How old is your internet footprint?

[Reaganfan]

I was thinking about how significant the internet has been in my life within the last decade, so I decided to do a little research to see if I could find out how long my internet history has been around.

I know we got our first home computer shortly before Christmas 2000, when I was 12 years old. From there, I searched for weather and hurricanes and found a storm forum. It was part of the Palm Beach Post's website, and they had a specific message board for posting about hurricanes. I joined it as "floydbuster", after the recent Hurricane Floyd of 1999.

I know I joined in late 2000/early 2001 but the earliest post I could find from myself using the web archive was from November 1, 2001:



What's so crazy is that by joining that weather message board when I was 12 years old, that lead to a second weather message board two years later, which a year after that lead to the internet radio station that I did streaming hurricane coverage for. THAT lead to our getting into the Governor's Hurricane Conferences in South Florida in 2005, 2007, 2008, 2010 and 2011. During these trips we also relax and sometimes head to Key West for fun.

So this picture of me in Key West in May 2011....


...is only possible because I joined a random weather message board in December 2000.

Funny how life works, huh?

[Paul Kemp]

This is kinda like your High School yearbook right?

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

I first used a computer in 2000 or so, playing Pajama Sam and Putt-Putt (crappy little educational games). I probably first used the internet a little later. My first forum I joined in 2003/4; it was a Zoo Tycoon fansite.

[Lief 🗽]

pajama sam was rad

[bgwah]

I started playing Starcraft on Battle.net in 1999. I kind of doubt any record of that exists, though.

[Paul Kemp]

I started using AOL in 1998.

[John Dibble]

Sometime when Prodigy was still a thing in the 90's. This was before AOL became popular. I don't remember the year.

[AndrewTX]

Sometime when Prodigy was still a thing in the 90's. This was before AOL became popular. I don't remember the year.

I saw Prodigy once..once. I'm in the same boat, I'd say at the latest I started around 96 or 97 at home. Was using it in the early 90s at school.

[Simfan34]

I lurked SimCity forums at least since 1999, but I first registered on one- as Simfan34, no less- on June 7, 2003.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

I first used the internet back in the pre-web era of 1986. Doubtful I could prove it as I don't recall what my login name was on the university VAX which had internet access and the only thing I definitely recall using the internet for back then was FTP access.  Still, I do recall USENET fondly and later using Mosaic back when that was the most commonly used web browser.

[fezzyfestoon]

Older than I can remember. My dad's a computer programmer so we had internet since I was a small child in the early '90s.

[Mr. Morden]

I started on Usenet in 1995.  I think I could probably find some of my posts from back then using Google Groups.

[Ban my account ffs!]

I first used the internet in like 1993 connecting to some server.. but we didn't get regular internet service until 1996 I believe.. then we had dial-up until 2001 I believe.

[King]

Netscape Navigator, Windows 95, Juno free dialup, Excite.com homepage.  Get on my level.

[Oak Hills]

I have had internet access my entire life, though this is still the only forum I've joined.  My parents got internet in 1994, actually before they got a color television set (which happened in 1995).

[dead0man]

I first used the internet back in the pre-web era of 1986. Doubtful I could prove it as I don't recall what my login name was on the university VAX which had internet access and the only thing I definitely recall using the internet for back then was FTP access.  Still, I do recall USENET fondly and later using Mosaic back when that was the most commonly used web browser.

I still work on VAXs, at least for a couple of more years.  And while they are networked, they don't ever get to see the internet (as that would be a HUGE security violation).


My first experience with the internet was in the Air Force in 1995.  My first home interenting came in 1997.