w e l c o m e t o t h e i n t e r n e t

hi, and welcome to my collection of favorite indie web links. these websites are independent and not affiliated with FAANG companies or big tech. in addition to enjoying sharing these with my visitors, I also just enjoy having this collection here for me to reference, because I am pretty shit at keeping a current favorites bar.

one of the things I reject the most about contemporary internet is how we are, to paraphrase that one viral quote, all using about five websites to share things we are quoting from the other four websites. it's boring. it leaves little room for creativity and customization. and, more alarmingly, rather than being avenues for exploration, big tech products have become instruments of exploitation. hence, I will only be sharing websites that reject that exploitation.

if you would like to have your content featured on here, or become one of my button-for-button buddies, please reach out and let me know! I can be reached out on here or my Discord handle as well is @thecountrybat, and I also have my socials to the right.

games

  • FaBrary: this is where you can view other people's Flesh and Blood TCG decks, input your own, and then you can use the decks to either play virtually via Talishar or upload the decks to GEM during official in-person gameplay. I find that using FaBrary as a database and stats aggregator really helps my deckbuilding!
  • Gaia Online: I can't believe it but Gaia Online is still a thing. yes, I am still on there. no, it's not the same account as when I was a kid 20 years ago. so worth it though.
  • JSKIDPIX: a JS-based open source version of the 1991 version of Kid Pix by Broderbund. it scratches every nostalgic brain itch I have for the computer lab at my elementary!

learning

  • Resources for Writing Historically Accurate Medieval Settings by Babywormcore: my good friend Imogen Nocturne of Babywormcore happens to be a medievalist and a writer, and has very thoughtfully aggregated a list of resources on medieval study, with a particlar focus on underrepresented populations.

music

this is obviously not an exhaustive list of artists, labels, producers, etc. that I enjoy, but these are independent websites (both official and unofficial) which are about music I enjoy.

  • kReAy's wOrLd: Oakland rapper Kreayshawn's official website and blog. she actually hosts it on Neocities!
  • s m i l e. r i p: another Neocities-hosted Kreayshawn site, with her favorite links, indie web manifesto, and playlist. it even has its own independent vc, the smile.rip party line.

movies & television

  • My Retro TVs: does what it says on the tin. it streams you video clips of television, movies, and commercials from your chosen era. (lol now I'm getting sucked into watching Never Been Kissed and remembering I had the biggest crush on Drew Barrymore ever.)
  • Webcamtaxi: a gallery full of live public webcams from around the world. street corners, bridges, roads, public markets, and other streams allow you to see what is happening in real time all over the world.

social media

  • AfterLife: the best social media site for alternative subcultures right now, bar none. it's a lot like VampireFreaks was back in the day, but so much better.
  • status.cafe: it's a bit like Twitter except awesome and not a piece of shit that is owned by one of the worst people in our species. you make a status, and it logs each status you make. you can also look at the statuses of others, and embed the status to your website.