φ: \ about \ layout history
 

LAYOUT HISTORY
genesis of a web site





What's Related
Subsequent: Main
Other Sites
 








 
history overview

Introduction: Genesis of a Web Site

The beauty of having a web site is that it allows you to create a layout all on your own. When I started with the site, I was merely playing around with HTML a little, using a text editor (Editpad), only dimly aware of all the possibilities. Contents-wise, the site was initially meant to be about television and movies. I did not want to publish any poems, nor photographs. Back then in 1998, web space was more expensive, and I started out using a free service, the now-defunct GeoCities. So photos were not really an option, also, I hadn't really developed an interest in photography per se.

What you will find here is a history of this web site as it went through its many layout revisions. Even though the older layouts do not seem to resemble what the site looks now, many elements from these versions have actually made it into today's web site layout. I hope it will be interesting to see the many permutations I went through; and that this process alone illustrates how much designing a web site on your own can be a creative process, and also, how easy it can be. There are many instant-blog sites out there; yet none of them allow for the wild experimentation that used to characterize the web back then. Sometimes, the good old days were indeed better.


August 2nd, 2010









Layout Versions Throughout the Years

This web site has been online since 01/08/98

Graphical distribution of versions 1-11 throughout 1998-2013 (prospective):









 
history overview