Forum Topic

It was thirty years ago today ...

... well,actually, yesterday. Wow, 30 years ago the WWW was unleashed on the world, thank to Tim Berners-Lee! What did we do before Google, Wikipedia, Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, Flickr, YouTube, Amazon, etc, not forgetting Uber, AirBnB, Booking.com, TripAdvisor, HappyCow and Expedia among many others? And the Putney SW15 Forum!https://www.npr.org/2023/04/30/1172276538/world-wide-web-internet-anniversary

Michael Ixer ● 1008d8 Comments

Matt, I still go to the pub for a discussion with friends. Sometimes post to the Forum while in the pub - thank heaven for IP enabled 4/5G and Wi Fi - although hopefully not after too many glasses of vino [can't cope with pints these days :-( ]

Michael Ixer ● 1007d

I guess the pub was the original pint-ernet

Adam Tripp ● 1007d

Possibly pub, but, for me, more likely print than pint. The letters column.

David Ainsworth ● 1007d

Most importantly, where would we all go to debate with each other about local and non-local issues?oh, the pub!Pint?

Matt Palmer ● 1007d

I was at university with Tim's younger brother Mike Berners-Lee. It was only years later that I realised 😃

Sean Hodges ● 1007d

I remember it very well!!  :-) :-) :-)The transition from electric typewriters to word processors was difficult to start with...  We started with Wordperfect which was brilliant but then changed to Word, eventually, because everyone in the City used it......When the internet was introduced (computers talking to each other???  Will they need interpreters??) we were all encouraged to use it.  Starting with Jeeves....Before then, well, it was libraries, encyclopedias among others.I also remember when Facebook was created by five American students - and how quickly it was taken up by all....Those were the days???

Ivonne Holliday ● 1008d

Perhaps, David, but I was actually trying to pick websites that changed the way many do things :-) but forgot Spotify, Deliveroo, Bitcoin and Ethereum!

Michael Ixer ● 1008d

"What did we do before Google, Wikipedia, Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, Flickr ... ?"We got things done.

David Ainsworth ● 1008d