A small interview with Shiba (founder of Ayashii World) about his
thoughts on the Internet, circa 1998 (shortly before he quit Ayashii):
https://web.archive.org/web/19981206130852/http://www.hotwired.co.jp/matrix/9808/textonly/question/shiba.html
Google translate:
Q.1 What were you doing on the Internet in 1995? Please be as specific
as possible. If you were not using the Internet, please tell us when
you started.
In 1995, I downloaded strange underground tools and viruses. I was
still mainly using PC communication. In 1995, people were just starting
to leave NiftyServe, so BBSs and homepages were still interesting. I
started using the Internet seriously in the summer of 1996. And around
that time, I started a web page.
Q2. What are you doing on the Internet now? Please be as specific as
possible about the content of any projects you may have.
I run a web page called "Strange World," which is mainly a bulletin
board. It is underground to the general public, but not to those in the
know, so it could be called the "gateway to the underground."
Currently, it is mainly current events and inside jokes, but basically
anything goes. The principle is that those who post and those who read
are responsible for their own actions.
Q3. Has your attitude towards the Internet changed between 1995 and
now? If so, how has it changed? Or, if not, in what ways do you think
it remains the same?
I thought it would be good for the Internet to be a free and
unrestricted space, but the reality has been different. In terms of
legal regulations, it is difficult to know what is illegal and what is
legal. There must be many people who are caught without even realizing
that they are illegal. I also think that we are becoming in a horrible
situation where even things that are not illegal are being regulated in
the name of "self-regulation" to escape regulations by the authorities.
On the other hand, as more people are using the Internet, the advantage
has emerged of being able to share local information, rumors, and word-
of-mouth information on a national level. Information is being
distributed at a different level than the mass media, which act as if
they are providing all information even though they can only provide
limited information. In other words, in an information-saturated
society, it is now possible to select and discard information without
being manipulated by the mass media. I think the future of the Internet
can be found there.
Q4. Three years from now it will be 2001. Please predict the state of
the Internet in 2001 as much as possible based on your own experience.
It is certain that the number of ordinary people (those who are not
particularly knowledgeable about the Internet) will increase, so there
will be more problems like those occurring in the real world. This will
be a new type of problem with elements unique to the Internet added to
it. Elements unique to the Internet include partial anonymity and the
ease and convenience of taking action. It is expected that criminals
will become younger and younger in particular. On the other hand, as
commercial use of the Internet advances, the Internet will likely
become increasingly "clean" on the surface. It will likely move in the
direction of not only eliminating illegal things, but also "foreign
objects." Once the Internet is cleaned up and only used for commercial
purposes and broadcasting, it will be over. It will not be interesting
if it becomes the same as magazines and television. However, time flows
on the Internet several dozen times faster than in the real world, so
it is difficult to predict what will happen three years from now.