Cybercultural chronicles internet history and its cultural impact, from the pre-web era to the dot-com boom, Web 2.0, and beyond. Written by pioneering tech blogger Richard MacManus.
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The 3 Gurus of 90s Web Design: Zeldman, Siegel, Nielsen
With the rise of Flash and CSS in 1997, three web design philosophies emerged. David Siegel advocated for 'hacks', Jakob Nielsen kept it simple, while Jeffrey Zeldman combined flair with usability.
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The Age of Buffering: Video Streaming and Webcasts in 1997
During 1997, video streaming came to web browsers through plug-ins like RealVideo, VDOLive and Microsoft's NetShow. David Bowie even attempted to 'cybercast' one of his concerts that year.
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Duran Duran and the Dawn of Digital Music Sales in 1997
In July 1997, N2K and Liquid Audio announced a way to sell digital songs online for 99 cents a pop. Soon after, Duran Duran became the first major label artist to release an online single for sale.
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What the Internet Was Like in 1996
In 1996, the internet became an integral part of society. Web portals were all the rage, e-commerce matured, web designers got new tools (like CSS and Flash), and web applications began to appear.
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Telling Lies: Bowie and Online Music Distribution in 1996
Online music retail was thriving by 1996, thanks to sites like Music Boulevard and CDnow. But music downloads and streaming was more of a challenge — as David Bowie discovered in September 1996.
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State of Online Music in 1996: RealAudio and Rocktroplis
Over 1996, the Web became an experimental testing ground for new ways of distributing and promoting music. RealAudio, Rocktropolis, Music Boulevard and IUMA were some of the leading sites.
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David Bowie’s Early Websites, 1995–1997: Outside to Earthling
During the mid-90s, David Bowie's website went from a storytelling structure for the Outside album, into a striking, grunge-inspired design for Earthling. At the same time, Bowie fan sites emerged.
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What the Internet Was Like in 1995
In 1995, Netscape went public and Microsoft noticed the internet — the browser wars began. Also that year, Amazon and eBay launched, JavaScript and PHP debuted, and the web went mainstream.
To explore Cybercultural's archive of internet history articles, you can browse by internet era:
- Pre-web (1960s-80s)
- Dot-com (1990-2003)
- Web 2.0 (2004-2012)
- Enshittocene (2013-2021)
You can also read yearly reviews or search for a topic of interest.