What the Internet Was Like in 2003

"By 2003, the internet had weathered the worst of the dot-com crash and developers and entrepreneurs were beginning to come out of hibernation. While it would take another year for Silicon Valley to start inflating another bubble - this one would be named "Web 2.0" - there was a renewed sense of optimism. Blogging and RSS moved into the mainstream in 2003, helped by the emergence of consumer-friendly RSS Readers like NetNewsWire and Bloglines."

"Blogging and RSS moved into the mainstream in 2003, helped by the emergence of consumer-friendly RSS Readers like NetNewsWire and Bloglines. There was even now an economic model for blogging, with the launch of Google's AdSense in March. Also, online music went legit with Apple's iTunes store, and social networking began to take recognizable form with Friendster and MySpace. " Social software" was a geeky term being used in the blogosphere during this time."

"If there was one company that was putting together the jigsaw puzzle that would later be named Web 2.0, it was Google. In February, Google acquired the leading blogging service of the day: Blogger. "Google, which runs the Web's premier search site, has purchased Pyra Labs, a San Francisco company that created some of the earliest technology for writing weblogs, the increasingly popular personal and opinion journals," wrote Silicon Valley reporter Dan Gillmor on February 15, 2003."

By 2003 the internet had largely emerged from the dot-com crash and developers and entrepreneurs regained optimism. Blogging and RSS reached mainstream audiences aided by consumer RSS readers such as NetNewsWire and Bloglines. Google accelerated blog adoption by acquiring Blogger and launched AdSense, creating an economic model for professional blogs. Online music gained legitimacy with Apple’s iTunes Store. Social networking began consolidating around services like Friendster and MySpace as "social software" concepts took hold. Flash-rich websites proliferated across the web, reflecting a design and multimedia trend even as underlying social and monetization infrastructure started to form.

Read at Cybercultural