Posted inHistory
The Funny Story of how Blogspot India was held for Ransom
Blogs might not be as popular as they were a decade ago, but I like to think that in some ways blogs are timeless. Now, imagine waking up one day…
Posted inNews
News Flash: Flashpoint 8.1 Out Now!
Flashpoint, the webgame preservation project, received a pretty large "minor" update this week, Flashpoint 8.1: "Spirit of Adventure", grab it over at https://bluemaxima.org/flashpoint/downloads/BlueMaxima hasn't made a Medium post for this release,…
Posted inNews
News Flash: Kongregate is Fading
I remember playing a lot of Flash games. Good way to get entertainment on a budget of zero. One of the big sites for those, Kongregate, though, is beginning to…
Posted inHistory
Pot of Greed: The Demise of Daum Tvpot (다음 TV팟)
In 2006, the South Korean web portal Daum (다음) introduced Tvpot (TV팟), their own video sharing platform, which was somewhat equivalent to YouTube, as the public was able to upload…
Posted inNews
A Big Mix Up: Streaming Service Mixer Shutting Down
The streaming platform Mixer, formerly known as Beam before its acquisition by Microsoft, will be shutting down on July 22 of this year. Microsoft cited difficulties and shortcomings in "scaling…
Posted inAnnouncement
News Flash: A Change of Pace!
We're back, after a week long hiatus! As we pass our fifth mensiversary, we've taken some time to think about how we're going about things and what direction we want…
Posted inHistory
Farewell and Best Wishes, End of The National Emergency Library; NEL History pt. 3
After the initial turbulence, the NEL continued to operate as the Internet Archive worked to reconcile with those who had felt offended by the program. Alas not everyone was satisfied, on 1 June 2020 four major publishers would sue IA culminating in a premature shutdown of the NEL...
Posted inHistory
Take Off, The Controversial Launch of Internet Archive’s National Emergency Library; NEL History pt. 2
The National Emergency Library launched on March 24. At times praised as a wonderful opportunity for accessibility, other times it was slammed as an infringe of author’s and publisher’s rights. But the real question was “Could the Internet Archive handle this much attention?”
Posted inHistory
The Background of Internet Archive’s National Emergency Library; NEL History pt. 1
The National Emergency Library was one of the Internet Archive's most controversial features. Waitlists on a large collection of books were suspended with the aim of aiding displaced learners across the US...
Posted inHistory
A Timeline of The National Emergency Library Controversy
The National Emergency Library was an initiative launched by the Internet Archive, as a response to US libraries shutting down due to the ongoing Coronavirus outbreak.
It lasted from 23 March 2020 to 15 June. This is a timeline of events leading up to the formation of the NEL and its premature cancellation.