There was not consistency between applications back then, only if you cherry-pick the ones that you like. Every Java GUI application would have a completely different UI from the base OS. Programs like America Online, RealPlayer, WinAmp, and Microsoft Bob, and Windows Media Player 7 and above would completely ignore existing OS conventions. Many programs had a habit of making the entire user interface out of bitmaps and only having a menu bar as the last vestige of the OS.

Websites might have been easier for developers to build, but they did almost nothing in comparison to what you can do with a web application now. Did Microsoft Word run entirely in a web browser like it does today? Were there any maps and driving directions where you could scroll the map without refreshing the page or order a taxi and visualize its progress? Remember typing your address into MapQuest and printing out your static map and directions list?

Arguably, delivering a 90's web app experience doesn't even require writing HTML code anymore and is therefore far easier than it was in the 90's.

I couldn't disagree more strongly with this.

The UI can't just be considered on its own without a discussion of the underlying functionality that it presents. iOS6 is like a caveman's OS compared to what today's OS versions can accomplish.

So it may be true that iOS felt simple and intuitive, but it was also presenting so much less functionality that it really makes broad comparisons seem disingenuous.