Early Web adopters preferred the slower , simpler online life of the ' 90s . Tim Bradley - Smith launched the World Wide Web in March 1989 . A 1995 survey by the Pew Research Center found that just 14 % of U.S. adults had Internet access , and among them , only 2 % had access via a top-of-the-line 28.8k modem . `` That was screaming ( fast ) , '' said Lee Rainey , the director of Pew 's Internet Project . Slow connections limited what websites could deliver . But in the ' 90s , just being able to access the Web was exciting for many .
Early Web adopters preferred the slower , simpler online life of the ' 90s . Tim Bradley - Smith launched the World Wide Web in March 1989 . Slow connections limited what websites could deliver . But in the ' 90s , just being able to access the Web was exciting for many .