AltaVista
Before Google, there was AltaVista. It found stuff, then got lost itself.
Quick Bits
What It Was
AltaVista was one of the most important early search engines, known for speed, scale, and the miraculous feeling that it could actually help you find something useful in the exploding mess of the web.
Why It Mattered
It raised expectations for what search could do by making the web feel navigable instead of hopelessly messy. In schools, offices, and homes, AltaVista helped turn 'searching the internet' into a normal thing people just did.
Why It Was Overtaken
Competitors eventually beat it on relevance, clarity, and focus while AltaVista wandered into branding shifts and portal sprawl.
Its legacy is being the early giant that helped teach everyone the search habit before another company came along and completely owned it.