What is SolFind?

SolFind is a web portal for computers from the early-web era through roughly 2005. It combines a human-curated directory, a small local search index, and a text-only Web Lens that makes many modern pages readable on old hardware.

Compatibility first

Every portal page is server-rendered HTML 4.01. It requires no JavaScript, web fonts, cookies, canvas, or modern layout engine. Recognized vintage browsers automatically receive the unstyled classic view.

Windows 98 browsers that cannot negotiate modern HTTPS can use the downloadable SolFind Launcher. It sends searches through FrogFind's plain-HTTP readability bridge while SolFind continues to perform the actual indexed search.

Small by design

The current index contains 3742 pages in 7 categories. A compact, attributed subset of the open Curlie directory supplies trusted starting points; SolFind then refreshes a rotating sample every day. The crawler has fixed page, byte, speed, and depth limits. Search uses local JSON indexes on the existing st-ipod.org server, with no paid search API, vector database, or second web service.

What the Lens does

The Lens fetches public web pages through the SolFind server under strict size, timeout, concurrency, and per-address limits. It blocks private-network destinations and returns escaped text plus vetted HTTP links. It never forwards a remote site's active markup to your browser.

What it does not do

SolFind is not an anonymous proxy. It does not relay accounts, authentication, forms, downloads, images, audio, video, or client-side applications. A page can also be missing or stale if its owner blocks crawlers or changes it.

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