When I was in college in the early 90s, we had Computer Message Boards that we dialed into.

 

I sold sportscards "online" before it was called online.

 

Does anyone else have messageboard experiences before the internet like I do?

1998 was when I became addicted to the internet.

I can remember getting Prodigy internet in '94 (I believe). This is not "pre-internet experience", but the internet was a lot different then.

I started out on AOHell when it took a fargin hour to even get online...been addicted ever since!!!

1992. We actually had to go backdoor into someone elses access in order to get on-line. It was a pain in the ass.

Started with Prodigy (that was the one with the huge yellow logo, right..?) a loooong time ago... then went to AOL shortly after that and been with them ever since. It was like the very start of AOL too. We were using the beta software to start. Yikes.. that sure was a long time ago. I think I bought my first home computer in '91. Has the internet been around that long..???

 

Thank God for Al Gore!!

I think i had AOL 2.0...wow.

we started on aol and after 8 versions of me complaining about it we switched to sbc dsl

Incomm Data and US Robotics were customers of mine. They manufactured modems right here in the good old USA.

 

I dialed into bulleting board systems like The Well in California, running up some nasty long distance bills.

 

I also remember being on GEnie, Prodigy, and AOL when Steve Case went over the 100,000 member mark. I have an old AOL t-shirt from their road trip promotion days.

 

What a pain in the ass those days were. Configuring your modem based on where you were dialing. Tying up your phone line for hours, and 300 baud modems that would lose a connection with the slightest noise.

Incomm Data and US Robotics were customers of mine. They manufactured modems right here in the good old USA.

 

I dialed into bulleting board systems like The Well in California, running up some nasty long distance bills.

 

I also remember being on GEnie, Prodigy, and AOL when Steve Case went over the 100,000 member mark. I have an old AOL t-shirt from their road trip promotion days. 

 

What a pain in the ass those days were. Configuring your modem based on where you were dialing. Tying up your phone line for hours, and 300 baud modems that would lose a connection with the slightest noise.

Things got a lot better when I ran fiberoptic wires through my house. I love this T-3 connection I have now. I just downloaded everything on Kazaa in 3 minutes and 2 seconds.

I remember having Prodigy and the really old AOL back in the day. I didn't become addicted to the internet until about 1997 when we switched to this local based internet provider called Millenium. But I totally remember having the beta version of AOL Instant Messenger in like 97-98.

I remember having Prodigy and the really old AOL back in the day.  I didn't become addicted to the internet until about 1997 when we switched to this local based internet provider called Millenium.  But I totally remember having the beta version of AOL Instant Messenger in like 97-98.

I had like a 5 digit ICQ number back in the day. I only downloaded AIM about a year ago, and am never on it.

I had like a 5 digit ICQ number back in the day.  I only downloaded AIM about a year ago, and am never on it.

Before college, AIM kept me from tying up the main phone line which made my parents happy. And now being in Washington, DC with my friends and family all in Illinois, AIM is my best friend. Course, I'm also a big nerd and I send instant messages to my roommate...

Before college, AIM kept me from tying up the main phone line which made my parents happy.  And now being in Washington, DC with my friends and family all in Illinois, AIM is my best friend.  Course, I'm also a big nerd and I send instant messages to my roommate... 

When I first networked my house, my daughter sent me a IM from her room to being her water.

 

Wireless networking is so cool.

Before college, AIM kept me from tying up the main phone line which made my parents happy.  And now being in Washington, DC with my friends and family all in Illinois, AIM is my best friend.  Course, I'm also a big nerd and I send instant messages to my roommate... 

You aren't a nerd until you have your best friend join Soxtalk so that you can just send PMs without having to leave the site

You aren't a nerd until you have your best friend join Soxtalk so that you can just send PMs without having to leave the site

So what's your cat's screen name?

Edited October 11, 200421 yr by Texsox

You aren't a nerd until you have your best friend join Soxtalk so that you can just send PMs without having to leave the site

Well, I haven't done that cause I can't get any of my friends to join Soxtalk. But my friend and I have sent emails to each other while we're both at work...from the same room...and using the same computer...

I was on AOL 3.0.

I was on AOL 3.0.

As was i.

So, no one besides myself was nerdy enough to be on Computer Bulletin Boards before the internet started being mainstream.

 

:banghead

My first online experience was something called CaluNET online in Northwest Indiana.

It was like 5 bucks a month and was like a message board. No real internet just like message boards and e-mail. It was run by the Hammond Times newspaper.

Getting on there on our cool 386 computer.