I can't get to that site - I'm not ignoring you though! I expect to dump dial-up over the next couple of weeks so I hope this thread still lives.
I think Kitty has picked the key events. I'd add that prior to about 2000 the Web seemed to have a different character. It was still an "information super highway" rather than a winding, seedy set of alleyways. It seemed safer and less frequented by people trying to burn out or take over my computer or fleece me of dollars or identity. It also seemed to run faster (dialup, remember) which I attribute to three things;
- simpler webpage design with fewer bells 'n' whistles needing more time to download themselves and whatever runs them
- less time required for all the security stuff we now need to vet whatever we download
- less traffic from spam and from nasty little packages exploiting mailboxes of the vulnerable
Maybe I need to see the article before waxing any more verbose