> People my age or a bit younger (early 20s) say craigslist and hackernews look "hideous" but dammit this is how web pages are supposed to be.

Not for me. I'm 18, and I think HN is doing great with this webdesign. As well with other sites.

I prefer an application for e.g. Twitter, because the website is way too slow in Firefox. Especially when you follow over 1000 people.

I also really liked http://motherfuckingwebsite.com as an example explaining what is wrong with websites these days.