[continued from previous message]
consequence. Remember back in Unit 2, where we peeked under the hood
with Inspect to see what websites were hiding? You're going to do
that again, but this time, you're going to change it. Right-click -->
Inspect on almost any site and you can edit the text or images in
your browser. Change headlines, swap images, rewrite entire
paragraphs, or crank the font until it screams in hot pink. Nothing
breaks for real. It's all local--just your browser showing you a
temporary, alternate version of the web, but before we had AI images,
this is how fake news started.
Examples to try:
* Change a news headline to "Local Cat Becomes Supreme Court
Justice."
* Add color: hotpink; font-size: 200px; to a title and watch it
scream at you in neon.
* Replace images with something dumb from your desktop
These change nothing but your display screen, however it's a nice
window into how the internet is built--and also a reminder that the
web was never meant to be a glass box you just stare at.
Remix the Web
-------------
The internet isn't finished, and it never will be. It's copy-paste
culture built for remixing. Stop thinking you need permission. You
don't even need to know how to code.
This is literally how internet culture was born. Glitter cursors,
MySpace themes, Tumblr GIF walls--none of that came from scratch.
People stole HTML snippets, broke them, duct-taped them back together
until it looked like "theirs.", and you can too! And you should! It's
fun!
Ways to start:
--------------
Collage the Web
Screenshot a random forum fight and layer it with stock images until
it looks like a surrealist zine.
Neocities Frankensteins
View the source code of a hand-made Neocities page, steal a snippet,
and drop it into your own. Make your own website!
Rewrite History
Take a Wikipedia article and blackout words until it reads like
poetry. Or rewrite it entirely so your cat is the protagonist of the
Cold War.
collection of snippets i found while coming up with searches
This is how the web was meant to be used: a sandbox where knowledge
is cut up and reassembled into something new.
Make collages. Make art. Break it, bop it, twist it, ruin it on
purpose. It's play.
Unit Five: Build Your Own Corner
================================
Exploring the internet is fun. Breaking it is fun. Remixing it is
fun. But the real magic starts when you carve out your own corner.
The internet is made of corners--personal websites, tiny blogs, old
forums, weird projects. It doesn't matter if your corner is polished,
half-broken, or visited by three people a year. What matters is that
it's yours.
Where to Start:
---------------
Substack blogs are a great place to start, but I'm assuming most of
you know that. So, let me give you some other options! If you miss
the tumblr themes of 2012, these are some options that replace that
feeling.
Neocities
The modern Geocities. Hand-build a personal site with raw HTML,
bright backgrounds, and GIF chaos.
Carrd
A drag-and-drop site builder that takes five minutes. Great for a
simple "about me" page.
Github Pages / Netlify
If you're ready for more control, these let you host your own
projects for free.
Notion / Are.na
Even a personal wiki or a visual scrapbook counts. If it's a place
where your taste lives, it's a corner.
Ideas for Your Corner
---------------------
* A personal blog where you review soups. (please please please
please)
* A fan archive for an artist, show, or game nobody else cares about
anymore.
* A living "digital garden" of your notes, links, and unfinished
ideas.
* A mixtape site that pairs playlists with doodles or photos.
Your corner doesn't have to be important to anyone, but you.
Homework
--------
Plant the Flag
Pick one platform from the list and claim a space even if it's just a
blank page with your name.
Add One Weird Thing
Post something dumb but personal--a list of your favorite chips, a
bad poem, a link you love.
Show One Person
Send your corner to a friend (if you want) just to prove it exists
outside your head.
The mall feeds you. The playground distracts you. The rabbit holes
keep you wandering, but the corner is yours.
And the internet needs more of 'em. Go build one.
The Internet Is Still Alive
===========================
The internet isn't dead. It isn't just TikTok and Twitter. It isn't a
mall food court where you shuffle between the same five storefronts.
That's the lie the feeds want you to believe.
The internet is still a city. A labyrinth. A jungle gym. A sandbox. A
living, breathing experiment where curiosity is rewarded and
weirdness thrives.
You just forgot how to use it.
Now you know again.
You've tracked your habits. You've learned to rabbit hole. You've
practiced the art of search. You've played, broken, remixed. And now
you've planted your flag--your own corner of the web.
The algorithm isn't your friend, but it's not god either. You don't
have to beg it for scraps. You can leave. You can wander. You can
build.
So stop scrolling. Start exploring. Make something dumb. Make
something beautiful. Make something yours.
<3 brooklyn
From:
--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)
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