neocities

Neocities is a pretty cool place. As time crawls on and we slowly pursue the 2020's, a lot of questions begin to pop up on imageboards, forums, and even major social media platforms. "I don't have fun using the internet anymore," people say. "I wish we could go back to IRC and forums. Are we losing the internet?" These people are older than me- most people my age are totally content with Twitter and Instagram for online creative outlets. However, I think these is truth to this worry- it isn't totally based in nostalgia.

Because microblogging platforms are so ubiquitous, expressing yourself online is usually made up of your profile picture, biography, and content. There's nothing inherently wrong with this, but it is stifling- the centralization and short-form limits make diversification in creativity difficult. (Even Tumblr has been on the decline, a platform that served as a sort of last bastion of customizability.) The beauty of the early web, to many, is that your interaction with others is based in conversation and expressing yourself exactly the way you want. I think there's great value in this philosophy. Neocities being a place for us to do just that is an amazing privilege. There's next to no barrier of entry, and the tools at your disposal are powerful.

Let's make more weird, obscure, heartfelt, personal websites and explore them. Thanks, neocities.