Directory of Community Web Revival Manifestos

The Web Revival is about reliving the spirit of the early web in the modern age and is one name of an internet based movement, the name comes from the Folk Revival of the 1930s-70s.

Some other names related to the Web Revival:

• Old Web - This name also evokes the spirit of the early web, it's favoured by sites that focus on older technology and styles, for example The Old Net.
• Web 1.0 Movement - This name refers the simple static sites of the 90s and is similar to Old Net.
• Smol/Small Web - This name is often favoured by minimalist sites such as m15o’s Status.Cafe
• Neocities - A brand name for the web hosting company and community that houses many web revival sites!
• Indieweb - A separate web collective, mainly with professional web developers, it is less related to the web revival.
• Yesterweb - A brand name for the former yesterweb forum and community with a focus on social activism.
• Digital gardening - A separate web movement, focused on personal knowledge management, public learning and open knowledge.

Web Revival enthusiasts come from all walks of life, however most share a few things in common:

• Creativity comes first - They value creative expression and the ability to customise and decorate their digital spaces.
• The Web is Friendly - Most are inclusive and value warm genuine interactions, egos should take a back seat here.
• Non Social-Media - Most are sick of social media, they dislike its drama and often toxic cultural impact.
• Right to Repair - They value the freedom to control their own data and understand the tools they use.
• Money is not the goal - They dislike the corporate webs obsession with monetisation, professionalism and branding.
• One World-Wide-Web - They value the ideals of free shared information and global connectivity expressed on the early internet.
• Messy things are OK - Things don't need to be perfect, we want our web lives to be fun ones not flawless ones.
• No to Crypto - To most, crypto currencies, the “Web3“ and NFTs are not welcome.

These ideals are expressed by creating websites, homepages, zines, forums, podcasts and more! The goal is simply to find what was best about the early web, find whats best about new technology, mix the two; kick all the Mark Zuckerberg's and Elon Musk's to the curb and get on with living our best lives.

Melon's What is the Web Revival

Maggie Appleton's A Brief History & Ethos of the Digital Garden

Mike Caulfield's The Garden and the Stream: A Technopastoral