Thank you for this walk down memory lane—2advanced was a huge inspiration for me when I started web design and learning flash, but I couldn't remember the name of the site until now. Their 2003 design is burned into my memory.

Yes! 2advanced served as an inspiration. I remember surfing it in awe of what was possible to do.

The quirkiness of the web has been somewhat lost. However, I do wonder whether that is just a factor of its expansion and whether somewhere in the depths it still lurks, waiting to be uncovered.

Thank you! This brought back memories, I never thought I'd come across that UI again

This is the first thing I thought of when I saw this! I began learning how to build websites during this era and was always in awe of their work.