The History of the Web

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Reading about the dot-com era

Published: February 21, 2023

There is a lot out there about the dot-com bubble, and its subsequent burst. I tried to limit the scope […]

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Mosaic in the rear view

Published: January 24, 2023

The Mosaic browser was released thirty years ago. It’s credited with a lot of firsts. When I wrote about Mosaic […]

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Maybe we change things up a bit?

Published: January 10, 2023

I started this newsletter over five years ago. It started with a timeline and a single post. As I dug into research, I […]

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Web Products Everywhere

Published: November 22, 2022

Has the web become more productized?

Sidenotes

This is what you’re nostalgic for

Published: August 2, 2022

There’s a word for what you’re feeling. It’s anemoia. And it’s completely made up.

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It’s 1997 and you want to build a website

Published: July 5, 2022

You have a few options. How much time you got?

Sidenotes

Web Apps, Web Sites, Are they all the Same?

Published: May 17, 2022

Is a website the same as a web application? That question is older than you think

Sidenotes

Was Queen Elizabeth II a keen surfer of the early web?

Published: April 19, 2022

I recently went on a bit of a journey to figure out: did Queen Elizabeth surf the early web?

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The Most Influential Website of All Time

Published: March 8, 2022

There’s one site that is connected to Facebook, YouTube, Yahoo!, Twitter, and many others. And you probably never think about it.

Sidenotes

The Perilous Price of Blogging

Published: September 24, 2021

A single website changed his life, and set him on a path to activism, and ultimately, exile.

Sidenotes

An Hour About… Psuedo.com

Published: July 6, 2021

Pseudo.com is a forgotten relic of the dot-com era. Was it ahead of its time? A moonshot that went too far? Or simply a piece of elaborate performance art?

Sidenotes

The Internet Book Baron

Published: April 6, 2021

This week I have something a bit different, written by longtime newsletter author Ernie Smith, best known for his history […]

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The History of the Web is a project by Jay Hoffmann. Get in touch.