The Internet in the early 90's seemed great. Now... depressing and sad.

Once corporations, governments and their media minions captured it, along with all our data, there is a strong case that the internet has done more harm than good. If anyone proves them wrong or just questions them they are attacked. Even jailed or killed.

The internet is now by and large owned by those that have power and want more. They never admit errors, never admit failed policies and are not going to loosen their grip on the internet. They are tightening it up. Say something they do not like, show something they do not like; banned and in many cases no reason given. Kicked out indefinitely. Sure, there are other platforms but those are being beatdown as well.

I don't know how it was in the early 90's as I didn't have internet until early 2000, but comparing what it was then to what it is now is night and day in comparison.

We had internet at work that I used in the 90's for work purposes but never "surfed the web" until 2000. Back then it was an open place for sharing knowledge and ideas, and while there is still a lot of knowledge available I wouldn't call it anywhere near "open" now as the amount of censorship is astounding.


I remember talking to a friend in the mid 2000's that was a techie and worked as a programmer and software engineer. He told me then to enjoy it while we can because there were certain big name people that didn't like the freedom of access that was available at the time and that they would eventually censor it.

I admit I disagreed many times with him in various discussions but I have to say that he was spot on. He actually told me back then that the internet was dangerous in many ways because of the information that was available at the time. Fast forward 18-20 years and now we are seeing major censorship of only certain subjects that go against mainstream thinking.

You ever notice that cute cat videos aren't censored on social media? Neither are the thousands of borderline pornographic and pornoaudio posts you see every day, nor are any of the thousands of truly immoral posts that get posted. It's only subjects or material that is offensive to TPTB that gets censored because that information is, as my friend said, dangerous to those in charge.

Personally I feel that since social media has become the 21st century Soap Box so to speak, there should be a Bill of Rights of sorts for the internet. Free speech nor freedom of expression should never be censored any more than you would censor the birds from chirping or the wold howling as that is our most basic and personal form of expression.

Yes.
Technology is just another vehicle for the exploitation of human flaws.

Would have been great if it wasn't abused.

a reply to: Stupidsecrets

The internet got irritating for me once smart phones were released.

That was the death of the original concept for me.

a reply to: Wide-Eyes

A supercomputer in everyone's pocket with unlimited access to information of all types.
What could go wrong?

Such a nifty gadget too. And they ruined it.

a reply to: Stupidsecrets

I 100% agree with the subject title.
What gets me through most days is watching “the biden gaff’s of the day”

It doesn’t solve the problem...hell it’s probably adding to it.
But it’s my little ray of sunshine in the depths of a deplorable source of media.

ETA. I was in grade 8 when someone I knew had the internet, his allowing me to see what it was all about.
Back then my search priorities were a tad different...
We looked up pictures of the band Nirvana to print out hahaha.

I played around on the net that summer at his house. He showed me what chat rooms were.
Multiplayer games of Doom or quake, I can’t remember which it was.
That whole concept boggled my mind and I thought it was amazing that he knew all the dos commands to get programs to run.

Then I didn’t see nor touch the internet again until grade 10.
Which is when I found a local chat room on MIRC.
Met up with new friends. Went to MIRC parties were we would drink and take turns inviting more people to the party.

My lord how things have changed.
Different times man.
Different times.

Yep, and it is getting worst:

Surveillance Legislation Amendment (Identify and Disrupt) Bill 2021

There is a case for some censorship, like when dealing with snuff movies, child abuse and some of the more extreme elements of humanity. As for how far all this has gone to protect political image and corporate profits from exposing there own criminal behavior and not face the shame of there actions is a problem.

We can no longer have conversations to improve situations. Take Black American women. We can't have an honest discussion without being called racist on why 80% of them are single mothers, on welfare and why their communities are murder capitals in the US. Nobody wants to try and fix it. The US Army is even using Black Chicago hospitals with a high rate of gunshots to train medics and doctors for combat. They don't want to address the problem. Only use it to train.

Pathetic.

a reply to: servovenford

Indeed.

Back in the day, to get online required a brain, money and dedication to make the most of this technological marvel.

Now all people need is a cheap ass phone and their neighbour's Wi-Fi.

This is why nearly all social media is toxic.

I don't think its the internet so much as it is Covid19.
I think everyone has had way more than they wanted of covid19 and there doesn't seem to be an end in sight anytime soon.

No one forces anyone to go on the internet. As a matter of fact YOU PAY FOR IT.

All you have to do is turn it off. But you'll have to read newspapers, go to the library, and visit places, instead of tapping a few buttons and getting the info you need, or the appointments you want.

Admit it. Life is also a lot better with the internet, or ya'll wouldn't have it.

a reply to: MiddleInsite

Typical smartphone user...

a reply to: Stupidsecrets

Hmm corporations?? I'd spin this a different way.

When I started using the net in the 90's most of the material that was out there was from academia.. Which is why a lot of people my age now think they can 'research' on the internet.

Now content can be published by any Tom, Dick or Harry.. Which means if I want to find information...

Whether it be.. Covid Vaccines are good.. Covid Vaccines are bad.. Pet Rocks created the Universe..

You name it.. I can find it with a google search... 'Research complete'... I am smart...

You get the flaws.. Combine that with social media and you have a recipe for disaster. The constant dumbing down of society. Was this driven by corporate america??? In some ways... I'd say in the end, people have fallen victim to their own belief systems that have been amplified by information availability and the ease to commiserate with 'like minded' characters of their choosing. Man I wish this tech would have been around if/when it was able to document the life of Jesus.. Talk about entertainment and the conspiracy theories there. Instead we have the new testament.. Oh well.. One can hope..

originally posted by: servovenford
A supercomputer in everyone's pocket with unlimited access to information of all types.
What could go wrong?

Give it GPS tracking and an always-listening voice assistant.

Then start scanning your device to make sure you're not in possession of anything deemed "inappropriate" (which a major fruit-branded maker intends to do in the near future).

Everyone assumed "1984" would be pressed on us, Soviet-style with jackboots.
Instead everyone lined up and happily paid for it.

a reply to: Stupidsecrets

You may or may not find this interesting but the web today exists largely because of Sears Roebuck & Co. Back in 1988 they wanted to give the sears catalog a web presence and that is what kicked off the Prodigy Online service. AOL soon followed. It wasnt for another 5 or 6 years before Mosaic, the first commercially available web browser was introduced. This is where Al Gore tries to take credit for inventing the internet and coining the term "information superhighway." It was the a bill introduced by Al Gore that effectively funded the development of Mosaic. One of the Mosiac programmers, Marc Andreessen, went on to co-found Netscape communications. Netscape navigator really defined modern browser's as you recognize them in present time.

Be thankful for what you have right now however, becayse google has different plans for your future..

In summary, the web has always been driven by the government and corporations, and we are about to come full circle.

i first got online in 2008, so i was a relative latecomer to the net but certainly it was better then. music upload sites were plentiful and varied, chat rooms were fun, and youtube was great - you could interact with other users in real time and send video replies. it had an almost community vibe. now it's dreadful and representative as a whole of the general decline of the internet. or i'm just an old fart. probably a combination of both.

originally posted by: Skeppy
I don't think its the internet so much as it is Covid19.
I think everyone has had way more than they wanted of covid19 and there doesn't seem to be an end in sight anytime soon.

It is the internet. They banned, isolated and persecuted anyone that disagreed with Fauci. Now we are finding out none of his protocols worked. None of them. They created larger groups of people, not less. The masks did not work. Distancing did not work and the vaccines do not work.

None of it worked. It all failed. Only thing left to do is ban anyone on the internet trying to state to obvious. Should have listened to other renowned experts who said none of it would work. Should have let it run its course and warned the obese and elderly to stay indoors and much as possible. He refused.

a reply to: MiddleInsite

I see what you're saying however I don't think you're getting the point. Right: The internet isn't bad. Smart phones aren't bad. Computers aren't bad.
It's the misuse the makes it a bad thing.

Yes. Technology can be good. It's easy to check the weather on the go. It's easy to get access to new music. It makes studying a whole lot easier and more accessible. Check check and then some.

Unfortunately, the internet also facilitates constant stimulation which the human mind isn't wired to handle (heard of social media stress?) and is a perfect conveyance for greedy corporations and power hungry feds to manipulate and control (aka take advantage of) the weak user.

Of course the technology only helped uncover and amplify pre existing human flaws, I.e. the desire for constant attention and validation as well as "keeping up with the joneses" syndrome. And more. That's just naming a few problems.

If there's a way to misuse something, humans will figure it out. You can bet money on that.

double, disregard

Commercialization of the internet really killed it (and led to mass surveillance). It made life easier and more convenient without a doubt but the more people that flocked online, the harder it became to find good, mostly reliable information.

It used to be a tool for all, now it's a lifestyle for many.