[kickscondor]

> [Referring to Yahoo!] Within only a few years, this system was hopeless. The web exploded exponentially, in terms of “sites” but also it evolved ever-shifting ways of presenting and producing bits and pieces of content, such that the directory format of top-level sites was not even a great way of cataloging the world, let alone finding your way in it.

While this is true, personal directories are still tremendously useful - and could definitely threaten search again - now that search has lost its way (SEO, sponsored items, etc.)

See stuff like:

* http://marijn.uk/linkroll/

* https://goodtuff.simonpanrucker.com/

* https://gossipsweb.net/

* ... any “awesome” list for a language/topic

Curated personal directories can be really powerful in most niches. Many subreddits have these as well. It’s just the monolithic ones that have lost steam.