I have often stated, the internet was better when you had to work to get access.


In the old Web 1.0 days, the filter was simply the lack of user-friendliness and learning curve aspect of it. Using a (real) computer is easy for most of us and always has been, but there was a time when normies would struggle with something as simple as installing an application or modifying basic settings.

Now, everyone has a retard-proof Fisher Price-tier pocket computer loaded down with apps that are designed for the lowest common denominator to be able to use. There aren't any real settings to mess with, there's no learning curve at all to install things. These newer devices are about as idiot-proof as you could possibly make them, and so many younger Zoomers are actually LESS computer-savvy than Millennials were.

Many Zoomers don't even know what a file path is, or where anything is actually stored or installed on their devices, because you don't NEED to know this in order to be able to use a phone or tablet.

The same goes for the internet itself and the social platforms we all use. Everything is totally centralized now. Under Web 1.0, the internet felt like a big, open space with many "hidden places" to find, like wandering a city trying out different venues. If you wanted to talk about a particular subject, you had to find a BBS forum or imageboard that catered to that subject. There were many different, separate websites dealing with specific topics. Most of those websites have now fallen by the wayside and have largely been replaced with groups or "servers" on centralized services like Discord, Facebook, etc.

The internet feels like there's "nothing to do" on under Web 2.0, the vast majority of online interaction and discussion happens on one of these few megaplatforms where "everyone" is. And all of those platforms are retard-proof too. Literally the dumbest person imaginable can still use Twitter or Instagram or Discord.

At the end of the day, normies primarily respond to convenience. The easier and more accessible something becomes, the more normie-friendly it becomes, the lower the bar becomes, and the poorer the quality of the experience becomes.