Do you remember that first "magic" time?

Message

lilclyde54 · #1 Post by **lilclyde54** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 11:33 am

Forgive me for that teasing title but I was more curious about that first magic time that you joined an internet message board/forum?

For me, it was this one here. Now, I have a pile of forums in my favorite's list. I even lurked here a long time before finally getting up the nerve to throw in my two cents after meeting some other members at the Birmingham auditions. (Thanks Amaz.)

So, what about y'all? When did you break the ice forum-wise.

Bob Juch · #2 Post by **Bob Juch** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 11:53 am

I don't recall which one was first, but I joined several on The Source and CompuServe in the late 70s.

SportsFan68 · #3 Post by **SportsFan68** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 12:20 pm

I remember my first time "here," but I don't remember much about my first time ever. It was on a local board, which soon went defunct because of the same lack of good manners which plagued the sports boards before Bored Monitors everywhere started tightening up.

ghostjmf · #4 Post by **ghostjmf** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 12:32 pm

probably rec.pets in about 1985 or so. Then rec. music.folk, rec.arts.sf-lovers (I think that was what it was called at the time), etc. The good old days before the hoi polloi got on line. Of course, rec.pets soon split into rec.pets.dogs & rec.pets.cats, & & they all didn't want to talk to the snake fans, who split off & called themselves something, then rec.pets.dogs got into serious flame wars about the people who show dogs vs the people who just have dogs hanging out in their houses nuzzling up to them & other good doggie things. And arguments about whether the Monks of New Skete are dog-whisperers or crazies. (I personally think people who show cats, considering the uncurability of stuff like feline infectious peritonitits, are nuts, but I was long gone by the time there was any split in the cats group, if there ever was one. I could check.).

And the old-time music fans had to petition rec.music.country to be rec.music.country.old-time because the people controlling the "voluntary" hierarchy on good ole usenet wouldn't allow a group called rec.music.old-time (or rec.music.oldtime, or any other direct such route) for some very arcane reason that made sense only to them.

Ah, the good old days. All those groups nowadays are full only of people's CD release dates & tour dates (the music groups anyway, not the pet groups I don't think), & hardly any discussions (or flame wars) any more. Pretty much as soon as the www appeared everyone went shopping. Permanently.

Evil Squirrel · #5 Post by **Evil Squirrel** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 12:36 pm

I remember my first time on a message board quite clearly. Naturally, being a newbie, I was immediately flamed by one of the mean old regulars....

viewtopic.php?p=56258#56258

Ritterskoop · #6 Post by **Ritterskoop** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 12:52 pm

ghostjmf wrote: Of course, rec.pets soon split into rec.pets.dogs & rec.pets.cats, & & they all didn't want to talk to the snake fans, who split off & called themselves something, then rec.pets.dogs got into serious flame wars about the people who show dogs vs the people who just have dogs hanging out in their houses nuzzling up to them & other good doggie things.

Awesome.

secondchance · #7 Post by **secondchance** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 1:05 pm

Besides asking a simple question about dress code recently at a Cruisecritic.com forum (a great site for tips & info for cruise lovers) and then watching fanatics go at each other's throats for 3 pages, this is really my very first forum. I found you with a question a few months ago around my audition time, and am still here...

I just really like you guys. A lot.

TheCalvinator24 · #8 Post by **TheCalvinator24** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 1:09 pm

My first Message Board was back in 1995. Probably a Christian discussion Board. If not that, then it was a general social Board.

I know I was on one back in '95-'96 with a guy whose screen name was "tintin." It was not a comic strip/comic book board. Pretty sure that was just a general "Hey isn't it cool to communicate with people from anywhere in the world" type Board.

I also participated in some e-mail discussion groups that moved almost as fast as this group does now (but nowhere near as fast as we moved during the Verbose Class).

Then, I discovered bbs and irc.

tanstaafl2 · #9 Post by **tanstaafl2** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 4:10 pm

Remember my first forum? You're kidding right?

Hell, yesterday ain't real clear...

Here's Fanny! · #10 Post by **Here's Fanny!** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 4:21 pm

I sure do, like it was yesterday! Even though the room was so full of smoke that I barely had to ...

Oh, that magic time. I vividly remember my first forum. "Dear Penthouse Forum, I never thought that it could happen to me..."

Oh, that kind of forum. I certainly recall my first chat room experience, but I don't remember my first forum. It might have been the go board, but I think there was something before that. Oh, yeah, I was on some Prodigy Bulletin Boards BITD. But I don't really remember them.

kayrharris · #11 Post by **kayrharris** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 4:33 pm

Well, we've gone through several different formats, but this was my first
internet group ever and I'm not involved in any others.

PlacentiaSoccerMom · #12 Post by **PlacentiaSoccerMom** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 5:35 pm

My first site was the ABC "One Life To Live" site. I was fascinated by the character of Todd Manning and found other people who liked the character.

christie1111 · #13 Post by **christie1111** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 8:23 pm

kayrharris wrote:Well, we've gone through several different formats, but this was my first
internet group ever and I'm not involved in any others.

Yup, here. I mean there.

Well, I mean us. Or at least some of us still.

Anywho, whichever BAM board it was. And except for the GC or any of the associated lifeboats or swim rings, only here.

Sir_Galahad · #14 Post by **Sir_Galahad** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 8:32 pm

I do not remember the exact years but I actually ran a BBS (Bulletin Board System) for a number of years. I was referred to as the "sysop" (System Operator) of the board. It was loads of fun (and work). I had message boards, pictures and other files available for downloading and online games. At that time, before Windows and the GUI was popularized, we used text-based ANSI screens. Those were a real challenge to design and develop attractive looking displays. There were some boards that had outstanding screens and menu systems. I didn't have the time to go that elaborate but I did have several hundred users who were regular patrons. I learned a lot about hosting during those times, even if it was rather archaic by today's standards.

silvercamaro · #15 Post by **silvercamaro** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 8:45 pm

Sir_Galahad wrote:I do not remember the exact years but I actually ran a BBS (Bulletin Board System) for a number of years. I was referred to as the "sysop" (System Operator) of the board.

I thank you and your sysop brethern of BBS. My first venture out in the computer world was to a Compuserve blue-screen BBS for Atari users. What I remember most is that the other people on that BBS were astonished to discover that a female was in their midst. They said they didn't know any other girls who cared about computers. When they found out that I wrote my own BASIC programs to use the stylin' Atari 800 as a tool instead of a game machine, they were bumfuzzled. This probably was in or near 1980.

After that, though, I didn't "talk" to anyone on-line until I found the ABC Go board for WWTBAM.

danielh41 · #16 Post by **danielh41** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 5:30 am

I don't remember the first discussion board I ever joined. I used to peruse the newsgroups back in the mid to late 90s. I do remember joining the WWTBAM board back in November 1999. I tried to just use danielh as my user name, but that was taken. One of the options for an alternate was danielh41, so I grabbed that. Soon thereafter, I used the danielh41 when I set up my Yahoo e-mail address. So there is no real significance to the number 41 (except that it is my current age for another three weeks or so)...

#17 Post by **littlebeast13** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 6:07 am

PlacentiaSoccerMom wrote:My first site was the ABC "One Life To Live" site. I was fascinated by the character of Todd Manning and found other people who liked the character.

We didn't raid.... er, "visit" that site like we did General Hospital back in the day, but we did briefly use a OLTL mirror site as a temporary Bored during the Morlock crisis.....

lb13

#18 Post by **littlebeast13** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 6:10 am

And this is the first internet community I ever joined. I found the place about 2 weeks after getting my WTVT®, and delurked a week later.

I tried to get into the Where's George forums when I got into that a few years ago, but the culture shock between their group and ours is quite significant, as I imagine many places would be compared to ours.....

Because of that, I doubt I'll ever get involved with another internet group, but that's perfectly fine with me. I love this place....

lb13

ulysses5019 · #19 Post by **ulysses5019** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 7:33 am

littlebeast13 wrote:And this is the first internet community I ever joined. I found the place about 2 weeks after getting my WTVT®, and delurked a week later.

I tried to get into the Where's George forums when I got into that a few years ago, but the culture shock between their group and ours is quite significant, as I imagine many places would be compared to ours.....

Because of that, I doubt I'll ever get involved with another internet group, but that's perfectly fine with me. I love this place....

lb13

You mean there are other internet groups?!?!?!?!?!

#20 Post by **littlebeast13** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 7:35 am

ulysses5019 wrote:
littlebeast13 wrote:And this is the first internet community I ever joined. I found the place about 2 weeks after getting my WTVT®, and delurked a week later.

I tried to get into the Where's George forums when I got into that a few years ago, but the culture shock between their group and ours is quite significant, as I imagine many places would be compared to ours.....

Because of that, I doubt I'll ever get involved with another internet group, but that's perfectly fine with me. I love this place....

lb13

You mean there are other internet groups?!?!?!?!?!

There's probably a group out there that's devoted exclusively to squirrels.....

Besides us, that is....

lb13

#21 Post by **eyégor** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 7:37 am

littlebeast13 wrote:
ulysses5019 wrote:
littlebeast13 wrote:And this is the first internet community I ever joined. I found the place about 2 weeks after getting my WTVT®, and delurked a week later.

I tried to get into the Where's George forums when I got into that a few years ago, but the culture shock between their group and ours is quite significant, as I imagine many places would be compared to ours.....

Because of that, I doubt I'll ever get involved with another internet group, but that's perfectly fine with me. I love this place....

lb13

You mean there are other internet groups?!?!?!?!?!

There's probably a group out there that's devoted exclusively to squirrels.....

Besides us, that is....

lb13

Where?

My avatar is getting trigger happy....

#22 Post by **littlebeast13** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 7:40 am

eyégor wrote:
littlebeast13 wrote:
ulysses5019 wrote:
You mean there are other internet groups?!?!?!?!?!

There's probably a group out there that's devoted exclusively to squirrels.....

Besides us, that is....

lb13

Where?

My avatar is getting trigger happy....

He looks like he needs another jelly doughnut....

lb13

Evel Squirrel · #23 Post by **Evel Squirrel** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 7:40 am

eyégor wrote:
littlebeast13 wrote:
ulysses5019 wrote:
You mean there are other internet groups?!?!?!?!?!

There's probably a group out there that's devoted exclusively to squirrels.....

Besides us, that is....

lb13

Where?

My avatar is getting trigger happy....

I don't think your avatar could hit the broad side of my motorcycle.

Evil Squirrel · #24 Post by **Evil Squirrel** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 7:42 am

Evel Squirrel wrote:
eyégor wrote:
littlebeast13 wrote:
There's probably a group out there that's devoted exclusively to squirrels.....

Besides us, that is....

lb13

Where?

My avatar is getting trigger happy....
I don't think your avatar could hit the broad side of my motorcycle.

I don't think you'd even notice it if you ran over him....

kayrharris · #25 Post by **kayrharris** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 7:47 am

Am I going to have to hold a class on squirrel etiquette?

Picking on the smallest one like that......not nice at all.