Computers today aren’t what they used to be, in a good way. As technology has progressed at rates we would have thought impossible just 10 or 2o years ago, websites have caught up, redesigning their layouts and repurposing their formats to ensure that they’re offering the best browsing experience for the modern user. Whether you’re nostalgic for an old cyber haunt or just curious about what a famous site looked like during its genesis, it can be fascinating to see how websites used to present themselves. Thanks to the Web Design Museum, you can browse images of a bunch of vintage layouts for popular websites (via BoingBoing).
On the site, you can sort by year (from 1995 to 2005), type of website, and type of layout, so whatever retro itch you’re trying to scratch, you ought to be able to find something for you. There are over 900 sites archived in the gallery, so for now, let’s just take a look at Apple’s page circa 2001:
What’s interesting about Apple’s site is that they’ve maintained the same design philosophy for over 17 years: Keep a simple menu bar on top, above a large image of the latest product and a bit of text on a clean white background. The aesthetic has updated along with Apple, but ultimately, they found a design that worked and stuck with it for nearly two decades and counting.
If you’re wondering why the heck Nerdist isn’t on this list of popular websites, well, so are we. There are archived versions of our fine site on the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine, though, so for your viewing pleasure, here’s what Nerdist looked like towards the end of 2010:
Which vintage website looked the best? Is Nerdist in the running? Let us know what you think down in the comments!
Images: Kevin Jarrett/Flickr, Apple, Nerdist
