I want to cite Olia Lialina on her research about the Vernacular Web, first published in 2005. Here is a small excerpt:
The "Under Construction Sign" is a very strong symbol of the early web. It reminds us of the great times shortly after the scientists and engineers finished their work on the Information Highway. Ordinary people came with their tools and used the chance to build their own roads and junctions. Work was everywhere and everywhere there was something that wasn't ready, links were leading to nowhere or to pages that didn't quite exist and there were signs on the pages that warned of broken connections and the lack of navigation.
Step by step people were developing pages into a functioning web and it became less necessary to warn us, especially using road signs, about missing information. But they didn't disappear. Instead, "Under Construction" images changed their meaning from a warning to a promise that this page will grow. The symbol became a hybrid of excuse and invitation. It could appear on a n empty or properly functional site as a sign that the project was growing and being updated. Often you could see the newer sign, "Always Under Construction."
"Always Under Construction" didn't mean the site would never work but actually the opposite. It informed users that there was somebody who was always taking care of the site so it would be interesting to return again and again.
This is one of my favourite essays of all time: In Defense of the Poor Image by Hito Steyerl. In some sense it captures what I believe about the internet.