Personal homepages. That’s right, before your WordPresses or Blogspots people learned a little HTML (usually very little) and signed up for a free website. Places like Tripod, Angelfire, and Geocities offered an outlet for the online masses. I learned today that Geocities was being put out to pasture (I know, I’m behind the times.). That prompted me to find some of the best material these once proud services have to offer. Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, let’s go way back to a time called the 90’s and see how the web used to be.
Michelle’s Movie Reviews (Angelfire)
First up is a classic. White background, bright text, animated GIFs, you simply can’t beat it. Michelle claims to have seen a lot of movies, but only offers four reviews (only one of which is viewable). Also offered is a reminder of what to bring with you to the movies. Don’t forget your sweater!
Fu-Kwun Hwang’s Personal Homepage (Geocities)
Here is the personal homepage of Fu-Kwun Hwang. He was (I’m not sure if he still is) a professor in the physics department of National Taiwan Normal University. The site was last updated on 1/28/99, so I’m sure this once glorious website is all but forgotten. By the way here is the current website for the NTNU Physics Department.
The Patrin Web Journal (Geocities)
Here is a perfect example to compare and contrast blogs today and what wanted to be blogs then. The Patrin web Journal is a website dedicate to Romani (Gypsy) culture. The website is actually designed well from a 90’s standpoint.
Jeff Miller Web Pages (Tripod)
Want a rousing way to spend your Friday night? Head over to Jeff Miller’s website. Once there you will find images of “mathematicians on postage stamps”, and other gems like the “earliest known usage of some of the words of mathematics.” We didn’t expect them all, Jeff, don’t worry.
201 Stories by Anton Chekhov (Tripod)
Jeff Miller’s Web Pages not doing it for you? Here are 201 Stories by Anton Chekhov for your enjoyment. I personally enjoy “The Teacher of Literature.”
Weight Watchers Recipes (Angelfire)
The holiday season is upon us. Instead of turducken on Thanksgiving, why not try the Diabetic, Low-Fat Thai Turkey with Brown Rice. This site has reminded me of many dead (or dying) website features: the guestbook, the green hit-counter, etc. Now I have to find a site with a web ring.
Conclusion
There you have it. A few examples of what the web once was. I poke fun at these sites now, but I honestly wouldn’t be doing what I do if services like Geocities weren’t around when I was 13. Geocities is simply the latest casualty in the evolution of the web. Who’s next? We can’t be sure (probably MySpace), but I do know Geocities won’t be the last. If you guys know any great sites like those above, let me know. We need to start a collection.
