Yes, but the web was noticeably inferior as an application platform until html5, jQuery, Node and modern JS frameworks were being leveraged. But the web didn't require expensive licensing, and everyone by the late 90s had a web browser.
> web was noticeably inferior as an application platform
Nope. The web was both cross platform and insanely easy to use at the same time. It also cost an order of magnitude less because developers didn't have to implement an entire ui, printing and a bunch of code to make little things like the clipboard and resize window actually work. The web was vastly superior to the 1998 4gl scene and it was crystal clear in 98 that it was the future. So sure you could make a order entry crud app with your favorite 4gl and your order entry team could use it. With the web, I could make an order entry system and the whole world could use it...
RAD tools were focused on Desktop application development and web suddenly took over everything.