The interest in computers started early. Gary's father owned an Apple IIe back in the 1980s — a serious purchase at the time — and Gary inherited it when his dad upgraded. It wasn't long before he wanted more and bought his own 386. By the time Taupō's first internet service provider went live at REAP in late 1993, he was already well and truly hooked. Gary got heavily involved in building and running the service, and it became his training ground — a very interesting time learning every aspect of running an ISP from the ground up, from DNS and networking to routing and Linux system administration. All self-taught, all learned by doing.
When REAP-ISP transitioned from dial-up to a wireless ISP, Gary helped design and build the infrastructure — relay stations around Lake Taupō, some solar-powered in remote locations, serving around 100 clients. Running a WISP meant learning wireless networking from the ground up — RF planning, antenna placement, interference management, and bridging long distances over difficult terrain. That hands-on experience with WiFi and wireless technology is something Gary still draws on every day.
While working with REAP, Gary had been building his own client base on the side — selling computers, setting up networks, and providing IT support for local businesses. Domain registration, hosting, and email were all handled through REAP until the ISP wound down in 2024, at which point ARL took over those services directly. Alternate Routing Limited was incorporated on 26 February 1999. In 2001, Gary left the plumbing trade entirely to focus on IT full time. Some of those early client relationships are still active today — one insurance broker has been an ARL client since 2000.
Gary has been a Linux user since the Slackware-on-floppy-disks era. The REAP infrastructure ran on it, and that's where the deep practical experience in server administration and networking came from. Over the decades he's worked across virtually every operating system and platform that has mattered — not to collect credentials, but because the work demanded it.
Gary was an early adopter of Raspberry Pi, using it for networking tools, automation, and client deployments. He's built Proxmox virtualisation environments, NAS systems, surveillance infrastructure, and custom solutions like a freezer monitoring system for a local butchery — built from components because nothing off the shelf did what was needed.
When Starlink became available in New Zealand, Gary was an early adopter. That knowledge led to providing connectivity for major Taupō events including the Ironman. During the 2020 COVID lockdown, he started ThreeD.nz — a 3D printing operation producing everything from local merchandise to custom network infrastructure brackets.
Alternate Routing Ltd serves a broad cross-section of Taupō's business community — hotels, tourism operators, tradespeople, professional services, community organisations, and long-term managed IT clients. The work spans network design, WiFi solutions, Starlink deployment, website development, VoIP phone systems, PC and server builds, remote support, surveillance systems, and IT consulting.
Gary gives clients honest advice based on experience. He shows up when he says he will. When he doesn't know something, he says so — and then goes and finds out.