Hypnospace Outlaw

i wasn't around for the 'old web' as depicted in hypnospace - i grew up on the outskirts of deviantart - which is maybe why i find it so enchanting.

it's not necessarily nostalgia that it evokes in me, but fascination - marvelling at how people cultivate(d) their corners of the internet, their unabashed earnestness, the perpetual under-construction banners.

it inspires me to try my hardest to make layouts for my site that are unique and exciting, to make as many pages as i can custom. to make them fun. hopefully not just for me, but for you too.

webpages are like little sandboxes to me - if you put in enough effort, you can make a space not just for yourself, but other people to 'play'. they can be respites. to me, they are as unique and fragile as any real-life building or exhibit.

archival is also an important aspect of hypnospace. in the beginning, you monitor the internet around you. as time progresses, it all suddenly becomes past tense.

the people are gone, and their detritus is up for the perusal of you and your team of deep-sea scavengers. stuff you wouldn't even think to save - link banners, mspaint art, pirated oggs - are now precious relics.

the internet is a strange thing. despite its deep intangibility, it's hard to make anything truly 'disappear' off it either. sometimes it's easy to forget that everything on the internet was made (at some point) by a person - but then you stumble on to a page so lovingly hand-crafted you can't help but feel someone's presence on the other side of the screen, even if they've long since moved on.