First time accessing the internet would probably be 1992 or 1993 from the local school library. Before then, I used local bulletin board systems via modem to play games, send messages, download warez, etc. as a young kid. The sense of freedom and liberation between those technologies was amazing. Around the same time, the school system transitioned to a digital card catalog system and some of the librarians were absolutely furious that the card catalog they knew and loved was going away.
I would argue was even more the case during the earliest days of the web. It was really a open, untamed, wild west feeling, like anything was possible.
Then the corporatization of the internet happened during the dotcom bubble, and all hell broke loose, we know the rest.
Grown-ass llama here. I use element, signal, and simple x for communications with friends and family.
I think it's important to have secure private messaging between individuals and groups. We get to talk about all kinds of stuff, asynchronously across multiple time zones.
How many yonks has in been?