science

History of webcomics

History of webcomics is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand History of webcomics rather than just read about it. In short: The history of webcomics follows the advances of technology, art, and business of comics on the Internet. The first comics were shared through the Internet in the mid-1980s.

Key takeaways

History of webcomics belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect History of webcomics to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of History of webcomics from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The history of webcomics follows the advances of technology, art, and business of comics on the Internet. The first comics were shared through the Internet in the mid-1980s. Some early webcomics were derivatives from print comics, but when the World Wide Web became widely popular in the mid-1990s, more people started creating comics exclusively for this medium. By the year 2000, various webcomic creators were financially successful and webcomics became more artistically recognized. In the second half of the 2000s, webcomics became less financially sustainable due to the rise of social media and consumers' disinterest in certain kinds of merchandise. However, crowdsourcing through Kickstarter and Patreon also became popular in this period, allowing readers to donate money to webcomic creators directly. The 2010s also saw the rise of webtoons in South Korea, where the form has become very prominent.

Early history (1985–1995)

The earliest comic distributed on the Internet is Eric Millikin's Witches and Stitches, which he started uploading on CompuServe in 1985. By self-publishing on the Internet, Millikin was able to share his work while avoiding censorship by publishers or having to appeal to mainstream demographics. By 1986, other comics were published on CompuServe, including Joe Ekaitis' T.H.E. Fox, a furry webcomic drawn on the Commodore 64. From the 1980s to the early 1990s, artists published using many different Internet protocols as it was yet unclear which if any would become most widely used. For example, Usenet was home to Hans Bjohrdal's Where the Buffalo Roam in 1992. With this technology, Bjohrdal reached an audience at college campuses across a few U.S. states. Tim Berners-Lee's World Wide Web rose in popularity in 1993; usage of the World Wide Web grew by 341,634% in 1993, and competitor protocol Gopher's growth of 997% paled in comparison. Web browser Mosaic, which saw its beta release in 1993, allowed the recent introductions of GIF and JPEG image formats to be shown directly on web pages. Before this point, images shared through the internet had to be downloaded to the user's hard drive directly in order to be viewed. In 1994 and 1995, webcomics such as Jax & Co., NetBoy, and Argon Zark! experimented with forms possible only on the Internet, uploading strips in shapes and sizes impossible in print. Mike Wean's Jax & Co. introduced a "page turning" interface that encourages readers to read the panels in order; a concept that was quickly recreated by other webcomic artists. Also in 1994, an artist known as Eerie posted an ANSI art comic on bulletin board systems. Reinder Dijkhuis recalled that, by the end of 1995, there were hundreds of comics being shared through the Internet. Most of these were derived from strips of college newspapers and most were short-lived on the Internet. In 1995, when Dilbert became the first syndicated comic strip to be published on the Internet, "[lending] a certain legitimacy to the online comic concept," it became clear the Internet could be an effective tool to reach large audiences.

The second decade (1995–2005) In 2000, Scott McCloud released Reinventing Comics, a book in which he argued that the future of comics was on the Internet. McCloud stated that the World Wide Web allowed comics to make use of the various advantages of digital media, establishing the idea of infinite canvas. By 2008, it was clear that McCloud's predictions of infinite canvas did not materialize entirely, but creators such as Cayetano Garza and Demian5 were influenced by his ideas. In 1997, Bryan McNett started a webcomic hosting provider, calling it Big Panda. Over 770 webcomics were hosted on Big Panda, including Sluggy Freelance, making it the first major webcomic portal. Due to a lack of interest, McNett shut Big Panda down in 2000. Chris Crosby, who ran his webcomic Superiosity on Big Panda at the time, contacted McNett in order to create a new webcomics portal, which resulted in Keenspot. This new portal became a major success. In 2002, Joey Manley started webcomic portal Modern Tales as a competitor to Keenspot, which became one of the first profitable subscription models for webcomics. According to T Campbell, webcomics seemed unsustainable at the time, with advertisement rates dropping to an all-time low. Manley's Modern Tales was a popular solution at the time, and Manley spun off websites such as Girlamatic and Webcomics Nation. Modern Tales had 2,000 members by 2005, each paying US$3 per month. In the same year, Keenspot drew in around 125,000 readers per day, grossing over US$200,000 per year through advertising. Established comic artists such as Carla Speed McNeil and Lea Hernandez found themselves moving towards the Internet in order to reach larger audiences and build "online portfolios". With the proliferation of webcomics, awards began to emerge. In 2000, the Eagle Awards introduced the "Favourite Web-based Comic" category, and 2001 saw the first installment of the Web Cartoonists' Choice Awards. The Ignatz Awards also added a "Best Online Comic" accolade in 2001, but the event was canceled that year due to the September 11 attacks and the title was first awarded in 2002. The Eisner Awards, the most prestigious comics ceremony, eventually introduced a "Best Digital Comic" category in 2005.

Video game webcomics

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with History of webcomics

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what History of webcomics claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to History of webcomics before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about History of webcomics ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of History of webcomics

In research: History of webcomics appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses History of webcomics in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: History of webcomics is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics History of comics, History of the Internet, Webcomics, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for History of webcomics outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study History of webcomics in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what History of webcomics means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain History of webcomics out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is History of webcomics in simple terms?

The history of webcomics follows the advances of technology, art, and business of comics on the Internet. The first comics were shared through the Internet in the mid-1980s.

Why does History of webcomics matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study History of webcomics?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on History of webcomics.