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Early Web Vision

Comments discuss the original purpose and design of the World Wide Web as a simple system for sharing hyperlinked documents and scientific papers at CERN, referencing pioneers like Tim Berners-Lee and Alan Kay, and contrasting it with the modern web.

📉 Falling 0.4x Web Development
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dredmorbius (17) arethuza (16) jacquesm (14) Create (13) kragen (13)

Keywords

GOPHER TBL fortuityconsulting.com CosmoWorlds hackneys.com CVS NoteCards UNIX WorldWideWeb VRML web documents www eu alan kay kay technology lee alan world wide

Sample Comments

tertle950 • Nov 20, 2024 • View on HN

Remember when the web was just for displaying documents? Yeah, me neither

pjmlp • Apr 2, 2014 • View on HN

How the web was supposed to be.

croes • Nov 17, 2025 • View on HN

The web wasn’t the browser it was the protocols.

gits1225 • Jul 11, 2012 • View on HN

Yes it was "Internet by Brilliant minds, Web by Amateurs, Browser a lament - Alan Kay"

pmichalina • Aug 29, 2018 • View on HN

Isn’t this how the web was supposed to work?

svachalek • Nov 22, 2013 • View on HN

Because the web was simple and homogenous before this?

cratermoon • Jun 24, 2022 • View on HN

Something like https://thehistoryoftheweb.com/web-first-and-second-browser/ maybe?

undebuggable • Sep 28, 2025 • View on HN

The web was truly a hyper idea!

xigoi • Aug 18, 2025 • View on HN

Ironic considering that the web was originally designed for sharing scientific articles.

eddieschod • Apr 16, 2018 • View on HN

"The web was done by amateurs." - Alan Kay