A look back at web design trends from the 90s

The other day, while doing important things like Facebook-ing and obsessively checking the Woot-Off, I stumbled across a very cool link: The Geocities-izer. Simply enter your URL, and this site will re-format your site to look like a typical Geocities page. Remember Geocities? Good times…

After a bit of time laughing and getting misty-eyed, I started to reflect on web design from the 90s. We were all so green and naive. Design wasn’t about our users; it wasn’t about showcasing ideas or products in a meaningful, usable way. It was all about pop! she-bang! yowza! look what I can do!

And here are some of the things we did [shudder]…

Frames
For some reason, people thought it was useful to stick every page element in its own little container. With scrollbars. Hmmm…

Tiled Backgrounds
Because nothing is easier on the eyes than reading pink text on a green grass background.

Flash Splash Pages
“Click to Enter.” By clicking a link or entering your URL, didn’t I already click to enter?

Animated GIFs
While these aren’t useful, they sure can be entertaining. The original Hamsterdance is back, after a long hiatus!

Hit Counters
Does anybody really need to know how many (or how few) people have visited your web site?

Under Construction
If your web site is not ready, don’t put anything out there at all.

Blinking and Marquee Text
Need I say more?