My love letter to the old age of the internet

  I'm sure if you're using this website, we all miss this era of the internet. A time when we were excited by what the future of technology would become, and what new possibilities were available at the touch of a button. Yet, fast forward to today and the state of social media, and modern media in general, is grim. The positive ideals that were common ten to twenty years ago have vanished. If you spend enough time online, you see people talking about brain rot, doom scrolling, and bed rotting. Websites all look the same, and how it feels like the personality and energy of the old internet has gone.

  Perhaps the reason young people, such as those of my generation, fixate on the look and feeling of the old internet is because it is the antithesis of the state of the modern internet. If you are a part of gen z, you most likely have vague yet fond memories of the internet pre windows 8 (windows I will never forgive you). The fun personal webpages, created by people no better qualified to code than you or me, which some labeled tacky, or the engaging and genuinely enriching sense of community you could find in most forums at the time.

  All of these common things of internet pages past are things sorely lacking in our modern age of the internet. The closest people get to customizing anything is a picture on their Instagram account. Most people don't have websites for the sake of it; mostly because websites now cost money to maintain, and coding is intimidating for many. Along with the look of websites and blogs, the way we communicate on the internet has changed a substantial amount.

  The internet has always been a place for discussion and debate, but hate is at an all-time high on sites like X (formerly twitter). And even the branding of these apps and sites serve to alienate users and pander towards the look of a cold corporate machine. All company logos and user interfaces look flat or cheap. Devoid of personality and interchangeable.

  All the things that had made the internet such an interesting and unique place are long gone. This is why gen z looks back with fondness for that time on the internet. It felt like the possibilities were truly endless, you could make a website that aligned with your likes and interests, you could meet others and discus those interests on forums. You could feel a true sense of originality and individuality on the internet, while still maintaining a true feeling of community. 

   Unlike physical media or information, any piece of digital media could be lost with the simple press of a button. Sadly, there are still thousands of websites and forums that will forever be lost to time. This is why online resources like the Wayback Machine, or the Internet Archine are important, they help to document human history. And it's also why sites like Space Hey or Off---Line are important social networks, they help to remind us of what made the internet enticing in the first place. They encourage us to be creative, learn simple skills, and connect with others.