So that was the name of it! I only had vague recollections of me setting up PuTTY with a proxycommand involving some kind of compiled to .exe Perl script. Worked out in the end with a free VPS and train station wifi. As usual, I spent far longer setting this up than actually using it, but it was one of the many small things that got me started on my career path.
Thank you for the trip down memory lane!