When I was taught basic electronics in the early 80's we prototyped on cardboard by pushing in thumbtacks as connecting points then soldering the through hole c

When I was taught basic electronics in the early 80's we prototyped on cardboard by pushing in thumbtacks as connecting points then soldering the through hole components and bare, solid core copper wire onto the thumbtacks. The solid core wire was quick thick and could be bent into rigid paths before soldering so there was little risk of shorting if you were careful. A few dabs of hot glue could be useful sometimes to keep close wires separate. I wonder if you could do something similar today with smaller specifically designed tacks to replicate modern SMT solder pads. You'd need some good magnification to place the tacks.