I’m officially launching the HandCraftedWeb.eu .
The “old” internet (pre 2008) used to feel like a collection of digital gardens. Each was unique, slightly messy, and tended by real people with real hobbies. Today, that wilderness has been paved over by corporate SEO silos, AI-generated “slop,” and data-hungry trackers. Our privacy is constantly under attack. Even if someone still has a personal website it’s mostly for commercial gain with hundreds of ads.
I’m tired of the commercial, dead internet. I think you are, too. I’m also tired of bots and scamfluencers fighting for our attention selling us useless crap.
That’s why I built HandCraftedWeb.eu .
HandCraftedWeb is a curated, decentralized directory and webring for the “Human Web.” It is a sanctuary for websites that prioritize original thought over engagement metrics and simplicity over bloat. Every site listed in our index has committed to The Human Pact:
- Human-Written Content: No AI-generated filler. Original voices only. (Usage of AI is acceptable as long as it’s stated sincerely for what it’s used, 80-90% of content must be human made!)
- Simple & Fast Design: No megabytes of JavaScript or intrusive animations. Basic minimal websites are winners.
- Privacy First: No tracking, no data selling, and no manipulative tactics. (OK, you may use things like goatcounter or other minimal analytics which do NOT track)
Why join?
Because discovery should be serendipitous. Whether you use our “Random Jump” button to find a new favorite blog or explore our human-indexed directory, you are bypassing the algorithms and connecting directly with another REAL person’s passion.
The web shouldn’t be a shopping mall; it should be a community. If you have a corner of the internet that you’ve built with care, I invite you to add your site, take the Human Pact, and help us rebuild the web, one handcrafted link at a time.
Unusual Marketing for the handcraftedweb
I’m doing some unusual marketing for the handcraftedweb…
I’m sending manual emails to a few people whom I’ve discovered online while researching a variety of topics (mostly tech related) and found their websites. I could have imported their email addresses and sent a very “generic email”. But I prefer to keep it human. ;)
Why? I found that simply posting a link somewhere doesn’t work.. with all the AI generated slop it’s probably not going to get any traction. PLus I’m also testing to see what people think of it:)
This is just an experiment to see if the idea resonates and if it gets some traction.
Some history
I was tired of the commercial web for more than 10 years I’ve spent a lot of time and I tried working on ActivityPub projects, decentralized systems and a variety of other projects. MOst where too complicated and the fediverse only took off for some kinds of people unfortunately. I eventually relaized that making a better web means allowing everyone to host his/her own website in an easy manner AND have a way to interconnect such places.
The Handcrafted Web → is one answer to this mess:).
Future Plans - Web Search & possible RSS
Some possible backlog future plans for the HandCrafted Web include
- Web Search - FUll Indexing of the sites added to the handcraftedweb site. A sort of minimal search engine
- RSS News - Indexing RSS feeds and showing recent news. This must NOT turn into a RSS feed reader but mostly a sort of latest news from the websites which exist.
- Tags - Adding tags to work as categories to make discovery, ordering fun
Realistic Expectations
Now, this doesn’t mean that those features will actually be implemented as I’ve got other projects I want to launch. The HandCraftedWeb may/may not receive too many updates depending on time availability and on adoption.
Wiby is a nice search engine for the classic web:)