History of the Web
University dissertation project on the entire history of the web
01 / Overview
For my final year dissertation at Newcastle University, I created an interactive exhibit on the history of the web. The project, which earned an 80% grade, allowed users to explore the evolution of websites, technologies, and browsers from 1989 onwards. After I graduated, the university continued to host and showcase the project as an educational tool for its students.
As the sole developer, I designed and built the full-stack application. I developed a RESTful API using PHP and Laravel that served data from a MySQL database to a custom JavaScript and Bootstrap frontend.
A key feature allowed users to surf the modern web with legacy browsers. I engineered this by streaming remote desktop sessions from an AWS instance directly into the browser, providing a tangible experience of using Netscape or early Internet Explorer.
I also built an interactive timeline that integrated with the Wayback Machine to visualize how popular sites have changed, and included a code editor for users to experiment with early versions of HTML and CSS.
- Dissertation grade
- 80%
02 / Problem
For my dissertation, I wanted people to see and use the web as it has evolved since 1989.
03 / Decisions
04 / Outcome
The exhibit also has a Wayback Machine timeline and a code editor for early HTML and CSS. It earned an 80% grade, and the university continued to host it as a teaching tool after I graduated.
05 / Stack
- JavaScriptFrontend
- PHPBackend
- DigitalOceanDevOps
- GitHub ActionsDevOps
- AWSDevOps
- LaravelBackend