Ever since intro of Wayback Machine made news everywhere… It feels like we’re experiencing a flashes from the past each day. Not only do we get a 50th anniversary celebration of “I Love Lucy,” but also we get Michael Jackson in a 30th anniversary TV deal. I still say the gloved one was at his best during Thriller and shouldn’t have done any additional plastic surgery beyond that. Now, he looks like Dallas Cowboy owner Jerry Jones’ twin. Here are some of the flashes I’ve experienced:
BBSes
BBSes are mainly the reason why I got sucked into the Internet world so early in 1993. I got my first modem in 1986 and found a few BBSes (Bulletin Board Systems), but most of the places I went to were run by 12-year-old C-64 SysOps (Systems Operator) who had to take it down because “Mommy needed to use the phone.” So, I took a break from trying BBSes for a little while. I picked it up again in late ’86 or early ’87 and had better luck with some of the places I founded including Dark Side of the Moon, Doc’s Office (before it moved to Northern Virginia), and a few others whose names I can’t recall. Plus, I used Prodigy and it was a great tool that allowed me to communicate with family when I moved to Washington, DC.
The reason I got into BBSing is because it opened a whole new world for me, a hearing impaired individual. I couldn’t make my own phone calls when I was in my teens and here BBSing let me email with others, discuss things on bulletin boards, join chat rooms, and eventually meet my future better half. I ran my own BBS for about a year and couldn’t believe that I couldn’t remember the name of it. I think it was Bear’s Cave because of my stupid handle, “Purple Bear.” I did finally remember one thing: the software it ran on, but I needed help to dig through the cobwebs and this is what prompted the flashback: BBS Documentary. Jason Scott is the person behind this huge project, which includes a list of BBS software and List of BBSes by area code.
The software I used was GBBS Pro and I ran it on an Apple //e that I bought because I couldn’t take the ][+’s inabilities any longer. In looking at the List of BBSes for 202 and 817, I recognized quite a few from 202 because most of the places on the list are from the ’90s and I moved to DC in 1989. I had to look up the ’80s for 817 and I recognized Acropolis (run by Mitch Hill who went to my high school, but I had never met him) and that was it! Dang it, I wish I had that 817 list I used to keep for ages so I could submit it to the project. Hah, I remember the day I got my 1200 BPS modem from Dallas since no place in Fort Worth carried it! Whew, that was fast!
I can’t help but shake my head for not tackling the Internet and really getting into it from a HTML standpoint. I mean, yes, I put up my Web site relatively early (1993)… but I just didn’t try to learn all the tips of the HTML-trade and keep up with it until later. I’ve got to Molly’s advice and stop dwelling on “I shoud’ves.”
Merlin
Christine mentioned Merlin in her blog and it didn’t ring any bells until I went to look at it. Oh my gosh, I used to play with this thing all the time and my parents had it in my house after I moved out. They moved to a new home and probably got rid of all these games I kept over the years including Electronic Detective, which I was too scared to play with at times.
As strange as it was, I had a Speak & Spell. Strange because you had to be able to hear to play with it, but somehow it sharpened my hearing skills. Think it’s an innocent child’s toy? Think again… a childhood buddy managed to use it in some unforgettable (unfortunately) ways.
I want my MTV!
My generation welcomed MTV into our lives and new words sprung up such as “music videos” and “veejays.” The veejays I remember are Martha Quinn, Adam Curry, and JJ Jackson. Well, guess what? Adam Curry has a blog and he has moved out of the country with his family.
Whew boy, I think that’s enough reminiscing for now. Time to look to the future and I want one of these when they come out! Hey, it’s a Fossil, it can’t be too geeky.
