[{"content":"During this National Day holiday, I found myself tinkering with ZISAI again.\nI had only meant to fix a few things that had been bothering me. Once I started, though, it was hard to stop.\nThe homepage, hero image, logo, navigation, Hugo, PaperMod, GitHub Pages, Cloudflare, DNS, CNAME records, 301 redirects… I worked through them all, right down to a small problem with sharing pages on WeChat.\nLooking over the site again this morning, I finally felt that this round of work could pause. Most of the problems I could currently identify had been addressed.\nA small problem worth following through The most memorable issue turned out to be sharing a webpage as a WeChat card.\nThe page opened normally. Sending its URL directly worked too. But sharing it from a browser to a WeChat contact produced a red exclamation mark. Stranger still, posting it to Moments first and forwarding it from there worked.\nI tried Safari, Chrome and Edge. Eventually, the trail led to the sharing image. The file was too large. After I compressed it, sharing worked again.\nThese days, I have gradually settled on a habit: use WebP for web images where suitable, with a quality setting around 82, while checking that they still look right. Q82 is no magic number. It is simply a balance that currently feels comfortable to me: smaller files, with little visible loss.\nI may forget the number one day. I am less likely to forget the process of tracking down the problem.\nTechnical details are often like that. The answer may fade; the way you found it stays.\nWork is a responsibility; ZISAI is self-directed I spent much of the holiday sitting at my computer. From the outside, it probably looked much like being at work. It felt quite different.\nWork brings goals, deadlines and collaboration. A sense of responsibility drives me to deliver.\nWith ZISAI, nobody tells me what the site should look like or when it needs to be finished. If the hero image feels wrong, I change it. If the logo is almost right, I adjust it again. If I do not understand a problem, I try a few more things.\nWhether to do it, when to do it and how far to take it are my decisions. I enjoy that freedom. I often feel more creative with fewer constraints. There are still standards and expectations; they come from me.\nMaking something of my own As the work went on, it began to feel less like routine website maintenance and more like making a piece of work I could call my own.\nShould an image be a little softer? How large should the logo be? Is there enough space on the page? How can Chengde’s character appear naturally? Does the button feel right in that position? Is a few dozen extra kilobytes worth it?\nEach decision is small. Together, they create a sense of coherence.\nIt reminds me a little of woodworking, or editing photographs. Other people may not notice exactly what changed. I know, though, and I keep thinking it could be a little better.\nAt that point, technology becomes part of the work itself: code, images, structure, speed and detail all belong to the same whole.\nTwenty-eight years later I started ZISAI in 1998, when the internet itself felt new. Forums, chat rooms, webpages and servers—everything invited exploration.\nTwenty-eight years later, the technology has changed completely. Now I tinker with Hugo, GitHub Pages, Cloudflare, WebP, Open Graph images and countless frontend details. The website is very different from the one I began with.\nYet something seems unchanged. When I see a problem, I still want to understand it. When something could be better, I still want to improve it.\nPerhaps what has lasted is the habit of trying to make things a little more complete.\nTime passes. That impulse remains. There is no assignment and no deadline. I simply want the site to come a little closer to the version I have in mind.\nA stopping point, for now This morning, I looked through the site once more. Most of the issues I could think of had been handled.\nOf course, a website is never truly finished. I will keep writing and making changes. But this stage can come to a pause.\nBeing able to immerse yourself in something is an ability. Staying interested in it for twenty-eight years says something about you, too. I have kept going with exercise, English, Japanese and information technology in much the same spirit.\nKnowing when to stop is probably another ability worth keeping.\nSo this round of rebuilding ZISAI during the 2026 National Day holiday ends here, for now.\nThis afternoon, I am going to the hot springs.\nThe computer is closed.\nAs for the next problem—I\u0026rsquo;ll wait until it turns up.\n","permalink":"https://zisai.com/en/posts/national-day-zisai-rebuild/","summary":"During the National Day holiday, I rebuilt ZISAI once again. Work carries responsibility; this website runs on personal curiosity. Technology, design and small details became part of something I wanted to make well.","title":"ZISAI at 28: Technology Changes, Habits Stay"},{"content":"I am Shen Nan (沈楠), a technology practitioner whose career has taken me from radio communications to the internet, cloud computing and artificial intelligence.\nI serve as Director, Vice President and CIO of Chengde Kuangguang Holdings Group and hold a master’s degree in informatics from J. F. Oberlin University in Japan. After years working in communications networks, internet services, data centers and software development, I moved into retail, where I oversee enterprise information systems, digitalization and technology architecture.\nIn 1998, I began building ZISAI (zisai.com), an early website within Chengde’s postal and telecommunications community.\nFrom single-sideband radio, point-to-point data links, dial-up networks and the early web to broadband, data centers, online games, enterprise systems, hyperconverged infrastructure, IoT, cloud-native systems and AI, the technologies have kept changing. What I try to do has remained much the same:\nUnderstand a problem, break it down, and solve it with technology that is as simple and reliable as possible.\nI still maintain ZISAI today. It is a place for technology, Chengde, everyday life, memories of the city and small things worth keeping.\nFrom communications to the internet My work with technology began in the 1990s.\nIn 1993, I joined a military communications unit, working with radio, single-sideband (SSB) and double-sideband (DSB) communications, computers and data transmission. Before internet access became widespread, connecting people and computers often meant radios, serial ports, modems and point-to-point links.\nAround 1995, I began writing point-to-point communications programs in C and exploring BBSs, dial-up networks and early online communities. After 1997, I turned to the web, online information services and early internet applications.\nIn 1998, I joined a telecommunications operator and started the website that became ZISAI. The internet has been a continuing thread through my work and life ever since.\nZISAI and Chengde’s early internet ZISAI began in 1998 as a very small website.\nAs broadband spread, it grew to include a portal, forums, chat rooms, blogs, a flea market, software downloads and audio and video services. For many of Chengde’s early internet users, it became part of a shared memory.\nAround 2001, I was developing and maintaining these services with PHP, MySQL, C++, ASP and Pascal. They included the ZISAI forum, online chat rooms and blogs, a flea market, FreeICQ local instant messaging, the MUD Xia Ke Xing, and local broadband media services.\nIn 2002, I developed Rehe Fengyun (热河风云), a multiplayer online game with a local cultural setting.\nThese projects may look simple today, but they document a local internet’s transition from dial-up to broadband. They were also my first sustained experience of building and operating internet services from end to end.\nTelecommunications, broadband and data centers From 1998 to 2014, my work at a telecommunications operator expanded from computers and data communications to broadband networks, business systems, internet data centers (IDC) and internet operations.\nI worked on or took responsibility for ADSL business systems, network operations systems, broadband streaming services, data center services and internet content partnerships.\nBetween roughly 2003 and 2006, I helped introduce and operate local server groups for games including 科洛斯, 坦克宝贝, NetEase’s 梦幻西游 and 大话西游. All of the server groups were named “避暑山庄”, after Chengde’s Mountain Resort.\nAs online game account security became a growing concern, I also designed and developed a dynamic-password authentication system to improve account protection.\nAround 2009, my work increasingly involved IDC, ICT and internet infrastructure. I helped bring relevant business activities of companies including Tencent, Youku and Alibaba to Chengde. This experience gave me a more systematic understanding of networks, systems, data centers and high-availability architecture.\nFrom telecommunications to retail digitalization In 2014, I left the telecommunications operator and joined Chengde Kuangguang Holdings Group as Vice President and CIO.\nThe business environment changed, but the questions were familiar. How could systems become more stable? How could data create practical value? How could online and offline operations connect? How could fragmented systems work together? How should security, performance, cost and business efficiency be balanced?\nFor more than a decade, my work has centered on enterprise information systems, retail digitalization, infrastructure, data, security and software development. It has included e-commerce, stored-value cards, business intelligence, hyperconverged infrastructure, cloud platforms, IoT, cybersecurity, disaster recovery, the WeChat ecosystem and AI.\nSelected technology projects Year Project Work and technologies 1998– ZISAI Portal, forums, chat rooms, blogs and a flea market; now maintained as a personal website. Web, PHP, MySQL, Hugo. 2001 ADSL service order system Independently developed a system for receiving and routing broadband service requests. ASP, SQL Server. 2002 Rehe Fengyun Developed and operated a local multiplayer game rooted in Chengde’s culture. Pascal, network programming. 2003 Chengde broadband streaming platform Video-on-demand and streaming services for broadband users. RealServer, Linux, PHP. 2003–2006 Local online game server groups Helped build and operate Chengde server groups for several online games. Linux, IDC, network operations. 2006 Dynamic-password authentication Designed authentication mechanisms for online game accounts. C++, security authentication. 2016 Hyperconverged and hybrid cloud infrastructure Consolidated servers, compute, storage and virtualization into a group-wide platform. VMware, Docker, Kubernetes. 2016–2021 Omnichannel electronic stored-value cards Card management, electronic redemption and transaction security, including dynamic QR-code encryption in Go. 2020 ESRS health check-in system Independently developed a commercial-site health check-in and data management system during the pandemic. C++, MySQL. 2023 Group-wide IoT platform Connectivity and monitoring for cold chains, energy, environments, equipment and security. Python, MQTT. 2024 Core data disaster recovery Cross-system and cross-device backup and recovery for core business data. High availability and disaster recovery architecture. 2025 Kuangguang digital management platform An integrated platform for retail operations, data and management; selected as an annual outstanding retail digitalization practice by the China Commerce Association for General Merchandise. Data platforms, distributed architecture, AI. 2025 AI staff assessment system Explored using large language models to assist with assessment data analysis, evaluation writing and feedback. A technology journey spanning more than thirty years 1993–1997: Radio and computers. From SSB and DSB radio to computers and data communications. 1998–2001: The internet and the web. Joined a telecommunications operator, began ZISAI, and worked with Perl, ASP, PHP, MySQL and C++. 2002–2008: Broadband, communities and online games. Developed Rehe Fengyun, built chat rooms, forums and streaming services, and worked on game servers and security authentication. 2009–2014: Data centers and telecommunications operations. Led work in IDC, ICT, data communications, internet business development and mobile network business management. 2014–2020: Enterprise systems and cloud architecture. Built retail e-commerce, card systems, BI, virtualization, hyperconverged infrastructure and enterprise cloud systems. 2021–2024: IoT, data and security. Continued practical work with Go, IoT, enterprise and payment security, WeChat and core data disaster recovery. 2025 onward: AI and retail digitalization. Began applying large language models, data analysis and AI to real business situations. The names of the technologies keep changing. My curiosity and interest in using them to solve practical problems have stayed with me.\nEducation I studied at J. F. Oberlin University Graduate School in Japan and earned a master’s degree in informatics in 2021.\nStudying abroad let me revisit more than twenty years of practical work through research and academic inquiry. It also strengthened my preference for starting with small, concrete questions that can be observed and tested. That approach shapes how I write on ZISAI today.\nProfessional and community roles Current roles Director, Vice President and CIO, Chengde Kuangguang Holdings Group Supervisor, Chengde Kuangguang Supermarket Group Member, Digital Technology Application Committee of the China Chain Store \u0026amp; Franchise Association Member, Digitalization Committee of the China Commerce Association for General Merchandise Vice Chair and Executive Chair, Chengde Internet Association Chair, Chengde Federation of Internet Industry Trade Unions Council Member, Chengde Police Association President, Shuangqiao District E-commerce Association, Chengde Earlier experience Department Section Chief, China Unicom’s Chengde branch Secretary of the Communist Youth League Committee, China Unicom’s Chengde branch Service in a military communications unit, 1993–1997 Recognition and industry experience Recognition over the years has included National Outstanding CIO; the Digital Technology Innovation Award at the China International Digital Economy Expo; communications-industry QC group activity assessor qualification from the China Association of Communications Enterprises; Hebei “Knowledge-based Employee”; the Chengde “Shen Nan Innovation Studio”; and Chengde honors for young skilled professionals, science and technology work, commerce expertise and science communication.\nThese are part of the record. But I am more inclined to remember the systems built, the code written and the feeling when a problem was finally solved.\nAbout ZISAI Founded in 1998, ZISAI has passed through the eras of portals, forums, chat rooms and blogs, and from desktop and broadband internet to mobile internet and AI.\nToday, zisai.com is my personal digital space. I write about:\nTechnology: software, networks, servers, Hugo, Go, AI and practical work. Retail: digitalization and business observations grounded in specific problems. Chengde: the Mountain Resort, Rehe, the old city, internet history and local memories. Life: travel, cars, exercise and questions that arise in ordinary days. The past: gathering personal and urban memories before they fade. Not everything worth recording has to be a major event. Much of what makes up a life consists of small things that seemed ordinary at the time.\nPlaces hold stories. Everyday life shines.\nTechnology and life I still enjoy writing code and exploring new tools. My interests include Go, Python, SQL, Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, Hugo, cloud computing, virtualization, network and information security, IoT, data analysis, large language models and AI.\nMy approach is simple:\nUse the simplest possible logic to solve complex problems.\nAway from technology, I enjoy walking, driving trips, music, keeping fish, growing orchids and quietly tinkering with my website.\nI started ZISAI in 1998. Today, I can still spend hours adjusting a page, an image or a few lines of code. Technologies and tools change. Curiosity and the habit of keeping a record may well remain.\nPublic references The following sources provide further information in Chinese:\nKuangguang Holdings executive profile China Association for Science and Technology Hebei Association for Science and Technology National Outstanding CIO Retail digitalization committee notice Hebei News profile Baidu Baike: Shen Nan Contact ZISAI: zisai.com GitHub: Mythflair Email: mythflair@hotmail.com If you once visited the original ZISAI, or share an interest in technology, Chengde, internet memories or the small questions of everyday life, you are welcome to get in touch.\nProfile last updated in October 2026. English editorial version based on the Chinese profile; organization names and titles are descriptive translations.\n","permalink":"https://zisai.com/en/about/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eI am \u003cstrong\u003eShen Nan (沈楠)\u003c/strong\u003e, a technology practitioner whose career has taken me from radio communications to the internet, cloud computing and artificial intelligence.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI serve as \u003cstrong\u003eDirector, Vice President and CIO of Chengde Kuangguang Holdings Group\u003c/strong\u003e and hold a \u003cstrong\u003emaster’s degree in informatics from J. F. Oberlin University in Japan\u003c/strong\u003e. After years working in communications networks, internet services, data centers and software development, I moved into retail, where I oversee enterprise information systems, digitalization and technology architecture.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"About Shen Nan"}]