Lecture Notes: RitBit Technology

Introduction

• RitBit Technology: A site designed to reflect the early days of the World Wide Web.
• The site is intentionally styled like an early 90s website to evoke nostalgia and simplicity, avoiding modern web technology like Flash, Java, and AJAX.

Historical Context

• World Wide Web: Often confused with "the Internet"; began as a new and refreshing medium.
• Mosaic Browser: The first browser to support images, differentiating web pages from text-based sites like Gopher.
• Usenet: Played a significant role in early internet communication.

Personal Reflections

• The creator, Bas van Ritbergen, had his first website in 1993/1994, inspired by early internet possibilities.
• IRC: A vital social technology at the time, later replaced by instant messengers and social networking sites.

Nostalgia and Archives

• WayBackMachine: Archives internet pages from 1996 onwards.
• Original browsers like Mosaic can be emulated to relive the early web experience.

Updates and Additions

• Complaints about Simplicity: Feedback on the site's boring layout led to links being added for more content.
• Links to Influential Figures and Companies:
  • Piet Beertema: Linked the Netherlands to the internet.
  • Former companies and employers: Lighting Dutchmen, Colt Telecom, Nines bv., Sentia bv., and Adyen.
  • Personal lighting work showcased on the site.

Interesting Tidbits

• HTML <blink> Tag: Once popular, now unsupported in modern browsers.

References

• Wikipedia: For background information.
• Archive.org: Hosts the Internet WayBackMachine.
• MadSCI.org: Provides historical web screenshots.

These notes summarize the key points and reflections shared by Bas van Ritbergen on the RitBit Technology site, focusing on the early web, nostalgia, and personal career highlights.