WebmonkeyI read in the news today where a favorite web site of mine is going away. Seems like a lot of sites that I used to visit are no longer with us. I know that times change and blah blah blah, but it’s sad when an old favorite from your early days on the web hangs up it’s hat and calls it a day. Since getting on “the net” back in 1995, there’s been a lot of sites come and go, but this most recent one will truly be missed. The web site I’m speaking of is Webmonkey.

Back when Wired Magazine was in it’s hey day, they ran a series of sites and it seemed that one of the more popular ones that they ran was Webmonkey. The main reason for its popularity was the fact that so often you wanted to know “how did they do that?” and Webmonkey showed you how. From their groundbreaking design skills to their off the cuff humor, Webmonkey was one of those sites that I “cut my teeth” on. I learned a lot about what I know regarding web design from this site. Their articles were detailed and full of information on how to get things done on the web. Even to this day, I visit Webmonkey on a regular basis, if for nothing else than to use their Special Characters cheat sheet.


I also still find their user interface unique and inspiring. Mouse over the title of the site and you’ll see some simple, yet clever tricks that they use. Their folder navigation is also still cutting edge even though it’s been up for years. Webmonkey was just so great in how they pushed the envelope with what could be done and then showed you how they did it. I guess you could say it was the Monster Garage of it’s day. 🙂

Like so many other sites that I used to visit and have gone away, I’m going to miss Webmonkey. In fact I’m going to miss it more than all the others. Instead of watching it go away, I found a program called WebZip that allows you to archive entire sites. I’ve archived Webmonkey and I don’t know what I’ll do with the content, but I just can’t let go. I can’t let her go quiet into that good night.