Link archive: June 12th, 2020

What was it like? (Phil Gyford’s website)

Congratulations and kudos to Phil for twenty years of blogging!

Here he describes what it was like online in the year 2000. Yes, it was very different to today, but…

Anyone who thinks blogging died at some point in the past twenty years presumably just lost interest themselves, because there have always been plenty of blogs to read. Some slow down, some die, new ones appear. It’s as easy as it’s ever been to write and read blogs.

Though Phil does note:

Some of the posts I read were very personal in a way that’s less common now, in general. … Even “personal” websites (like mine) often have an awareness about them, about what’s being shared, the impression it gives to strangers, presenting a public face, maybe a feeling of, “I’m just writing personal nonsense but, why, yes, I am available for hire”.

Maybe that’s why I’m enjoying Robin’s writing so much.

Robin Rendle ･ 2D Websites

When I log onto someone’s website I want them to tell me why they’re weird. Where’s the journal or scrapbook? Where’s your stamp collection? Or the works-in-progress, the failed attempts, the clunky unfinished things?

HTML Tutorial for Beginners 101 (Including HTML5 Tags) - WebsiteSetup

A really great one-page guide to HTML from Bruce. I like his performance-focused intro:

If your site is based on good HTML, it will load fast. Browsers incrementally render HTML—that is, they will display a partially downloaded web page to the user while the browser awaits the remaining files from the server.

Modern fashionable development techniques, such as React, require a lot of JavaScript to be sent to the user. When it’s all downloaded, the user’s device must parse and execute the JavaScript before it can even start to construct the page. On a slow network, or on a cheaper, low-powered device, this can result in an excruciatingly slow load and is a heavy drain on the battery.

The City — Lori Nix / Kathleen Gerber

Tiny ruins.