I want to share a thought on digital literacy that came to me while reading an article which, without getting into the specifics of the publication or the journalist, confused Netscape with a search engine. Netscape was one of the first browsers—actually, the second widely used after Mosaic, from which it descended. The article was quite in-depth, delving into the dynamics of Internet development. So, either it was written using ChatGPT (or similar tools) without proper oversight, or it simply lacked the knowledge needed to distinguish a browser from a search engine, at least from a historical perspective.
This reflection hits home for those of us who started working with the Internet back in 1993—when it was still just a passion—because those differences are clear, born of real experience. Many will remember LYNX, a text-based browser, because at that time graphical interfaces weren’t common. Then came Mosaic, with graphics and image support (thanks to the IMG tag), and finally Netscape, which expanded the possibilities by introducing JavaScript and other features.
I also recall how some people insisted on maintaining compatibility with LYNX for users who still relied on text-based navigation. Gradually, everything evolved, and with Netscape, the potential really took off. Every step was part of Internet history, and it’s crucial that we don’t lose track of it.
Relying too much on artificial intelligence or shallow sources risks confusing our history and passing on inaccurate information to future generations—generations that need to understand where we came from to choose the right path.
The point is: we must be careful not to lose that heritage of knowledge, because it makes all the difference in truly understanding the present and imagining the future.
