Quite interesting! I feel as though one large part of it simply is to practice the muscle that notices “red flags” as an individual. After some practice it’s generally not terribly difficult to know a personal website from the rest, for one, no?
Interesting post (and blog.)
Not really sure how I feel about the “certification” idea. I feel like small/indie/smol/slow web sites announce themselves just by being what they are. More often than not, they are often happy to state what they are upfront, whether its through words or graphics, and their content usually feels too niche or special interest to be wholly generated by an AI.
IDK if I could always tell the difference between AI writing vs human writing. AI writing is usually repetitive and bad at getting to the point. Human writing can be like that too, but it usually does that in interesting, idiosyncratic ways, especially when you look at the larger scope of the blog.
As for discovering more authentic websites… link directories, and hyperlinks within articles, are usually the best way to find them. The small web tends to prioritize self-expression over virality, so it’s on us to provide links out to fellow small web sites.
As I like to say, “Only trust your links. Platforms will never help you.”
As for finding authentic websites, my rule of thumb is to check for the about page. If the bio for the site’s operator suggests that they’ve got a day job, it’s probably legit. Likewise if it isn’t full of affiliate links or “sponsored content”.
Not sure on the certification thing either. You can let people know you’re authentic by being a person… Not a brand, not a sales pitch…
It’s unclear what technique’s they’re using to find new websites outside of the directories?
At risk of being unkind, I’m not sure they have a technique.
This!! Once you’re in the personal web it’s pretty easy to find more of it! We all tend to link to each other in various ways. Of course you’re gonna have a hard time finding authentic real personal sites on the corporate web. They want to make money so they want to keep you on Their Site Only. They’re not gonna link to some guy.
It seems the hardest part is Finding the small web when you don’t even know that’s what you’re looking for
One of the most confusing and irritating parts of the more authentic web is the half a dozen names it’s been given. IndieWeb, Smallweb, Smolweb, Slow Web… the list goes on and on. Sure, there are minor differences, but all that division only makes things more complicated.
i actually think this lack of a specific name is a strength, not a weakness!
each of those terms is a new starting point for discovery. maybe you’re drawn to the principles of the small web, or the IndieWeb, or the poetic web. maybe you love the aesthetics of the retro web or the cozy web. maybe none of those things appeal to you, or maybe all of them?
maybe i’m just a pedant, but i think the minor differences matter! when i search for “IndieWeb sites” i get completely different results than when i search for “poetic websites”. there is overlap, but for the most part, these groups have different norms – different approaches to authenticity! sometimes i’m in the mood for one, sometimes the other. allowing communities to have their own names makes it easier, not harder, for me to find what i’m looking for.
yes, it’s complicated. people are complicated! how could our personal websites be any different?
Exactly. Many different names, with many different vibes. That’s actually good, because the web isn’t just one thing.
This is why we should keep referring to it as the Web.
The corporate web, the silo web, the spam web can identify themselves as such 
Or we could call all of that the shite web, and individual sites on that part of the web web shites.
the many terms definitely matter… I’m not particularly drawn to the IndieWeb, nor the retro web (why is the windows 95 aesthetic so popular??!!) but the small and cozy web, and especially the personal web, are interesting to me.