User:SKCro/Articles/Web Home
Web Home, occasionally referred to as Web World, is the main home page of the WebTV service. It contains links to other WebTV services, such as Mail, Favorites, Community, and Search.
The home page has differed in layout over the years, mainly undergoing changes during the years of 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, and 2001.
History
The Web Home page underwent several design changes over the years.
Early 1996
The initial design had a more blocky layout, with 6 side buttons and a large promo image in the center, along with the WebTV logo embossed at the top. It contained links to Favorites, Directory (later Explore), Search, Mail, Setup, and Instructions (later Help).
Mid 1996?
An alternate design for the home page that seems to be from mid-1996. This one has the precursor to the top bar design used on later pages up until 2001.
Late 1996
This is the first public version of the Web Home page. It features a sidebar with links to Setup and Instructions (later Using WebTV), as well as a top bar with Mail, Favorites, Explore, and Search. The center of the page contains promotional content.
1997
Nearly identical to the Late '96 Home page, with the addition of an "Update Available!" button for users on out-of-date versions of the software and some links at the bottom.
1998
A minor update to the previous design, with the addition of more sidebar links and an Around Town bar below the top bar.
1999
A major overhaul of the Web Home page, removing the sidebar and adding WebTV Today (replacing My WebTV). The center of the page is divided into two sections: the WebTV Today container, containing links and a rotating "WebTV Today" segment, and the advertisement area, containing a randomly-chosen advertisement. This update also removed Explore in favor of Centers as well as renaming "Using WebTV" to simply "Help".
2000
A minor update to the previous design, adding a Messenger button to the top bar, but slightly squishing the WebTV logo as a result. This update also added more centers to the bottom of the page, underneath the advertisement container.
2001
Another major overhaul of the Web Home page, reflecting the rebrand to MSN TV. The new layout has a design reflecting MSN Explorer. The top has links to email, search, favorites, and Chat. The side has links to popular areas and centers. The main section has a "Today on MSN" section, showing news stories, as well as weather and an ad.
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