In short… it’s absolutely amazing what 12 years of online innovation can do. I recently discovered a post that used WayBackMachine to pull together a collection of corporate websites from 1996. The results were quite astonishing.
Although Internet Explorer 3.0 could run Java applets and inline media, Netscape Navigator could not, and in any case nobody felt comfortable doing anything more complicated than making a few animated GIFs. Additionally, very few web designers had even the most rudimentary of aesthetic sensibilities, and nearly half of them were clinically retarded. The internet in 1996 looks like it had been created in its entirety by a panel of 13-year-olds with Geocities accounts who had about half an hour to spare each night before bedtime.
Here is the official Lego website, for example.
They include McDonald’s, Pepsi, Best Buy, and many others. Well worth the click.
About eric:
Eric Odom is project manager for Blogivists.com. A web strategist by trade, Odom is currently working to develop infrastructure for activists within the liberty movement.
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3 Responses to “The internet in 1996”
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Fantastic post Eric! As you may know, I have been into posting vintage video which shows how much American attitudes have changed over the years.
I think the vast improvement in Internet technology and ability over the last 12 year is another testiment to how great capitalism really is in constantly seeking AND enabling improvement.
Richard Disney’s last blog post..Victory Is Our Business Video
Indeed. Can you imagine where we’ll be ten years from now???
[...] post about the internet in 1996 got me thinking and prompted me to take a look at my own websites from five years ago. Until now I [...]