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diff --git a/html/blog/2026-08-26+I_Went_Looking_for_the_Internet_and_Found_It+rant+tech+web.tmpl.html b/html/blog/2026-08-26+I_Went_Looking_for_the_Internet_and_Found_It+rant+tech+web.tmpl.html new file mode 100644 index 0000000..756ad35 --- /dev/null +++ b/html/blog/2026-08-26+I_Went_Looking_for_the_Internet_and_Found_It+rant+tech+web.tmpl.html @@ -0,0 +1,19 @@ +{{ define "article" }} +<article> + <h2>{{ .Title }}</h2> + <p>It's pretty easy to be gloomy in this day and age, scrolling endlessly through the YouTube recommendation algorithm. I naively thought I was one of the better ones, too, only watching long-form content from a few creators that actually seem to care about what they're discussing. Unfortunately, it doesn't get at the heart of the issue. We're no longer our own curators. That is, in modern social media, we rely on an algorithm to give us recommendations rather than a friend or someone online who finds things of interest to them and maybe to you.</p> + <p>I'm also embarrassed to say that I've been interacting with Claud.ai recently. Mostly for job application tasks. "If they're going to reject you with an AI, might as well stop trying to kill yourself and let it help you with the application papers," is what I tell myself. I took that same mindset to my next query, seeing as it's also the cause of our current situation: "How can I get back to the old web?" Well, that's not the exact prompt, but that was the underlying theme. I would say the results were about a 50% hit rate in terms of usefulness, but that's all you really need to get into the rabbit hole that is the "old" internet.</p> + <p>The funny thing about this idea of dead internet is that people still exist. Quirky websites, controversial opinions, and all. What's changed is that they've been drowned out of the search results of modern web indexing platforms like Google. DuckDuckGo can't save you from this problem either. What you need is a dedicated search mechanism for homegrown websites. And they exist.</p> + <h3>Non-Extensive List of "Small Web" Search Engines</h3> + <p><ul> + <li><a href="https://marginalia-search.com/" target="_blank" href="noopener noreferrer">Marginalia Search</a></li> + <li><a href="https://wiby.org/" target="_blank" href="noopener noreferrer">Wiby</a></li> + <li><a href="https://indieblog.page/" target="_blank" href="noopener noreferrer">indieblog.page</a></li> + </ul></p> + <p>And so it began. At first, I was disappointed. The results were not what I was looking for. But then, I strayed from my original query and found this post: <a href="https://www.fromjason.xyz/p/freelance/s/commission-logo-design/three-objectives-for-your-logo-design" target="_blank" href="noopener noreferrer">Three objectives for your logo design</a>. The site design instantly feels personable. I run an adblocker (and you should too), but having 0 notification bubbles in the extension instead of the typical 12 or more I get from visiting a "modern" website is a beautiful thing. That and the dedication in the footer:</p> + <blockquote>This site is dedicated to the old web, the weird web, the web that screamed in horror when summoned through a land line.</blockquote> + <p>You know you're in the right place when you read that. After working around some navigation quirks (the back arrow is broken, so I just typed the base URL to get to the homepage), I started diving into the rest of the site. In it is a treasure trove of other websites and articles. This one particularly hit home: <a href="https://www.fromjason.xyz/p/notebook/where-have-all-the-websites-gone/" target="_blank" href="noopener noreferrer">Where have all the websites gone?</a> There's even a link to <a href="https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com"https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com" target="_blank" href="noopener noreferrer">Low-Tech Magazine</a>, and <a href="/blog/2024-10-29+Low-Tech_Magazine+websites+tech">you know how I feel about that website</a>. This site was definitely one of the good finds. I would urge anyone interested to stay there a while and browse. Also, Wibi and indieblog.page have a nice "random" function that throws you onto a random page. Great for discovery.</p> + <p>I spent hours today reading through random pages and posts, and it was wonderful. This is generated by people for people. There's no expectation of financial gain, just plain old enthusiasm for a subject. If you haven't been off the algorithm for a while, or ever, I would start here. Try searching for something. Try going to one of the randomly picked pages. There's so much more out there to discover, and you're free to discover at your own pace. Want to click through as many links as you can in 5 minutes? Go ahead. Want to stop and ponder a subject? Do that, too. That's the beauty. You choose. You're no longer at the mercy of a digital algorithm. So please. If you want an internet fix, give this a try for today instead of <social_media_service>. I'm sure you'll find something interesting.</p> + <p><b>Created:</b> {{ .Date }}</p> +</article> +{{ end }} |