Discover
Find projects, creators and sites you may never have come across otherwise.
About RainbowRing
Keeping you in the loop.
RainbowRing is a modern webring for the ZX Spectrum Next community — connecting independent websites so creators, projects and enthusiasts are easier to discover.
It gives visitors a simple way to move from one Next-focused site to another, while giving site owners a fair new route to reach people already interested in what they create.
What is RainbowRing?
A modern webring with a retro spirit.
RainbowRing links independent websites that celebrate, develop for, document or support the ZX Spectrum Next. Instead of hoping an algorithm surfaces the right project at the right moment, visitors can deliberately explore a focused network of real websites.
Connect
Move naturally between people building, writing, designing and creating for the Next.
Support
Help independent websites stay visible, visited and part of the wider community.
Why join?
Give your site another way to be found.
Be discovered
Your site becomes part of a focused directory and webring built specifically around the ZX Spectrum Next.
Get featured fairly
Every eligible site except yesterday’s winner has an equal chance in the daily draw. Popularity does not influence it.
Reach the right audience
RainbowRing visitors are already looking for Next games, tools, graphics, music, hardware, writing and community projects.
Understand your audience
Track RainbowRing-powered site views and LUVs over time, then compare the two to see which releases, competitions and promotions create genuine engagement.
Support the independent web
Help people discover real websites and long-lived projects beyond fast-moving feeds and short-lived posts.
Member analytics
Turn activity into something you can learn from.
RainbowRing does more than send visitors around the ring. Each member site gets its own engagement analytics, showing Total Views, Total LUVs and a rolling 7-day LUV rate, with Day, Week, Month and Year views for seeing how activity changes over time.
This makes the numbers useful for strategy. A competition, game release, development update or community event can be compared with the response that followed, helping owners see what actually connected with their audience.
Views = attention
LUVs = response
LUV rate = relationship
How it works
Four simple steps into the ring.
Create your account
Register as a RainbowRing member.
Submit your site
Add the site details and choose the most suitable category.
Install the widget
Add the lightweight RainbowRing navigation widget to your website.
Join the loop
Once reviewed and verified, your site becomes part of the live ring.
Is my site suitable?
If it’s about the ZX Spectrum Next, there’s probably a place for it.
Games
Releases, previews, devlogs and playable projects.
Graphics
Pixel art, design, demos and visual creativity.
Sound
Music, AY audio, trackers and sound experiments.
Development
Code, engines, tutorials and development diaries.
Hardware
Machines, expansions, peripherals and hardware projects.
News & Blogs
News, reviews, opinion and community writing.
Community
Groups, clubs, events and places to connect.
Tools
Utilities, editors and resources for Next creators.
Fair discovery
Everyone gets a turn in the spotlight.
RainbowRing’s Featured Site of the Day is deliberately separate from popularity. One eligible site is selected for the full day. The next day is a fresh random draw, excluding yesterday’s site whenever another eligible member is available.
Equal random chance
One full day
No back-to-back repeats
No popularity weighting
Real member sites
Future community feedback can power features such as Trending This Week, but it will never decide the daily spotlight.
Today’s example
Zingot [itch.io]
GraphicsBuilt for the community
Discovery without depending entirely on algorithms.
Fast-moving social feeds
- Posts can disappear quickly
- Visibility changes with ranking systems
- Discovery is often engagement-driven
- Your website sits outside the experience
RainbowRing
- Direct site-to-site discovery
- Independent websites stay central
- Fair daily spotlight opportunity
- A focused ZX Spectrum Next audience
- Per-site views and LUV engagement analytics
Simple, curated and built to last
Your website stays yours.
Joining RainbowRing does not replace your website or ask you to rebuild it somewhere else. The ring simply helps people find it and move between related independent sites.
Reviewed membershipSites are checked before joining the live ring.
Widget verificationRainbowRing confirms the navigation widget is installed correctly.
Health monitoringBasic checks help keep the live directory useful for visitors.
You stay in controlYour content, hosting and website remain completely yours.
Got a ZX Spectrum Next site?
You belong in the loop.
Give your site another fair route to discovery and become part of the connected Next web.