I don't remember that time for regular websites, but do remember it for YouTube before it became a place that started aggressively shifting towards promoting creators who were sharing for the purposes of monetizing. Hard to find videos that fill the old vibe unless you use something like block tube next so the popular channels aren't pushing down the visibility of those type of uploads.

I guess Twitter is that way too where it started shifting into a corporate and influencer platform to advertise stuff to people as the user base exploded.

Fediverse fills the old vibe though of people just sharing because they feel like it as opposed to an expectation of like, subscribe, ring the notification bell, visit my merch store in my profile, and check out my patreon. And I see you read my comment but haven't subscribed. So please do as you drink and enjoy the refreshing taste of power aid as it cools you off on a hot summer day.