blog, several hundred columns and articles, many of which have been published in The Independent in London, and collections of my photographs, both serious work and snapshots.