- I grew up with the internet. -
+I grew up with the internet.
-- I was born in 1997. The internet was flourishing by then, but it was still the wild west of technology. It was a - place of wonder, of creativity, a place you visited rather than lived in. Growing up in the 2000s meant growing up - with the internet. I was slightly too young and sheltered to have my own Geocities page, but it was sites like that, - that I grew up with. -
+I was born in 1997. The internet was flourishing by then, but it was still +the wild west of technology. It was a place of wonder, of creativity, a place +you visited rather than lived in. Growing up in the 2000s meant growing up with +the internet. I was slightly too young and sheltered to have my own Geocities +page, but it was sites like that, that I grew up with.
-- In the 3rd grade, at my school's Scholastic Book Fair, I came across a copy of Petz 5. I begged and begged my - parents to buy it, and they did! This simple game, centered around raising virtual dogz and catz, is an intregal - part of who I am today. -
+In the 3rd grade, at my school's Scholastic Book Fair, I came across a copy +of Petz 5. I begged and begged my parents to buy it, and they did! This simple +game, centered around raising virtual dogz and catz, is an intregal part of who +I am today.
-- I don't remember how I discovered Petz fansites, but once I did, I was hooked. I spent hours downloading custom - breeds, clothes, and toys, and learning what the various game files did. I convinced my mom to make me an email - address so I could adopt petz from the people who ran these sites. I learned the sad truth that just because a site - is online, doesn't mean that it's active, and the cute puppies I requested were never arriving to my inbox. -
+I don't remember how I discovered Petz fansites, but once I did, I was +hooked. I spent hours downloading custom breeds, clothes, and toys, and learning +what the various game files did. I convinced my mom to make me an email address +so I could adopt petz from the people who ran these sites. I learned the sad +truth that just because a site is online, doesn't mean that it's active, and the +cute puppies I requested were never arriving to my inbox.
-- Computer game files were much more hackable back then, and I credit Petz for showing me that computers weren't - magic, they were created by a hundred little parts working together, and that by changing one part you could - customize your experience. Computers could be moulded to fit whatever I desired them to do. -
+Computer game files were much more hackable back then, and I credit Petz for +showing me that computers weren't magic, they were created by a hundred little +parts working together, and that by changing one part you could customize your +experience. Computers could be moulded to fit whatever I desired them to do.
-- However, it was websites that really caught my fancy. -
+However, it was websites that really caught my fancy.
-- I have always been an artist. Most people don't think of web design as art anymore, because most people only - interact with the internet through sanitized social media and clickbait article sites that all look more or less the - same. But websites used to be personal, they used to be unique, they used to be about self-expression. People made - websites to share something they created with the world. -
+I have always been an artist. Most people don't think of web design as art +anymore, because most people only interact with the internet through sanitized +social media and clickbait article sites that all look more or less the same. +But websites used to be personal, they used to be unique, they used to be about +self-expression. People made websites to share something they created with the +world.
-- The world wide web is only 33 years old, and yet most people have already forgotten what it was invented for. At its - heart, the internet is about connection and expression. Anybody from anywhere in the world can talk to - someone anywhere else in the world, provided they have an internet connection and a device to access it through. You - can share whatever you want, however you want. -
+The world wide web is only 33 years old, and yet +most people have already forgotten what it was invented for. At its heart, the +internet is about connection and expression. Anybody from anywhere +in the world can talk to someone anywhere else in the world, provided they have +an internet connection and a device to access it through. You can share whatever +you want, however you want.
-- This is something social media has tried to take away from us. Remember the days when you could customize your - MySpace profile? Or put as many blinkies on your Geocities as your heart desired? Twitter doesn't even let you set a - profile color anymore. Instagram will delete your photo if you happen to show a little too much skin. Neither will - let you show your feed in chronological order or only show posts from people you follow. -
+This is something social media has tried to take away from us. Remember the +days when you could customize your MySpace profile? Or put as many blinkies on +your Geocities as your heart desired? Twitter doesn't even let you set a profile +color anymore. Instagram will delete your photo if you happen to show a little +too much skin. Neither will let you show your feed in chronological order or +only show posts from people you follow.
-- These corporations have made you the product. Products don't get to chose how they're displayed or who uses - them. So is it any wonder that social media doesn't let you change the background or font color on your profile? Let - alone how your data gets used or even what's collected at all! -
+These corporations have made you the +product. Products don't get to chose how they're displayed or who uses them. So +is it any wonder that social media doesn't let you change the background or font +color on your profile? Let alone how your data gets used or even what's +collected at all!
-- So how do we fight back? -
+So how do we fight back?
-- Delete your social media. I'm serious. These sites may pretend their money comes from ads, but without their actual - product, the users, ad companies won't pay to show ads on these sites anymore. Ad companies buy ads on social media - because social media has put all of their users into highly specific ad profiles. Ad companies pay to target exactly - who is likely to use their product, or has already done so, and nobody else. Without users to fill ad profiles with, - ad companies won't buy ads. -
+Delete your social media. I'm serious. These +sites may pretend their money comes from ads, but without their actual product, +the users, ad companies won't pay to show ads on these sites anymore. Ad +companies buy ads on social media because social media has put all of their +users into highly specific ad profiles. Ad companies pay to target exactly who +is likely to use their product, or has already done so, and nobody else. Without +users to fill ad profiles with, ad companies won't buy ads.
-- Besides, do you really care what your best friend's aunt's sister eats for breakfast every day of the week? -
+Besides, do you really care what your best friend's aunt's sister eats for +breakfast every day of the week?
-- I say this with the caveat that this isn't always possible, especially if you make money from social media. As much - as I hate what Musk has done with Twitter, it's the only social media left I'm allowed to be a sex worker on, and in - 2023 social media is unfortunately part of the job. So I can't delete it. -
+I say this with the caveat that this isn't always possible, especially if you +make money from social media. As much as I hate what Musk has done with Twitter, +it's the only social media left I'm allowed to be a sex worker on, and in 2023 +social media is unfortunately part of the job. So I can't delete it.
-- Make your own site. Neocities is a wonderful place - to do so - it combines personal sites with a social media-esque following system, all while being open-source and - ad-free. Fill the web with personal shrines to self-expression again. -
+Make your own site. Neocities is a wonderful +place to do so - it combines personal sites with a social media-esque following +system, all while being open-source and ad-free. Fill the web with personal +shrines to self-expression again.
-- The web is yours. It always has been. Let's remind corporations that this wild west belongs to the people, - not a bottom line. -
+The web is yours. It always has been. Let's +remind corporations that this wild west belongs to the people, not a +bottom line.
-- Stand up for self-expression. Stand up for freedom. -
+Stand up for self-expression. Stand up for freedom.
-- Take back the web. -
+Take back the web.
<p>This is a paragraph, containing +long amounts of text that likely wraps onto multiple lines. I can say anything +here, but if it's too long readers are likely to skip +it!</p>
+ +