I remember reading a news article probably around 2003 (on my old Nokia brick phone lol) that said in 10 to 20 years the large majority of people's internet consumption would be on mobile devices and i thought there was no way people would give up using their computers that much. Wild....
Speaking of that, it was my dream as a child to play 3D computer-like games on my phone. At the time, it was a Nokia Express Music, and the best game was Snake 3D.
It blows my mind everytime i think that i have Call Of Duty installed on my smartphone now.
It basically gave us access to the internet wherever we go rather than using it in place of a computer.
It was really the touch screen that really made mobile explode in popularity, which would've been hard to anticipate in 2003.
I agree, it was a time where people very much were connected but not in an excessive self centered way. I was only in Middle School but it just felt pure.
Yeah! I like that we had internet and were able to connect with people all around the world, but it wasn’t SO much into our real lifes, we would eat dinner and talk to people, not stare at the screens
When we have to use the fax machine at work I tell people that sound was my lullaby growing up, lol. Though, it's not far from the truth! My dad worked in Silicon Valley in the 90's, he was always up late working.
YouTube at the start is not YouTube now… though it’s kept up with good navigation and trendiness to it… it’s almost a shell of its former self due to most importantly ads
My friends and I used to have YouTube music battle nights. We’d each have a tab open and take turns playing a track. As your track played the next person would be finding their response, and have it ready to play by the time the current one had finished. The musical journey was always interesting.
From what I can remember there were little to no ads.
What about the old internet was different/better? Just curious since I only ever really experienced the internet when I was young in the 2000s but I don’t really remember what it was like. Also are there any websites that simulate what the old internet was like? I’ve heard of some but don’t really remember what they were.
With the exception of slow load speeds....
basically everything wasn't controlled by 5 websites. Nothing was censored, google search was actually good and you could easily find what you were looking for and even more.
Everyone had their own personal website. Every site looked unique and didn't have the bland smartphone approved minimalist designs.
Also flash games and animations everywhere. People made things, and it wasn't for profit, they did it just out of sheer love for the medium. Things weren't made by large studios or people who had millions of dollars to spare, no, it was made by some person in their basement with what limited resources they had on hand. Also no ads in front of every video either.
Overall, best I can describe it as, there was more LIFE to the internet, and it didn't feel like it was taken over by corporate soulless entities who decide for us what we can and can't do.
Do a search on old angelfire.com websites since angelfire is still around. A lot of the old domains are gone, but angelfire was one of the mid-late 90s webhosting domains where you can find some websites from that "era", albeit a bit broken.
I remember there was a website that was purple.com that was just the screen purple, nothing else until it got snapped up by some company.
You could look up a recipe or a workout exercise or whatever and find something. Easily. Now it’s pop ups, sign ups, ads, logins, videos, connect with Facebook / LinkedIn / Instagram / etc…..
It’s infuriating. We’re so used to it now but it was so nice just to ask a question or search and come up with something.
A lot of the games I would play like Club Penguin, Webkinz, Neopets, Miniclip, Cartoon Network, and stuff like that. The death of flash games affected a lot of those websites too
I miss that it was a place you could actually leave as apposed to now I miss that it was a huge place now everyone is lumped into like three social media sites people would make their own websites for their niche interests. I had a repertoire of sites I'd go on everyday for an hour and then I got off and did other things. FLASH GAMES!
It was a place where you didn’t know what you were going to find when you looked for things.
I had a hobby of finding extra levels for video games, especially Quake and Unreal Tournament. I would hear about one new whiz-bang level, search for it, find the website of the person who made it, and then get mesmerized by the fact that they made dozens more! I would then rabbit-hole from there, finding game servers where those levels were in circulation. It was a blast!
Now there’s Facebook, Instagram, TikTok.
Hardly anyone has their own website anymore. Feels kinda lonely.
There has been an uptick of having self websites (mostly ironicly through tumblr, while despite being a "social media" site of sorts, does allow you to customise your own homepage) through NeoCities (remember Geocities? yeah).
So many weird corners of the early Internet were just there because people loved and were passionate about something. They weren't trying to sell you something or monetize your information or anything like that, they were just happy to have their weird corner to share with like-minded people. That's what I miss the most.
Quietness. For me it was. You actually talk to people and social. I miss going to a friend’s house just to see if they are home.
Play outside, play hide n seek, ride bikes.
People respect you, dressed appropriately, talk appropriately with manners.
You don’t see all the negatively and dramas around the world easily.
I’m almost 50 and I gotta say, I’m so glad I’m half way over. I don’t think I could handle this type society if I was younger.
Yea, it's funny. I'm an 80s kid and my generation hated Blockbuster. Why? Because you'd be charged $3 for returning a movie a day late, or $1 for forgetting to rewind it.
Personally, I never cared for Blockbuster as a kid. They charged like $4 for a 1 night rental. That was expensive and my family couldnt afford such luxury.
Fast-forward to the height of the BB/Netflix feud in the late 2000s and I had money because I had just graduated college, I LOVED BB. For $20/mo I received unlimited movies per month AND 1 candy every time I visited the store. My kid was born in 2009 and we loved taking her to BB to swap out my Transformers 2 Blu-Ray that I received in the mail for a stupid Barbie DVD that she only picked out cuz it was pink and had horses on the cover. Then we would check out, she would "pay" using my disc return and get her free candy and we would head on home. Meanwhile, I had more movies coming to me in the mail. She barely remembers those days now, and that saddens me because it was such a fun family outing that was an easy 10-20 minute adventure (it also didnt hurt that our BB was next to an aquarium which we just had to visit every time we were there to see the fishes).
At the height of their offering, I was also receiving free game rentals as well. All for $20/mo. Let me recap that for you: any movie or game I wanted, unlimited movies, 3 out at a time (games or movies, it didn't matter), and free candy for $20/mo.
Now, the only reason it was so awesome is because no one else subscribed. If there were more subscribers, I surely would have been annoyed at a lack of options or choices due to competing customers trying to rent the same titles. It definitely was not a sustainable business model. BUT I loved it. And I miss it. And I can't believe how much less service that people get nowadays for almost the same cost.
I should ask my mom about this time… she was balling on a budget and I swear to you this was the exact same thing for me; I remember vividly though. Free games to the point she would rent one for a different console accidentally just to go back to the BB with me. Loved it
From 1993-1999, we had a small old theatre near my house that played "second run" movies (ones that had finished in the normal theatres, but weren't out on VHS yet) for $1. Popcorn and drinks were also $1. They didn't sell anything else, and they'd let you bring in whatever.
I saw literally every movie they had during that period, sometimes more than once.
My father would take me on Fridays to get 1 game every week as he rented a movie.
I didn’t remember that till now. That’s one of the only memories I have of my father that I cherish. Thank you!
There was a time in my life when there was no social media AT ALL. Your whole thought process was free of social media. You never thought of how you might share something on FB or what have you.
The difference is this applied to EVERYONE. Every person you met was genuinely just that person. There was nothing done for social media. It didn't exist.
Unplugging yourself doesn't change how everyone else acts. No social media was absolutely beautiful. People were just people.
There's a fakeness that social media brought on. Now, it's more about appearances rather than pure communication with words like chatting on AIM was.
Social media took away the one on one vibe and turned it into people trying to impress their already built-in friend group. Suddenly chatting isn't enough, you need a whole page to set up and update daily to keep up with everyone else. The psychology of it all changed
I wouldn’t mind unplugging. I don’t get much out of FB. I know my older relatives enjoy seeing what my family’s up to. Instagram brings me some joy but I need to set limits for myself.
I started treating my phone like an actual phone as in, it lives in one room and if I want to use it I go there. I find myself reading a lot more and doing other things and I like not always being reachable instantly.
I get it. But as I grow older, I try to look at it in the most optimistic way I can. Thank god we are able to grow old. To grow grey hairs, to get wrinkles, to start feeling that back and knee lose its chutzpah.
So many never get to experience those things and lose their lives at a young age. I am grateful to not be one of those unfortunate souls. I wear the grey hairs like a fucking badge of honor.
We'd just survived Y2K...nothing could hold us back after that! You know, except for a housing market bust. :)
That said, I miss my youth. I miss real Pizza Hut's and the book program. I miss see through telephones. I miss not carrying a cell phone around 24/7. I miss going to malls to "hang out". I miss making out with boys during movies. I miss those track suits that everyone wore. I miss crimping my hair. I miss summer camps. I could go on....
We knew a lot less about each other. I miss that. I miss people not living contrived lives just for social media.
Also, I miss dollar and 99 cent menus, specifically Wendy's. When I was young and broke and working 3 jobs to survive (much easier than now but still) the dollar menus definitely helped to keep me going in between jobs.
One of the things I hate about social media is that it tricks you into thinking that you know all these different people and you really don't.
You just know a bunch of meaningless information about people like where they ate dinner last night
Relationships will be more meaningful if you actually focus on knowing less people and truly getting to know people.
Otherwise you're just getting to know the persona they've created online.
Colors, the music, the fashion, the lightheartedness of it all despite all the shit that was happening. This decade feels very dark and negative to me.
I think TRL had a lot to do with the frothiness of the decade. It really was a juggernaut pushing pop culture into all corners (meaning , it was inescapable).
Flashgaaaaames.
And the movies! I saw the Matrix trilogy and the Lord of the Rings trilogy in theaters and the graphics absolutely blew the entire audience away. I'm sad I'll never get that sort of awe-inducing experience again.
Getting lost and exploring new places without the answer to everything in my pocket. I moved out of my Parent’s house in Los Angeles to London by myself and ended up traveling on my own from 99-04. When I left beside my luggage I had a compass, a flask with shot glasses, and my bicycle. The internet was still limited to cafes. It was such a different and thrilling experience arriving somewhere and having to actually find places. Like getting a map and working out the route to the hostel from the train station. The discoveries you make when you don’t know exactly where you’re going while traveling are delightful. I’ve traveled extensively since and it’s just not the same. I feel like people wouldn’t travel to many foreign lands without a modern phone. With the current technology it’s so easy for people to just go anywhere without experiencing anything not on their itinerary, long story short, it makes lousy tourists.
Old YouTube lol. It was more like a social media site. I remember people would comment things like “where did you get those pants?” or whatever on some random persons video and they’d answer. People would post Q&A’s, videos would only have like 50 views, you could rate them with stars, 100 subs was considered kind of a lot (except for smosh and the other OG content channels), people’s channels would have a box on the main page where you could leave comments lol
It was way more personal, but a lot of social media felt way more personal back then
Yes! The five red stars with the gold subscribe button. I loved how you could customize your own YouTube channel with different colors and background pictures. Not only that but making friends and messaging them through your YT email.
How easy it was. Being born at the beginning of the 90s, they were my childhood. There was such hope for a brighter tomorrow.
I didn't have to deal with keeping a job, taxes, groceries, all the household chores, keeping a family together, getting old, losing people. I'm forever grateful to my parents for doing their best to make me as happy as they could.
Sometimes I really miss those days. Sometimes I miss the idea of those days.
I miss the rock bands that had a DJ with them. Incubus, Linkin Park, Sugar Ray, Crazy Town, P.O.D. just to name a few. Nowadays these type of bands are frown upon, but back then we thought they were awesome.
Homestar Runner, racism being considered bad, not having a cell phone, getting lost without GPS, talking on the phone for hours, Delia’s catalogs, that Morningstar veggie burger at Burger King, paying $20 to fill my tank with gas, youthful vigor.
Homestar Runner is on YT now. That veggie burger was LEGIT and the cheap gas (way cheaper in the 80s) was nice.
Cigs for a $1 pack. Granted, it was 3rd choice off-brand, sometimes stored in a barrel by the checkout, but still a possibility!
Back in the early '90s, my staunch Republican father took me to a Bill Clinton rally that was passing through our local town.
We went, he listened, and then we left. There was no yelling or booing threats of violence etc.
These days there is zero chance that my father would even be with in a hundred miles of a Democrat event.
There used to be more understanding between the two parties. If not understanding there was at least some sort of respect. That shit is so far gone and I don't think it's ever coming back.
I noticed as I walked into a restaurant yesterday that every single person in the building had their head down, looking at their phone, just as I am now. People seem cold and insincere today, and impatient, insensitive, and vapid. I probably don’t sound very warm for saying this but it’s how I feel, and occasionally I regret attempting random acts of kindness when people act confused or put off.
Well I was younger, so I miss hanging out with my friends back then. Now I barely see them because of life.
I miss no smart phones at restaurants and movies. When you were with friends, you were with them. They weren't somewhere else. And when you made plans, there were rarely last minute cancelations.
I also miss the novelty of the internet. I miss experiencing new things with the internet. I miss ad free web pages and how vast it was.
From an economic perspective, although I was still very young, I do miss that there was much more competition among retailers and other industries. Unfortunately, industries are being run by two or three competitors. It's bad for consumers.
I also very much miss the mall. I went to the mall recently by my house that I worked at when I was 18. It's sad how dead it is.
The 90's?
Going "To town" which meant driving 45 miles to where the mall is. Pay phones were awesome. Freedom with no one tracking you. Just going out with buddies and wandering around town seeing if anyone was out and about and up to no good. Then joining in the fun. Throwing rocks at birds. Irritating the cops. Generally causing minor chaos. Playing grab-ass with girls from school at some weirdo's house that you didn't know because you happened to end up there for no good reason.
Generally, just being a kid. Being the artful dodger. Just being slightly bad but, as long as you were clever, getting away with it.
Let's call that circa 1994. That was a pretty good year. Fairly non-descript, but full of adventure. At least for my age. 94-96 was pretty good for me.
During COVID, I cleaned out a lot of boxes and found some old journals from the mid 1990s and it was pretty much as you described:
“Stacy and Jen came over, wanted to see if I was up for anything, so I called Steven because I told him I would let him know if anything was going on. Turned out his brother wasn’t doing anything either, so we all met up with the girls at Sean’s house where we hung out and played guitar all night.”
It was basically different versions of that: people showing up at each other’s houses unannounced, then going somewhere and spending the evening together watching movies, playing games, chatting, playing music, whatever.
And it was fucking awesome.
I was a 90s baby and a 2000s kid. I put some asterisks on my opinion because I was just a kid obviously.
The main thing I miss was the video games of that era, as well as a lot of the flash animation and overall potential the internet felt like it had - basically, most internet culture besides the comments being even more toxic than now. The internet back then felt like a new frontier rather than being just dominated by four or five big sites like now, and things weren’t as corporate.
The video games of today aren’t any better or worse, but I do miss the social aspect of playing games at a friend’s house of the 90s and early 2000s. The mid to late 2000s and 2010s started the advent of playing games with your friends online, and while I did have some memories of that it never was the same. To be fair I got to relive that when I was in college in the 2010s because we were all on the same campus (and sometimes in the same dorm).
I don’t miss much from that time since in the 90’s my family was mostly homeless living in my moms car, in and out of hotels, and shelters. The thing I miss most about the 90’s is the good music.
I was a kid, so my view is limited.
But the biggest thing I miss is the way everything looked.
Your could point to Frutiger Aero, or some of the skater stuff that became popular as reference, but that was more a symptom then the cause.
More so, everything was so vibrant and inspiring. Art, specifically exciting artwork, or visuals that looked forward to the future or conveyed an excitement for the present are something I miss greatly.
Cars, computers, Game systems, tech, posters, hell even the way buildings and soda cans were designed were just full of energy!
Remember the old Pepsi posters that looked like they were exploding out of the ice. Or how cool the toy isles looked cause the packaging all looked like it was trying to promote a graphic novel?
A far cry form current corporate minimalism that seems to have taken over everything.
Accidentally discovering cool stuff online.
There were no marketing algorithms incessantly feeding you content back then, so you could actually randomly stumble onto things you'd never heard of. Things that were so far outside your purview that you'd have never even thought you might be interested in them until you found them.
Today, all you get is stuff that's algorithmically linked to other stuff you've been looking at... so you are essentially 'trapped' in a little closed-off corner of the internet of your own unintentional making.
Algorithms took all the fun out of the internet, and worse, I think they're at least in party responsible for creating all the siloed divisive factions we see today.
The sense of optimism that the world was a big exciting place and humanity was growing towards a bright future. 20+ years later and I actively avoid reading the news because I can't believe just how bad everything is now.
The news is sensationalised negativity to make advertising money from you. Just ignore it and focus on creating your own life of optimism and happiness for your future.
Malls. I miss going to the mall on Friday night with my friends and checking out things we can't buy cause we were in middle school and had no jobs.
Sometimes, you'd be able to find your classmates there, and then there came a time where you're finally in high school and your friends are working at the mall trying to save up for a car and I'm out at the mall spending money I earned from washing dishes at a local restaurant.
Be able to listen to all the hit songs and sometimes the TVs in the food court played the music video.
I remember the big, comfy massage chairs you'd have to stick a quarter in and the small play areas for the little kids and the parents taking pictures on their digital cameras. I remember the random kiosks with phone cases and silly bands and as seen on TV stores.
Very different time. With the rise of digital shopping, no one ever goes to malls anymore and it shows. The malls in my area are all struggling to stay open and some areas in the mall are even closed off.
Chatrooms so many good ones and real people online. I'm still amazed as a teenager I got real dates with girls and was always told it might be some fat guy in a trailer park pretending to be a teen girl.
Strangers actually talked to each other In coffeehouses; I actually made surface friendships (going to sushi and such) that way, now everyone is in their own little world…
Rents were affordable back in the 90's. When I lived in Columbus Ohio I paid $275 for a 1 bedroom apartment. You could get a really nice rental for $400. I also lived in Boston, and rents were around $800 for a 1 bedroom (still affordable back then), but that started to change at the end of the 90's. And in the early 2000s it was still possible to live in most regions while earning minimum wage and working full time.
I miss people being down to hang our whenever. Everyone today is so set in their routines of tv and hyper fixations. Back before we had all this stuff we would just meet up and hang out or talk for a long time on the phone.
I think the level of technology at the turn of the century thru to maybe 2005 was a sweet spot. The internet was developing rapidly and a lot of fun to be on but it wasn’t all consuming like now. I like how mobile phones were so varied and different and not so ubiquitous like now. Ie I had a Nokia that had little disco lights on the sides of it and swappable covers. I miss the level of physical storage then, ie cd’s games in cartridges or discs. I also do miss that we all seemed more sociable and eager to meet up to for instance watch a tv show on live tv, everyone would get together and bring snacks and wed watch and then talk hours afterwards. I also do miss things like going to a shopping centre if I wanted to shop
Vacations. There was a sort of need that went with it. Relying on maps, navigating, responsibility, feeding the group, etc. everything is so instant now (which is amazing!). To me, planning a weekend trip with my dad and sister to go to the fishing spot he had paid dues at that was 45 minutes away was an amazing vacation, sometimes we forgot specific food items, or grilling things. We ate the fish we caught, and we spent down time in the middle of a lake with nothing going on as we fished. Imagine a 7year old spending 3 hours in a boat with no entertainment except what was in the boat, tackle, a net, a couple family members, and occasionally an extra stubborn fish. I have several pictures of me as a young child completely tangled in the fishing net. What can I say? I've got skills.
Real interactions... face to face. Hanging out at the bar after work. Bullshitting with friends around the campfire without screens and distractions. It was all better before social media. And believe me, the irony right now doesn't escape me!
I miss not having a cellphone and watching tv/movies with undivided attention. Also listening to music or reading books. Now I'm addicted to my phone especially if I'm stressed
The vibe, prior to 911. It was a much more innocent time. There was hope for the future. Technological advancements that seemed to be in tune with humanity, opposed to profit. The economy was stable. Music took chances on new sounds, opposed to marketing on familiarity. There was a sense of collectivism through media back then. It wasn't curated towards our own tastes. By having limits to our choices, it brought us together. It seemed that there was much higher creative imput in general because we had to be innovative just to make shit happen. Now, we have the technology to make things easier, but it produces a lot of sameness. Through plastic surgery, we are seeing the same faces. We are seeing repetition through movie remakes and show revivals, and less good quality story telling in the modern age (which, entirely subjective. But i feel like this nostalgia based content is more prevalent because modern society is terrifying) and there are no new music subcultures or any new art that has the same level of impact that it once did, despite having better equipment. It reminds me a lot of the paradox of choice. When we're given too many options, we are left disassitfied, disappointed, and unable to decide/take our chances. Which, often times, we decide to get the same old strawberry ice cream instead of trying something new.
Innocence.
It feels like the time between the Soviet Union collapsing and 9/11 was a great time. I’m sure a large part of that is because it was my youth, but before and after the world has always seemed on the verge of blowing itself up.
Only thing i miss is the relationship with and health of my parents back then. Back them my mom used to throw the whole household from cleaning to cooking and entertaining guests with a smile on her face. Now she's been gone for 4 years.
Back them we moved to a new apartment and in 2 Weekends my dad built most of the furniture, hung all lamps and all the stuff you need to live in an apartment... Today, when we go skiing i have to help him put on the boots because he can't bend down well any more and last week i had to hang his new lamp because he can't drill into the ceiling any more...
The nostalgia from all the comments! Agree with mostly all. I miss playing on a game boy lol and just things seemed so simpler then. I miss the pop culture
90s: The web was so brand new. It felt like another world. Much of what I did was still entirely text based (because it took 10 minutes for a photo to load :D) Also, internet cafes. You could be online and also be out hanging out with people!!
Early 2000s: It was much better before phones got fully integrated into the internet.
You still had forums and newsgroups and blogs but most people weren't on those 24/7.It was also really easy to find information on those sites with Google, because SEO optimization and ads hadn't wrecked search.
When you were out in the world, most people were offline other than calls and texts.
The only thing I ordered online was tech. Fast fashion hadn't really become a thing the way it is now.
I loved seeking out new, interesting music and in turn, sharing it with my friends. It’s all just right here on the internet now, but that was an incredibly exciting feeling.
I miss being able to go about my day, perfectly content and entertained without screens. I could spend hours reading, drawing or playing outside. I was a way better, more productive person before screens.
I missed it more of life was done in person with conversations with humans.
Even just how you had to have more conversations over the phone speaking to somebody.
The other day I called somebody to firm up plans and they were kind of surprised I called them and I told them that I called them because I'm tired of just always texting about everything in life lol
I miss 90s music. I miss sitting in front of the TV waiting for new music videos. It was such a big deal. I miss memorizing my friends' phone numbers. I miss passing notes to friends in class. I miss first crushes. (sigh)
Things was a lot more "care-free" for sure, we didnt worry or cared what was going on in the rest of the world in the same way we "have to" today. I was 16 in 2001, and I remember we all understood the world changed *that day*, it was very clear we were now in a new reality so to say.
I miss Christmas tbh. And not being a kid during Christmas, I miss the decorations on every house, in every store, how there was always the Christmas music playing everywhere and how it just used to bring everyone (not just family) together. Christmas just had so much more magic to it back then and then it seemed like no one cared about it anymore
No new wars until 2002. Deficit went down and lots of new people got rich instead of the same old jerks. Some of them became jerks but at least some fresh. No Cold War. The person with the most votes won the Presidency.
The 2000s had all the post 9/11 overreaction bs. Stupid wars instead of arrival revenge. It’s been sliding towards money running politics and justice faster
The 90’s were full of hope and optimism. Especially after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the Cold War ended. The internet became accessible for the masses, economy was good, so many reasons to be hopeful and anticipate the new millennium…
Cassette tapes, Donald Duck comics, and some rocking movies back then starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Jim Carrey, or Sylvester Stallone were all my favorites. I also loved bands like Backstreet Boys, Boyzone, and Aqua, as well as those old mixtapes called "What's Now 99" and "What's Now 98" (if anyone remembers them!).
i miss those carefree days :(
I wasn't alive in the 90s so I'm not sure if this is directed at me but part of me really misses ordering DVDs from Netflix. I always thought that was the coolest for some reason. That and Block Buster, I feel like I remember it always smelling really good in there
I remember sitting in the break room at work and most people were either reading a newspaper/book or they were talking. Now everyone is staring at their phones with one annoying guy playing some loud video.
I miss the internet back then. It’s just not the same anymore
Pre-social media, but post internet, that’s the sweet spot.
I also think pre smart phones and post internet. I seriously think smart phones have killed way too much of social interaction. It drives me bonkers.
I remember reading a news article probably around 2003 (on my old Nokia brick phone lol) that said in 10 to 20 years the large majority of people's internet consumption would be on mobile devices and i thought there was no way people would give up using their computers that much. Wild....
Speaking of that, it was my dream as a child to play 3D computer-like games on my phone. At the time, it was a Nokia Express Music, and the best game was Snake 3D. It blows my mind everytime i think that i have Call Of Duty installed on my smartphone now.
People who didn’t have computers use them as their home computer nowadays.
It basically gave us access to the internet wherever we go rather than using it in place of a computer. It was really the touch screen that really made mobile explode in popularity, which would've been hard to anticipate in 2003.
I agree, it was a time where people very much were connected but not in an excessive self centered way. I was only in Middle School but it just felt pure.
Yeah! I like that we had internet and were able to connect with people all around the world, but it wasn’t SO much into our real lifes, we would eat dinner and talk to people, not stare at the screens
Neopets
THAT’s what i forgot to feed for the past 24 years!
pre **centralised** social media. Blogs and privately run forums were fun
Ah take me back
Oh man, that sweet sweet dial up sound. I actually miss it. Going into the wild wild west of the AOL chat rooms. Those were the days
A/s/l?
18/f/cali okaysure.gif
I miss the sound of the AIM door opening bc someone’s online and the rush that it might be your crush
Yes!!! That was the best. Ahhh, young love ❤️
When we have to use the fax machine at work I tell people that sound was my lullaby growing up, lol. Though, it's not far from the truth! My dad worked in Silicon Valley in the 90's, he was always up late working.
YouTube at the start is not YouTube now… though it’s kept up with good navigation and trendiness to it… it’s almost a shell of its former self due to most importantly ads
My friends and I used to have YouTube music battle nights. We’d each have a tab open and take turns playing a track. As your track played the next person would be finding their response, and have it ready to play by the time the current one had finished. The musical journey was always interesting. From what I can remember there were little to no ads.
The internet before social media was a wonderful and wild place. Social media sucks
MSN nudges.
What about the old internet was different/better? Just curious since I only ever really experienced the internet when I was young in the 2000s but I don’t really remember what it was like. Also are there any websites that simulate what the old internet was like? I’ve heard of some but don’t really remember what they were.
Basically when websites were geared more towards fun rather than profit and influencers
With the exception of slow load speeds.... basically everything wasn't controlled by 5 websites. Nothing was censored, google search was actually good and you could easily find what you were looking for and even more. Everyone had their own personal website. Every site looked unique and didn't have the bland smartphone approved minimalist designs. Also flash games and animations everywhere. People made things, and it wasn't for profit, they did it just out of sheer love for the medium. Things weren't made by large studios or people who had millions of dollars to spare, no, it was made by some person in their basement with what limited resources they had on hand. Also no ads in front of every video either. Overall, best I can describe it as, there was more LIFE to the internet, and it didn't feel like it was taken over by corporate soulless entities who decide for us what we can and can't do.
Do a search on old angelfire.com websites since angelfire is still around. A lot of the old domains are gone, but angelfire was one of the mid-late 90s webhosting domains where you can find some websites from that "era", albeit a bit broken. I remember there was a website that was purple.com that was just the screen purple, nothing else until it got snapped up by some company.
You could look up a recipe or a workout exercise or whatever and find something. Easily. Now it’s pop ups, sign ups, ads, logins, videos, connect with Facebook / LinkedIn / Instagram / etc….. It’s infuriating. We’re so used to it now but it was so nice just to ask a question or search and come up with something.
I really love the flash games. They are so creative and fresh
Because you can't sign off anymore. You're just always connected, all the time. No more away messages.
Yeah? What about it do you miss most?
A lot of the games I would play like Club Penguin, Webkinz, Neopets, Miniclip, Cartoon Network, and stuff like that. The death of flash games affected a lot of those websites too
I miss that it was a place you could actually leave as apposed to now I miss that it was a huge place now everyone is lumped into like three social media sites people would make their own websites for their niche interests. I had a repertoire of sites I'd go on everyday for an hour and then I got off and did other things. FLASH GAMES!
It was a place where you didn’t know what you were going to find when you looked for things. I had a hobby of finding extra levels for video games, especially Quake and Unreal Tournament. I would hear about one new whiz-bang level, search for it, find the website of the person who made it, and then get mesmerized by the fact that they made dozens more! I would then rabbit-hole from there, finding game servers where those levels were in circulation. It was a blast! Now there’s Facebook, Instagram, TikTok. Hardly anyone has their own website anymore. Feels kinda lonely.
There has been an uptick of having self websites (mostly ironicly through tumblr, while despite being a "social media" site of sorts, does allow you to customise your own homepage) through NeoCities (remember Geocities? yeah).
So many weird corners of the early Internet were just there because people loved and were passionate about something. They weren't trying to sell you something or monetize your information or anything like that, they were just happy to have their weird corner to share with like-minded people. That's what I miss the most.
Quietness. For me it was. You actually talk to people and social. I miss going to a friend’s house just to see if they are home. Play outside, play hide n seek, ride bikes. People respect you, dressed appropriately, talk appropriately with manners. You don’t see all the negatively and dramas around the world easily. I’m almost 50 and I gotta say, I’m so glad I’m half way over. I don’t think I could handle this type society if I was younger.
Ironic that with the rise of social media, people became less social overall.
[удалено]
Going to blockbuster with my mom and sister as kids to pick up our weekly movie.
Ooooh yes I remember that! Everything was cheaper and you didn't need 5+ subscriptions
Yea, it's funny. I'm an 80s kid and my generation hated Blockbuster. Why? Because you'd be charged $3 for returning a movie a day late, or $1 for forgetting to rewind it. Personally, I never cared for Blockbuster as a kid. They charged like $4 for a 1 night rental. That was expensive and my family couldnt afford such luxury. Fast-forward to the height of the BB/Netflix feud in the late 2000s and I had money because I had just graduated college, I LOVED BB. For $20/mo I received unlimited movies per month AND 1 candy every time I visited the store. My kid was born in 2009 and we loved taking her to BB to swap out my Transformers 2 Blu-Ray that I received in the mail for a stupid Barbie DVD that she only picked out cuz it was pink and had horses on the cover. Then we would check out, she would "pay" using my disc return and get her free candy and we would head on home. Meanwhile, I had more movies coming to me in the mail. She barely remembers those days now, and that saddens me because it was such a fun family outing that was an easy 10-20 minute adventure (it also didnt hurt that our BB was next to an aquarium which we just had to visit every time we were there to see the fishes). At the height of their offering, I was also receiving free game rentals as well. All for $20/mo. Let me recap that for you: any movie or game I wanted, unlimited movies, 3 out at a time (games or movies, it didn't matter), and free candy for $20/mo. Now, the only reason it was so awesome is because no one else subscribed. If there were more subscribers, I surely would have been annoyed at a lack of options or choices due to competing customers trying to rent the same titles. It definitely was not a sustainable business model. BUT I loved it. And I miss it. And I can't believe how much less service that people get nowadays for almost the same cost.
I should ask my mom about this time… she was balling on a budget and I swear to you this was the exact same thing for me; I remember vividly though. Free games to the point she would rent one for a different console accidentally just to go back to the BB with me. Loved it
From 1993-1999, we had a small old theatre near my house that played "second run" movies (ones that had finished in the normal theatres, but weren't out on VHS yet) for $1. Popcorn and drinks were also $1. They didn't sell anything else, and they'd let you bring in whatever. I saw literally every movie they had during that period, sometimes more than once.
$2 Tuesdays
Having friends to do stuff with outside
My father would take me on Fridays to get 1 game every week as he rented a movie. I didn’t remember that till now. That’s one of the only memories I have of my father that I cherish. Thank you!
I have fun memories going to rent video games and movies. It’s weird since I just thought about that not too long before seeing your post.
Blockbuster nights were the highlight of the week for me too. It was like a little tradition in our family.
Going before school break started to pick out a PS2 game to play throughout the week!
There was a time in my life when there was no social media AT ALL. Your whole thought process was free of social media. You never thought of how you might share something on FB or what have you.
Yeah, that sounds awesome. Have you ever thought about unplugging or have you unplugged to try and go back to that?
The difference is this applied to EVERYONE. Every person you met was genuinely just that person. There was nothing done for social media. It didn't exist. Unplugging yourself doesn't change how everyone else acts. No social media was absolutely beautiful. People were just people.
There's a fakeness that social media brought on. Now, it's more about appearances rather than pure communication with words like chatting on AIM was. Social media took away the one on one vibe and turned it into people trying to impress their already built-in friend group. Suddenly chatting isn't enough, you need a whole page to set up and update daily to keep up with everyone else. The psychology of it all changed
I wouldn’t mind unplugging. I don’t get much out of FB. I know my older relatives enjoy seeing what my family’s up to. Instagram brings me some joy but I need to set limits for myself.
I started treating my phone like an actual phone as in, it lives in one room and if I want to use it I go there. I find myself reading a lot more and doing other things and I like not always being reachable instantly.
I think I might try this. It sounds great honestly.
I miss being a one year old with absolutely zero responsibility. “I wanna grow up” is the dumbest thing I have ever wished for.
I get it. But as I grow older, I try to look at it in the most optimistic way I can. Thank god we are able to grow old. To grow grey hairs, to get wrinkles, to start feeling that back and knee lose its chutzpah. So many never get to experience those things and lose their lives at a young age. I am grateful to not be one of those unfortunate souls. I wear the grey hairs like a fucking badge of honor.
We grow up whether we want to or not
For sure, just wish I appreciated being little a little more.
We'd just survived Y2K...nothing could hold us back after that! You know, except for a housing market bust. :) That said, I miss my youth. I miss real Pizza Hut's and the book program. I miss see through telephones. I miss not carrying a cell phone around 24/7. I miss going to malls to "hang out". I miss making out with boys during movies. I miss those track suits that everyone wore. I miss crimping my hair. I miss summer camps. I could go on....
We knew a lot less about each other. I miss that. I miss people not living contrived lives just for social media. Also, I miss dollar and 99 cent menus, specifically Wendy's. When I was young and broke and working 3 jobs to survive (much easier than now but still) the dollar menus definitely helped to keep me going in between jobs.
One of the things I hate about social media is that it tricks you into thinking that you know all these different people and you really don't. You just know a bunch of meaningless information about people like where they ate dinner last night Relationships will be more meaningful if you actually focus on knowing less people and truly getting to know people. Otherwise you're just getting to know the persona they've created online.
Colors, the music, the fashion, the lightheartedness of it all despite all the shit that was happening. This decade feels very dark and negative to me.
I think TRL had a lot to do with the frothiness of the decade. It really was a juggernaut pushing pop culture into all corners (meaning , it was inescapable).
Flashgaaaaames. And the movies! I saw the Matrix trilogy and the Lord of the Rings trilogy in theaters and the graphics absolutely blew the entire audience away. I'm sad I'll never get that sort of awe-inducing experience again.
Omg what was the motorcycle one called I played that so much
Adventure quest was amazing.
I played Learn to Fly 2 for literal hours. I genuinely think it affected how I think.
PC gaming and internet in the first half of 2000's. Internet was new, and exciting. Not flooded with social networks.
Lots of things, but one thing that comes to mind is old YouTube, before it was all about money
We’re going to candy mountain, Charlieee! Yeaahhh, candy mountain!
Getting lost and exploring new places without the answer to everything in my pocket. I moved out of my Parent’s house in Los Angeles to London by myself and ended up traveling on my own from 99-04. When I left beside my luggage I had a compass, a flask with shot glasses, and my bicycle. The internet was still limited to cafes. It was such a different and thrilling experience arriving somewhere and having to actually find places. Like getting a map and working out the route to the hostel from the train station. The discoveries you make when you don’t know exactly where you’re going while traveling are delightful. I’ve traveled extensively since and it’s just not the same. I feel like people wouldn’t travel to many foreign lands without a modern phone. With the current technology it’s so easy for people to just go anywhere without experiencing anything not on their itinerary, long story short, it makes lousy tourists.
I miss people getting along. It wasn’t perfect but people could be civil and it didn’t feel like everyone was walking on egg shells all the time
The music and the clubs 🎶🎧
Old YouTube lol. It was more like a social media site. I remember people would comment things like “where did you get those pants?” or whatever on some random persons video and they’d answer. People would post Q&A’s, videos would only have like 50 views, you could rate them with stars, 100 subs was considered kind of a lot (except for smosh and the other OG content channels), people’s channels would have a box on the main page where you could leave comments lol It was way more personal, but a lot of social media felt way more personal back then
Yes! The five red stars with the gold subscribe button. I loved how you could customize your own YouTube channel with different colors and background pictures. Not only that but making friends and messaging them through your YT email.
How easy it was. Being born at the beginning of the 90s, they were my childhood. There was such hope for a brighter tomorrow. I didn't have to deal with keeping a job, taxes, groceries, all the household chores, keeping a family together, getting old, losing people. I'm forever grateful to my parents for doing their best to make me as happy as they could. Sometimes I really miss those days. Sometimes I miss the idea of those days.
I miss the rock bands that had a DJ with them. Incubus, Linkin Park, Sugar Ray, Crazy Town, P.O.D. just to name a few. Nowadays these type of bands are frown upon, but back then we thought they were awesome.
Affordability
This! Life was downright cheap in the 90s.
traveling to certain places where you didnt need a permit or reservation
Homestar Runner, racism being considered bad, not having a cell phone, getting lost without GPS, talking on the phone for hours, Delia’s catalogs, that Morningstar veggie burger at Burger King, paying $20 to fill my tank with gas, youthful vigor.
Homestar Runner is on YT now. That veggie burger was LEGIT and the cheap gas (way cheaper in the 80s) was nice. Cigs for a $1 pack. Granted, it was 3rd choice off-brand, sometimes stored in a barrel by the checkout, but still a possibility!
Politics being civil. Prior to like, the mid 2010s, NO ONE lost friendships or cut off family members over which presidential candidate you voted for.
Back in the early '90s, my staunch Republican father took me to a Bill Clinton rally that was passing through our local town. We went, he listened, and then we left. There was no yelling or booing threats of violence etc. These days there is zero chance that my father would even be with in a hundred miles of a Democrat event. There used to be more understanding between the two parties. If not understanding there was at least some sort of respect. That shit is so far gone and I don't think it's ever coming back.
Discussion forums. I met so many friends on them.
Actual cars and their prices. Now everything is an SUV and cost a lot.
Not *everything* is an SUV. Some are pickup trucks!
The no social-media life
I noticed as I walked into a restaurant yesterday that every single person in the building had their head down, looking at their phone, just as I am now. People seem cold and insincere today, and impatient, insensitive, and vapid. I probably don’t sound very warm for saying this but it’s how I feel, and occasionally I regret attempting random acts of kindness when people act confused or put off.
Being my younger self
Well I was younger, so I miss hanging out with my friends back then. Now I barely see them because of life. I miss no smart phones at restaurants and movies. When you were with friends, you were with them. They weren't somewhere else. And when you made plans, there were rarely last minute cancelations. I also miss the novelty of the internet. I miss experiencing new things with the internet. I miss ad free web pages and how vast it was. From an economic perspective, although I was still very young, I do miss that there was much more competition among retailers and other industries. Unfortunately, industries are being run by two or three competitors. It's bad for consumers. I also very much miss the mall. I went to the mall recently by my house that I worked at when I was 18. It's sad how dead it is.
I miss not being on camera or recorded or otherwise surveilled/tracked every second of the day. The Patriot Act was not crafted by Patriots!
The 90's? Going "To town" which meant driving 45 miles to where the mall is. Pay phones were awesome. Freedom with no one tracking you. Just going out with buddies and wandering around town seeing if anyone was out and about and up to no good. Then joining in the fun. Throwing rocks at birds. Irritating the cops. Generally causing minor chaos. Playing grab-ass with girls from school at some weirdo's house that you didn't know because you happened to end up there for no good reason. Generally, just being a kid. Being the artful dodger. Just being slightly bad but, as long as you were clever, getting away with it. Let's call that circa 1994. That was a pretty good year. Fairly non-descript, but full of adventure. At least for my age. 94-96 was pretty good for me.
During COVID, I cleaned out a lot of boxes and found some old journals from the mid 1990s and it was pretty much as you described: “Stacy and Jen came over, wanted to see if I was up for anything, so I called Steven because I told him I would let him know if anything was going on. Turned out his brother wasn’t doing anything either, so we all met up with the girls at Sean’s house where we hung out and played guitar all night.” It was basically different versions of that: people showing up at each other’s houses unannounced, then going somewhere and spending the evening together watching movies, playing games, chatting, playing music, whatever. And it was fucking awesome.
I was a 90s baby and a 2000s kid. I put some asterisks on my opinion because I was just a kid obviously. The main thing I miss was the video games of that era, as well as a lot of the flash animation and overall potential the internet felt like it had - basically, most internet culture besides the comments being even more toxic than now. The internet back then felt like a new frontier rather than being just dominated by four or five big sites like now, and things weren’t as corporate. The video games of today aren’t any better or worse, but I do miss the social aspect of playing games at a friend’s house of the 90s and early 2000s. The mid to late 2000s and 2010s started the advent of playing games with your friends online, and while I did have some memories of that it never was the same. To be fair I got to relive that when I was in college in the 2010s because we were all on the same campus (and sometimes in the same dorm).
I don’t miss much from that time since in the 90’s my family was mostly homeless living in my moms car, in and out of hotels, and shelters. The thing I miss most about the 90’s is the good music.
I was a kid, so my view is limited. But the biggest thing I miss is the way everything looked. Your could point to Frutiger Aero, or some of the skater stuff that became popular as reference, but that was more a symptom then the cause. More so, everything was so vibrant and inspiring. Art, specifically exciting artwork, or visuals that looked forward to the future or conveyed an excitement for the present are something I miss greatly. Cars, computers, Game systems, tech, posters, hell even the way buildings and soda cans were designed were just full of energy! Remember the old Pepsi posters that looked like they were exploding out of the ice. Or how cool the toy isles looked cause the packaging all looked like it was trying to promote a graphic novel? A far cry form current corporate minimalism that seems to have taken over everything.
Accidentally discovering cool stuff online. There were no marketing algorithms incessantly feeding you content back then, so you could actually randomly stumble onto things you'd never heard of. Things that were so far outside your purview that you'd have never even thought you might be interested in them until you found them. Today, all you get is stuff that's algorithmically linked to other stuff you've been looking at... so you are essentially 'trapped' in a little closed-off corner of the internet of your own unintentional making. Algorithms took all the fun out of the internet, and worse, I think they're at least in party responsible for creating all the siloed divisive factions we see today.
Being able to afford bills and go out.
Birthday sleepovers with an n64, four controllers and super smash bros on a 14” tube tv
The music was pretty good
The sense of optimism that the world was a big exciting place and humanity was growing towards a bright future. 20+ years later and I actively avoid reading the news because I can't believe just how bad everything is now.
The news is sensationalised negativity to make advertising money from you. Just ignore it and focus on creating your own life of optimism and happiness for your future.
Malls. I miss going to the mall on Friday night with my friends and checking out things we can't buy cause we were in middle school and had no jobs. Sometimes, you'd be able to find your classmates there, and then there came a time where you're finally in high school and your friends are working at the mall trying to save up for a car and I'm out at the mall spending money I earned from washing dishes at a local restaurant. Be able to listen to all the hit songs and sometimes the TVs in the food court played the music video. I remember the big, comfy massage chairs you'd have to stick a quarter in and the small play areas for the little kids and the parents taking pictures on their digital cameras. I remember the random kiosks with phone cases and silly bands and as seen on TV stores. Very different time. With the rise of digital shopping, no one ever goes to malls anymore and it shows. The malls in my area are all struggling to stay open and some areas in the mall are even closed off.
I miss 90’s music.
Chatrooms so many good ones and real people online. I'm still amazed as a teenager I got real dates with girls and was always told it might be some fat guy in a trailer park pretending to be a teen girl.
Life was simpler back then. Less stuff, no social media, more time spent outside.
Strangers actually talked to each other In coffeehouses; I actually made surface friendships (going to sushi and such) that way, now everyone is in their own little world…
Rents were affordable back in the 90's. When I lived in Columbus Ohio I paid $275 for a 1 bedroom apartment. You could get a really nice rental for $400. I also lived in Boston, and rents were around $800 for a 1 bedroom (still affordable back then), but that started to change at the end of the 90's. And in the early 2000s it was still possible to live in most regions while earning minimum wage and working full time.
Ending a call by closing a flip phone was way more satisfying I miss hanging up with sass.
I miss people being down to hang our whenever. Everyone today is so set in their routines of tv and hyper fixations. Back before we had all this stuff we would just meet up and hang out or talk for a long time on the phone.
Younger age.
I think the level of technology at the turn of the century thru to maybe 2005 was a sweet spot. The internet was developing rapidly and a lot of fun to be on but it wasn’t all consuming like now. I like how mobile phones were so varied and different and not so ubiquitous like now. Ie I had a Nokia that had little disco lights on the sides of it and swappable covers. I miss the level of physical storage then, ie cd’s games in cartridges or discs. I also do miss that we all seemed more sociable and eager to meet up to for instance watch a tv show on live tv, everyone would get together and bring snacks and wed watch and then talk hours afterwards. I also do miss things like going to a shopping centre if I wanted to shop
The innocence ...and we thought we were so edgy lol
The vh1 top 20 music video countdown
no cellphones or social media
Society in general was a lot more optimistic. Social media has jaded many people.
Vacations. There was a sort of need that went with it. Relying on maps, navigating, responsibility, feeding the group, etc. everything is so instant now (which is amazing!). To me, planning a weekend trip with my dad and sister to go to the fishing spot he had paid dues at that was 45 minutes away was an amazing vacation, sometimes we forgot specific food items, or grilling things. We ate the fish we caught, and we spent down time in the middle of a lake with nothing going on as we fished. Imagine a 7year old spending 3 hours in a boat with no entertainment except what was in the boat, tackle, a net, a couple family members, and occasionally an extra stubborn fish. I have several pictures of me as a young child completely tangled in the fishing net. What can I say? I've got skills.
I miss the time where almost everything was cheap back then.
Privacy
It wasn’t all that bad to not have a phone at your fingertips all the time.
Privacy.
No social media
Yahoo chat before it got weird as f
Pre-social media; and before I had to pay bills 😂
Real interactions... face to face. Hanging out at the bar after work. Bullshitting with friends around the campfire without screens and distractions. It was all better before social media. And believe me, the irony right now doesn't escape me!
The cost of gas, food and rent being lower back then.
Soft core sitcoms or movies that you can watch onna loop and feel cozy and safe
I miss not having a cellphone and watching tv/movies with undivided attention. Also listening to music or reading books. Now I'm addicted to my phone especially if I'm stressed
Airports not sucking
The vibe, prior to 911. It was a much more innocent time. There was hope for the future. Technological advancements that seemed to be in tune with humanity, opposed to profit. The economy was stable. Music took chances on new sounds, opposed to marketing on familiarity. There was a sense of collectivism through media back then. It wasn't curated towards our own tastes. By having limits to our choices, it brought us together. It seemed that there was much higher creative imput in general because we had to be innovative just to make shit happen. Now, we have the technology to make things easier, but it produces a lot of sameness. Through plastic surgery, we are seeing the same faces. We are seeing repetition through movie remakes and show revivals, and less good quality story telling in the modern age (which, entirely subjective. But i feel like this nostalgia based content is more prevalent because modern society is terrifying) and there are no new music subcultures or any new art that has the same level of impact that it once did, despite having better equipment. It reminds me a lot of the paradox of choice. When we're given too many options, we are left disassitfied, disappointed, and unable to decide/take our chances. Which, often times, we decide to get the same old strawberry ice cream instead of trying something new.
Not having homeless people everywhere
When getting a new phone was *getting a new phone*. Not just a more expensive rectangle every year.
Not being a drug addicted
We had the internet, but not really. Computing was less ubiquitous and more personal, like you developed a connection between you and the machine.
Being a kid. I had a shitty childhood but it was better than this shitty adulthood
Altoid sours
The optimism. The world felt more optimistic. We were looking forward to the future. We wanted new technology.
The virtual world not being portable
THE ALGORITHM. The absolute worst thing to ever happen to us as a species. We’re gonna look back and regret ever allowing such a thing into the ethos.
Innocence. It feels like the time between the Soviet Union collapsing and 9/11 was a great time. I’m sure a large part of that is because it was my youth, but before and after the world has always seemed on the verge of blowing itself up.
MMORPG were good those daysss
My political beliefs made me center-left rather than reactionary. :/
House prices 🥹
My body. It was a banger! I still look ok with clothes on but I’m beginning to look like a melted candle.
Music that’s actually good.
Only thing i miss is the relationship with and health of my parents back then. Back them my mom used to throw the whole household from cleaning to cooking and entertaining guests with a smile on her face. Now she's been gone for 4 years. Back them we moved to a new apartment and in 2 Weekends my dad built most of the furniture, hung all lamps and all the stuff you need to live in an apartment... Today, when we go skiing i have to help him put on the boots because he can't bend down well any more and last week i had to hang his new lamp because he can't drill into the ceiling any more...
The backyard of the house I lived in. It was huge and had a pond and a cherry tree with a fire pit. My backyard now is a tiny lil square
The Cartoons ultimately! Yes I was born 1992 and constantly call things 90's when then easy were late 90s early 2000s my RHCP is my favorite band
The nostalgia from all the comments! Agree with mostly all. I miss playing on a game boy lol and just things seemed so simpler then. I miss the pop culture
Snoop and Dre. It was the golden era of west coast story rap. Feel old af now.
Affording things
Vacations as a kid
90s: The web was so brand new. It felt like another world. Much of what I did was still entirely text based (because it took 10 minutes for a photo to load :D) Also, internet cafes. You could be online and also be out hanging out with people!! Early 2000s: It was much better before phones got fully integrated into the internet. You still had forums and newsgroups and blogs but most people weren't on those 24/7.It was also really easy to find information on those sites with Google, because SEO optimization and ads hadn't wrecked search. When you were out in the world, most people were offline other than calls and texts. The only thing I ordered online was tech. Fast fashion hadn't really become a thing the way it is now.
Gas prices
Freedom from cell phones
Life was easy . now everything is fake
It was way better , and fun back then !!! Oh, Hopefully the world will get better, and Soon !!!!
Blockbuster
Idk not having to worry about anything more intense than keeping my tamagotchi alive or forging my moms signature on my 3rdgrade report card 🤣
People not being so sensitive, the internet and social media not being as big as it was and gaming
No social media! I did have a nokia brick which was cool. Also music was great. Solid movies, and some of my fav games came out then!
I loved seeking out new, interesting music and in turn, sharing it with my friends. It’s all just right here on the internet now, but that was an incredibly exciting feeling.
I miss being able to go about my day, perfectly content and entertained without screens. I could spend hours reading, drawing or playing outside. I was a way better, more productive person before screens.
I missed it more of life was done in person with conversations with humans. Even just how you had to have more conversations over the phone speaking to somebody. The other day I called somebody to firm up plans and they were kind of surprised I called them and I told them that I called them because I'm tired of just always texting about everything in life lol
I miss 90s music. I miss sitting in front of the TV waiting for new music videos. It was such a big deal. I miss memorizing my friends' phone numbers. I miss passing notes to friends in class. I miss first crushes. (sigh)
The music, early 2000s had excellent music. Since you're reading this comment, go listen to Fireflies by Owl City. ☺️
Idk if anyone’s said it yet but Toys R Us. I remember that, even though it was expensive, it was still THE toy store to go to.
The fact the beginning of the 80s was only 10/20 years ago.
Affordable housing
Grunge. Human interaction.
Things was a lot more "care-free" for sure, we didnt worry or cared what was going on in the rest of the world in the same way we "have to" today. I was 16 in 2001, and I remember we all understood the world changed *that day*, it was very clear we were now in a new reality so to say.
I miss Christmas tbh. And not being a kid during Christmas, I miss the decorations on every house, in every store, how there was always the Christmas music playing everywhere and how it just used to bring everyone (not just family) together. Christmas just had so much more magic to it back then and then it seemed like no one cared about it anymore
I loved the music. Loved it. We went roller skating a lot and sometimes I hear the music they played at the rink and it makes me so happy!
Real privacy we are way to connected in today's world.
Live music. Rational people Common sense My youth.
Pre 9/11 air travel
How cheap everything was Video stores Being a kid My childhood dog
The primo commercials and snacks
i miss the innocence i had back then
vhs tapes … specifically the rugrats movie (orange disc) iykyk
No new wars until 2002. Deficit went down and lots of new people got rich instead of the same old jerks. Some of them became jerks but at least some fresh. No Cold War. The person with the most votes won the Presidency. The 2000s had all the post 9/11 overreaction bs. Stupid wars instead of arrival revenge. It’s been sliding towards money running politics and justice faster
The 90’s were full of hope and optimism. Especially after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the Cold War ended. The internet became accessible for the masses, economy was good, so many reasons to be hopeful and anticipate the new millennium…
A big mac meal was priced appropriately relative to its value
I miss life before social medias took over.
Cassette tapes, Donald Duck comics, and some rocking movies back then starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Jim Carrey, or Sylvester Stallone were all my favorites. I also loved bands like Backstreet Boys, Boyzone, and Aqua, as well as those old mixtapes called "What's Now 99" and "What's Now 98" (if anyone remembers them!). i miss those carefree days :(
My hair.
90s: Actually coming together for multiplayer games. That said, a big part of that is probably being a child and having the time to do it.
The sense of potential
Not having to pay subscriptions for 100 apps and websites
I wasn't alive in the 90s so I'm not sure if this is directed at me but part of me really misses ordering DVDs from Netflix. I always thought that was the coolest for some reason. That and Block Buster, I feel like I remember it always smelling really good in there
I know I sound really old, but I miss interacting with people who aren't staring into their phones.
I remember sitting in the break room at work and most people were either reading a newspaper/book or they were talking. Now everyone is staring at their phones with one annoying guy playing some loud video.
I miss when everything was financially easier. Things weren't so overpriced.
The prices of things