Hello to Old Friends
reddit / bbs

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48stateMave · 2021-05-11 03:36

Hello! Marked this as discussion but just wanted to say "Hi Group!"

I'm glad to see people keeping BBSs alive. I had been commenting
earlier about BRE and what gaming was like before WWW. In searching
for some references, I found a few BRE threads from this sub. Dunno
why I didn't think to look for a BBS r/ before. So glad that era
hasn't been forgotten! Thanks!

If you want to know:

My first computer was a Vic-20, then a C-64, and ultimately an Amiga.

I was at our region's Computer Users Group when the Amiga was unveiled
(to our area) and demonstrated. It was a big deal. Full house at the
auditorium. Waiting for the presentation to begin, we were all
enthusiastic to see a demonstration of this "new" way to do *two
things at once* on a computer. And, it was supposed to support
*pictures*, like real graphics. (Ha clip art but it was DAMN
impressive for the time.) General opinion of this goofy "mouse" thing:
SURELY a fad that would go the way of insert-able cartridges and tape
recording for storage. We were jaded by so many other beta components
that didn't last long. But everyone was impressed as hell with the
Amiga demonstration.

My first modem was 300 baud, for the C-64, I believe. Later, 1200.
Didn't get a 14.4 until actually something else had come out, can't
remember the next number. I was just so glad to *finally* have a 14.4
- lightening-fast compared to 1200. I used that for the longest time
afterward. (Eventually I made the jump to x86 at some point of course.
But I used my Amiga til it was *worn* out and quite obsolete.)

I was based near Detroit but with some creative phoning I called BBSs
all over the US, starting in the mid 80s I guess. At first there were
only a few BBSs, then more, then by the late 80s, so many you could
choose which ones were better.

That 300 baud though, yeah you waited to watch each consecutive letter
appear... as a sentence typed itself out. (Good times! The forefront
of technology!) Seriously, it was so cool to know that SOMEONE was out
there, far away in their own little dark room, in the middle of the
night, typing those keys *at that point in time,* LIVE. We take
constant/instant contact for granted now. It was trippy at first.

Alright, well, I wrote this because we're getting 30+ years on and not
too many in the world remember the BBS scene. As a teenager I can't
even *tell* you the fun BBSs led to! (Can't legally tell anyway LOL!!)
Glad to see y'all keeping the nostalgia going. Thought you might enjoy
a trip down memory lane.