In the mid 90s, the web was exploding, but finding anything of actual value on it felt like an elaborate negotiation with whatever proto search engine happened to be standing closest to the door. Unlike now, when Google is widely seen as both portal and gatekeeper, sites like AltaVista, Lycos, Excite, HotBot, and Ask Jeeves promised to tame the chaos, each with its own suite of quirks, charms, and flaws. The real story of pre Google search is not that early engines were inferior. Its that they...
