The Narratives – Mohamed Miah

In the fast-evolving digital world, websites are starting to feel a little like relics of the past, like dial-up internet or those chunky CRT monitors we used to hunch over. Once, websites were the gateway to everything—from news and shopping to staying connected with friends. Now? There’s an app for just about everything. The accessibility and convenience of mobile apps have swept websites to the sidelines, catering to our need for instant access and smooth interfaces.

So, what place do websites hold in my life now? Not much, to be honest. Gone are the days when I’d regularly browse a site for news or shop directly from my browser. Instead, I turn to websites for what I can’t easily get on social media feeds or apps—the lesser-known stories, the quieter whispers of the world. My favourites? Science, technology, history, medicine, and archaeology, to name a few. These sites are like hidden treasure chests of information that give me a different kind of knowledge, one that satisfies my hunger to learn and gives me plenty to ponder.

Here’s the funny part: while my interests lean toward learning, my web browsing habits have evolved into a chaotic backlog of open tabs. If you peeked into my browser, you’d find over 200 tabs open, each a doorway to something I thought I’d read later. But “later” tends to stretch on for months. It’s not so much about staying on top of current affairs but more about curating a digital library of interesting knowledge for whenever I feel like diving in. And perhaps that’s why websites aren’t completely obsolete in my world; they’re just… waiting. Each tab is a potential adventure, a chance to learn something new that might make me think or challenge my perspective.

The problem with my answer, though, is that my blog is a website. Ironically, as I question the longevity of websites, here I am, pouring my thoughts into one. Perhaps it’s time to consider making an app to go along with it, just in case. After all, even the most thoughtfully curated site might benefit from the ease of an app in a world where everyone reaches for their phones first. But for now, my blog remains a quiet corner of the web—waiting patiently for those who still appreciate the art of browsing.