> The web, circa 1998 is more than enough.

I think I might want to move that forward a tiny bit...to maybe 2000 ~ 2005; but no further...but i get your point, and you're NOT wrong!

> Most of the problems we have with online security, privacy, tracking, etc., are the result of the rapid, irresponsible and sometimes infantile expansion of capabilities of the simple web browser.

While I am so impressed by some functions that modern web browsers can do, and how creative some people can get...I'm with you!

> Canvas? Resolutions? Sound drivers? web-usb ?!

Like 20% of the cool - and i'll add advanced - functions that modern browsers can achieve is really impressive! But, i think they *should* only be used for like 20% (or the minority) use cases...Whereas the rest of 80% functionality should be as basic as hell! A browser started as a document viewer, and we've strayed soooo far from that! And worse, since everybody wants to put apps into the browser, now browsers have to become the "operating system" for everything. If things ran smooth and simple, and every web page was not full of 500MB worth of crap, then maybe a browser as an operating system for most functions might be ok...but, nope. That's not the reality we live in. People keep jamming in all sorts of functions into the browser - because they can - so, things will continue to deteriorate. We can fight to backtrack this reality, or create an alternative (perhaps retro sort of) reality - e.g. Gemini capsules, neuvo BBS, etc., or we can opt out and go offline as much as possible. Lately, I've been dabbling tons more in the latter 2, and I feel much happier.