Nostalgic Glimpses: How We Connected in the 90s Internet Era
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Chapter 1: Introduction to the 90s Internet
The world today is characterized by extraordinary levels of connectivity and online engagement. For young children, accessing information at school is as simple as pressing a button. Teens expect to unwrap a new smartphone and instantly connect with friends worldwide.
However, it’s challenging to believe that just under three decades ago, we were grappling with a novel invention known as ‘the internet’. Recently, I penned a story on Medium about the social networks and websites that rose and fell during the internet's early days. It gained significant traction, prompting me to delve further back into how we engaged with the World Wide Web in the 1990s.
This exploration will avoid overly technical jargon that often leaves us baffled, including myself.
To begin, we frequently hear about Web 3.0 and have been introduced to Web 2.0 in recent years, but what about Web 1.0? Interestingly, while the term Web 1.0 is often mentioned now, it was not in use during its actual period. This label was retrospectively created after the fact. The phrase Web 2.0 was first introduced in 1994, although the underlying concept had been developing for several years prior. Simply put, Web 2.0 marked the transition from static web pages to content generated by users.
For instance, Encyclopaedia Britannica is a quintessential example of a Web 1.0 site, whereas Wikipedia represents its Web 2.0 counterpart. The distinction is clear: Web 1.0 lacked meaningful interaction, with webmasters producing static pages for users to view. The closest thing to interaction back then was leaving a comment in a "guest book."
The evolution toward Web 2.0 accelerated with improved internet speeds in the late 20th century. Who can forget the struggle to connect to the internet in the 90s? It monopolized the home phone line, leaving no option for others to make calls, as mobile phones were virtually non-existent. The connection was agonizingly slow, often causing web pages to take several minutes to load, especially if images were involved. I vividly recall the exhilaration we felt when our 14.4Kb connections upgraded to 28.8Kb—yes, that’s 'Kb', not 'Mb' or 'Gb'. The connection process was accompanied by those notorious high-pitched beeps and screeches. If you don't recall these sounds, you truly missed a unique experience.
Once we managed to connect our computers to the internet, often after multiple attempts, the next challenge was figuring out how to access online content. Before the likes of Google, YouTube, or Facebook, how did we navigate the vast and often confusing World Wide Web? Here are six methods we used to 'surf the web' back in those early days.
Section 1.1: Browsing with Mosaic
When I first ventured online in 1994, Mosaic was the go-to browser for most users. Although it wasn't the first browser, it was the first to allow image viewing directly within the browser, eliminating the need to download images separately. Can you imagine going back to that?
Mosaic soon fell out of favor in the mid-90s, eventually being discontinued by 1997.
Section 1.2: The Rise of Netscape
Netscape Navigator, introduced in 1994, quickly eclipsed Mosaic as the leading browser. One key innovation was its ability to display images as the page loaded, unlike its predecessor, which forced users to wait for the entire page to load before seeing any content.
During the mid-90s, Netscape dominated the web. Many Internet Service Providers and computer magazines distributed disk versions of Netscape, as downloading it was impractical due to its size. Netscape Navigator was also the first browser to integrate email features with Netscape Mail, paving the way for portal-type homepages.
Section 1.3: The Microsoft Explorer Era
In the mid-90s, early versions of Internet Explorer lagged behind Netscape. However, the game changed when Microsoft bundled it with Windows 95, igniting the infamous 'browser war'.
With Internet Explorer pre-installed on nearly every computer sold post-1995, it was inevitable that it would emerge as the dominant browser. By the decade's close, Microsoft Explorer was the only serious player left in the field, while AOL acquired Netscape, transferring its code to Mozilla, which later developed Firefox.
Section 1.4: AOL's Web Portal
In the 90s, many users opted for web portals like AOL to connect to the internet. With a robust marketing strategy featuring TV ads and enticing ‘one-month free trials’, AOL became immensely popular among non-tech users.
Rather than navigating complex web browsers, people logged into AOL for email, forums, and curated content. At one point, half of all CDs produced worldwide bore the AOL logo, illustrating its dominance.
However, AOL's tightly controlled content soon felt restrictive as the web expanded. Today, AOL exists only as a shadow of its former self.
Section 1.5: The CompuServe Experience
CompuServe, which some may not recognize, was the first major internet service provider in the late 80s, before being overtaken by AOL in the mid-90s.
While it offered a similar closed system with email and forums, CompuServe employed a metered pricing model, charging users per minute. This proved unfeasible as the internet gained momentum, leading many to switch to AOL.
Section 1.6: Prodigy’s Rise and Fall
Prodigy, while not as prevalent in the UK, boasted nearly a million subscribers in the US at its peak. Its subscription model and content aggregation were innovative for the time. However, frequent pricing changes and attempts at online censorship led to user dissatisfaction.
As you can see, these six methods were pivotal in how we accessed the internet prior to the emergence of Google, YouTube, and Facebook.
Do you have any memories of those early days and the struggles of connecting online?
Chapter 2: Revisiting Internet Memories
The second video highlights the ten aspects we miss about the 1990s internet, taking a nostalgic look back at a time that shaped our online experiences.