Digital Cargo Cult: How Zoomers Ruined Old Internet Nostalgi

[lakes]

I see no threads on this forum questioning the very concept that is "Fruitiger Aero". You are all fantasizing over earlier forms of corporate surveillance and art. You wish to bring back the "old internet", when the tools have always been available for you to use from the start. You have created a "retro" forum, but you still use invasive services like Discord, still insist on using privacy violating operating systems, and still participate in social media and Web 2.0 as a whole.

I implore you to read this article: cy-x.net/articles?id=13

It will fundamentally change your perspective on this topic. You wish for the old Internet? Look towards Cyberix as a great example of accomplishing this in the modern day, because I see no IRC channels on this website, but rather a disgusting fetishization of old website layouts from soulless corporations that wish to wage psychological warfare against their own consumers.

[lakes]

I see no threads on this forum questioning the very concept that is "Fruitiger Aero". You are all fantasizing over earlier forms of corporate surveillance and art. You wish to bring back the "old internet", when the tools have always been available for you to use from the start. You have created a "retro" forum, but you still use invasive services like Discord, still insist on using privacy violating operating systems, and still participate in social media and Web 2.0 as a whole.
cy-x.net/articles?id=13

While I get what you're saying, there are various levels to privacy. I don't idolize the past, or at least try not to. But no one has perfect privacy.
For example, I use Linux, have "degoogled" & use open source messangers (like XMPP, Matrix & Fermi/Spacebar), but I still use Discord & Whatsapp simply because I have friends on there.
I try to use Discord over a VPN & with the Vesktop flatpak instead of the official app. Vesktop is an open source mod with the ability to block trackers and other such things. I used to use it in my browser, Librewolf, but for some reason it stopped letting me check direct messages.
In the end, I acknowledge I just like the "frutiger aero" aesthetic because I think it's pretty and always have even when I was young. But you're right in that it's just as corporate as flat design at the end of the day. And I do think young people should be more careful about what platforms they use, or at least how they use them.

[tmg86]

I implore you to read this article:

That article was a good read, I can agree with it on many points.

Another one from that website is great: cy-x.net/articles?id=11

... I acknowledge I just like the "frutiger aero" aesthetic because I think it's pretty and always have even when I was young. But you're right in that it's just as "corporate" as flat design at the end of the day...

I am also guilty of this.

[Daniele63]

I see no threads on this forum questioning the very concept that is "Fruitiger Aero". You are all fantasizing over earlier forms of corporate surveillance and art. You wish to bring back the "old internet", when the tools have always been available for you to use from the start. You have created a "retro" forum, but you still use invasive services like Discord, still insist on using privacy violating operating systems, and still participate in social media and Web 2.0 as a whole.
cy-x.net/articles?id=13

I'm well aware that Discord is cappy in many ways and so are most modern big sites, which is why I deliberately chose to not make a Discord server for my website, and instead created places like this forum, and my xat chatroom. I was thinking of opening a IRC channel as well, but I haven't got around to it because I didn't have time yet. I'll prob do that soon though.

You're right that some bad companies used Frutiger Aero aesthetics, but noone is glorifying these companies themselves or the privacy-invading practices they took later on (I don't anyways).

Frutiger Aero was not only used by soulless corporations. For example, the oceanscrapers concept by Vincent Callebaut was a brilliant architectural concept that also portrays the Frutiger Aero style. There were also thousands of smaller websites that were not big corpos and projects or games that used the style. The internet was more fun, flash websites were still common, early YouTube, etc.

That is why I think calling it all corporate art fantasizing is just wrong. Sure it is at heart a corporate style, but there's more to it than just that. You know there's actual human beings with souls who worked on these designs right? If you watch some interviews about the behind the scenes of Windows 7's design development, you'll find some very passionate and kind people. The higher-ups in those companies who made the bad decisions are not the ones who sat down and worked on those designs.

I don't see anything wrong with categorizing design patterns by words like "Y2K", or "Frutiger Aero", it makes things easier to find.

But anyways, encouraging people to use privacy-respecting tools is a good thing, but you shouldn't force anyone to do that, as it ultimately is their choice for whether that matters to them or not. I hope that they become more widely-used in the future though.

[MetalJack98]

because I see no IRC channels on this website,

Erm actually, I made a whole post about how to use IRC if you just scroll down a bit.

There's also a whole other post explicitly talking about how people have grown tired of using Discord and has considered quitting it as a whole.

[xrossmediabar]

you are aware that the frutiger aero we yearn for is humanism and creativity?yknow, AFTER it stopped being a corporate design style?

[tmg86]

you are aware that the frutiger aero we yearn for is humanism and creativity?yknow, AFTER it stopped being a corporate design style?

dont feed the trolls

[rnottelovesowls]

bit harsh, don’t you think? frutiger aero has been reclaimed as an art form in the present day, not a corporate style. and i prefer it that way

[Patachoo]

I feel like this thread is going nowhere lmao
Btw a little reminder to OP, please stay respectful with everyone here, you have the right to not agree and express your opinion, but being harsh and accusing is not necessary

[Daniele63]

you are aware that the frutiger aero we yearn for is humanism and creativity?yknow, AFTER it stopped being a corporate design style?

dont feed the trolls

I don't think it's trolling, I think discussing different opinions is a good thing rather than this being an echo chamber.

I'm actually interested in any ways I can improve this community, I hope that OP is actually interested in a discussion rather than just posting that 1 thing and never post again.