There’s much to say about the changed nature of the Internet circa 1996 and that of Internet 2011, and this infographic from Online University captures several aspects. In this blog, I’ve talked about a few of these aspects quite a bit, such as access, global usage and its role in composing practices in the 21st century. What struck me in this infographic was in the bottom portion labeled: “Websites Then & Now,” which displays the differences in design and inherent logic apparent when setting websites from 1996 next to those from 2011.

Here’s a few thoughts, and below, the infographic that spawned them…

Reading the World Wide Web circa 1996 was much like reading pieces of paper—the 8×11 kind—on a screen. Not many people were writing the web, really only those with programming knowledge and server access. The GoDaddy.com site displays this well: In 1996, the site was basically it’s catalog on the screen.

Continue reading “Internet 1996 vs 2011: What Does It Mean for Education?”