about
I’m Sean McQuilling. I work on cybersecurity and AI tools, especially agents that run on your own computer.
This site is where I keep useful notes from that work. I write down the patterns I reuse, the security problems I run into, and the lessons that are easy to miss in a polished demo.
I keep coming back to practical questions. What can the agent read? What can it change? When should it stop and ask? What record does it leave behind? How do we know the job was done correctly?
Local agents are interesting because they can use the same files and tools you do. That makes them useful, but it also means they can get access to things they do not need. I want that access to be clear and limited.
computing history / sean.exe
I grew up with computers that made you learn how they worked. You could see the files, type a command, change a setting, and watch the machine respond. That directness still shapes how I think about security and agents.
My first computer was a Commodore 64, followed by a TRS-80 and then generic Intel x86 PCs. Each one invited you to understand more than the screen showed.
Commands, directories, configuration files, and the useful habit of knowing where things live.
A better view of the machine. The directory tree made a complicated filesystem feel understandable.
News, messages, services, and people arriving through a modem. The computer stopped being an island.
I have used Linux since the Slackware days and never became fully GUI-first. I like the shell, configuration files, logs, and the machinery underneath the desktop.
Publishing became something anyone could do. Finding good information became as important as getting online.
Every useful system has a boundary. I became interested in who can cross it, what they can do, and what record they leave.
Agents bring the command line, local files, outside services, and security questions together in one place.
under the hood / on the bench
I like computing for what is happening underneath the interface. That is why this site has terminals, old games, cyberpunk agents, Irish mythology, Warhammer references, and the occasional bit of steampunk. They are not branding exercises. They are things I genuinely enjoy.
I collect vintage keyboards, including an IBM Model M and a 1984 IBM Model F AT from my grandfather’s engineering firm. I also build and collect clocks made with nixie tubes, VFDs, numitrons, dekatrons, and other display technology that makes its workings visible.
My shop has a Prusa 3D printer, a second printer I built myself, a custom CNC based on WorkBee plans, and a laser cutter and engraver. Software is only one way to turn an idea into something that works.
Aria has a cyberpunk persona and can play DOS games. The Cadre sisters draw their names from Irish mythology. Omnissiah owes an obvious debt to Warhammer. Steampunk shows up because exposed machinery, odd instruments, and handmade technology are part of the fun.
Building an agent, restoring a keyboard, wiring a clock, and cutting a part on the CNC all scratch the same itch: learn how the system works, then make it do something interesting.
home / rescue animals
I share my home with two rescue dogs and two rescue cats. A rescue dog and another rescue cat who came before them are no longer here, but they remain part of the family story.
Adoption and fostering matter to me. They give an animal safety, time, and a chance to become fully themselves. It is practical work, sometimes messy work, and one of the easiest ways I know to make a real difference.
Some of the animals who have shared my home, past and present.
a useful test
“Can someone tell what this agent was allowed to do, what it actually did, and how we checked the result?”
transparency note
I used AI tools to help design and build this site, including work on the code, interface, and wording. I made the calls about what belongs here, reviewed the result, and remain responsible for everything I publish.