---- Fiber-Optic Freeway ----

a rest stop in the Wide Wide Wired

In the current era of the internet, mammon is king. Calling this time an Information Age is a gross misunderstanding - we are in a Marketing Age, enveloped by an ever-present strip mall of grifts. Not to mention the overwhelming flood of normies who refuse to ever understand what they're exploiting, dabbling in powers beyond their control. If you're anything like the Architect, you are hoping for a commercial collapse of the internet and an intellectual reboot, though that will likely be a long ways away.

Even now, however, there is an available praxis. Treating the Wired as it was and applying a non-commercial mindset can improve things drastically. It starts with the webrings. So here I've included a collection of websites of all sorts, varying wildly in utility and style. If you've found this page, you'll likely find something to like from this list. Go forth and make the Wired you desire!

Resources

Archive.org - the beloved Internet Archive, coupled with the Wayback Machine to access lost or previous versions of websites. It can also be fun to just browse and find new things. There's also Gifcities, which uses the Internet Archive to serve animated gifs.

LorenzoStanco.com/lab/steam/ - a useful API that can list, sort, and filter available Steam libraries. The account has to not be private for this to work.

Mobygames.com - A catalog of computer games from their retro past to their modern incarnations. Contains useful information and media concerning just about every game imaginable.

Protondb.com - A database on Steam games and their compatibility with Linux systems. Incredibly useful for Linux-based gaming.

TheMovieDB.org - a database of film and tv without as much bloat as IMDB. Fairly simple access to banners and posters as well.

Wiby.me - A search engine with a focus on small, static websites reminiscent of and including the early Internet. There's a wide variety of personal sites from the classic era to the modern resurrection.

Wiki.gbl.gg - A wiki for fighting games, useful resource for learning and reference. I have used it for Darkstalkers 3.

Social

4channel.org - home of the infamous hackers. The SFW or "blue boards" like /w/ and /wsg/ are better off than most of the site, which has been on a downward spiral.

JoinPeertube.org - Peertube is a decentralized network of video hosting servers, allowing users to access dozens of websites through a single account. If you're looking for instances to sign up on, I personally recommend PoastTV or DankTube.

Lainchan.org - a Lain-themed imageboard that mainly focuses on technology. Notable boards include /sec/ for cybersecurity and /Ω/ for technology in general. Users tend to post a bit more intelligently than most sites.

Sheepishpatio.net - A humble little forum for hobbies and such. I like how it avoids being overtly political and actually focuses around interests, which is nice.

zzzchan.xyz - a site amidst one large webring of imageboards. Other notable sites in this ring include smuglo.li and tvch.moe, and range wildly in topics.

Personal/Static Sites

aNONradio.net - An internet radio station ran by members of the SDF Community. Has nice music and original programs brought by hobbyists around the world.

Fauux.neocities.org - Wired Sounds for Wired People is an artistic webpage themed after the anime Serial Experiments Lain. I recommend headphones for the full surreal experience.

Sizeof.cat - An extensive personal site for a cyberpunk enthusiast. Also home of Captain Blackbeard Radio, an internet pirate radio station.

Theoryware.net - A blog and digital space for a mutual of mine, Theory of Everything. Typically concerns computer programming and general Linux discourse.

Fansites

Anubis.moe - a compilation of monstergirl fanfiction automatically scraped from sites like Pastebin and AO3. Viewer discretion is advised as a result, but there are some good stories on there.

Arcadequartermaster.com - A fansite dedicated to a wide range of arcade-based games such as shoot-em-ups and fighters.

www.cjas.org/~leng/lain.htm - Home of Thought Experiements Lain, a classic fansite dedicated to the anime Serial Experiments Lain. The level of knowledge and depth has given it recognition even amongst the creators.

WallOfHistory.com - An exhaustive archive of the story and world of LEGO's Bionicle series. Best source for the entire legend from 2001-2009 in all forms, from the books to comics to Flash games. It even includes a "Matoran Mode" that allows you to read the text in the in-universe ciphers.

Miscellaneous (in no particular order)

https://lookrobot.co.uk/11-ways-better-roleplayer-safe-work-version/
This is a list for helpful tips for roleplaying better in TTRPGs. This has helped shape my approach in the short time I have spent roleplaying.

https://www.hazegray.org/faq/designat.htm
A solid breakdown of designations for aircraft. Can come in handy for worldbuilding purposes or just general reference.