中国互联网先驱瀛海威:消失15年后仍有3000人怀念的"网络坟场"
中国第一家互联网公司死后15年,只有三千人还在怀念它。比搜狐早成立三年的瀛海威,在创始人张树新离开后逐渐没落。马云曾评价"听不懂她的观念",如今这个消失的企业却以特殊方式活在互联网记忆里。
On a website called "Traces of the Past" (www.oihw.com), over 3,000 messages have been left since 2002 by people remembering Yinghaiwei - China's first private internet company that disappeared 15 years ago.
这个名为"去日留痕"的网站就像一个互联网时代的数字墓碑。有人在这里留言"20年后再来",有人寻找失联多年的网友,更多人留下"致敬""感恩"等词。用户"吴哲"形容这里是一个"互联网坟场"。
Founded in 1995, Yinghaiwei was China's first private internet enterprise. Its famous billboard in Zhongguancun read: "How far are Chinese people from the information highway? 1,500 meters north."
1996年,瀛海威在中关村竖起著名广告牌:"中国人离信息高速公路有多远,向北1500米"。其"瀛海威时空"网络提供论坛、邮局、咖啡屋等服务,1998年注册用户超6万。
The company's downfall began when founder Zhang Shuxin left in 1998. She famously said: "We wanted to sell bread, but ended up having to grow wheat first." Yinghaiwei was officially deregistered in 2004.
创始人张树新1998年离开时感叹:"我们本来要卖面包,结果不得不从种麦子开始"。2004年,瀛海威因年检逾期被吊销执照。
前员工林兴陆2002年创建"去日留痕"网站,希望失散的网友能重聚。这个简陋的留言板至今保留着169页、3000多条留言,最早的可以追溯到2002年7月18日。
The website has become a time capsule of early Chinese internet culture. Users search for long-lost friends, share memories of their first online experiences, and even leave messages for their future selves to rediscover.
用户"大胃杜"2015-2016年两次留言寻找老网友,最终通过这个网站重新联系上了Colin、东升等瀛海威时期的朋友。他形容瀛海威就像美国的"66号公路",虽然被新高速公路取代,但人们开始怀念老路的韵味。
For many first-generation Chinese netizens, Yinghaiwei was their gateway to the digital world. As one '00s user wrote: "First discovered this site at 18, hope it stays forever."
如今这个网站已成为跨代际的"时间树洞"。一位90后留言:"等我们到中年,QQ也会成为怀旧工具";00后用户"回忆"写道:"18岁发现这个网站,希望它一直都在"。
林兴陆表示:"只要我的主机还在,域名没问题,这个网站就会一直存在"。每年他都会手动更新网站底部的年份,从"1995-2019"变为"1995-2020"。
As we enter 2020, this digital memorial continues to preserve the memories of China's internet pioneers - a living archive of how far Chinese netizens have traveled on the information highway.
