Anyone remember old bbs systems before true isp's

[USS Triumphant]

GEnie was an online service and competitor to the likes of Compuserve, Delphi, Prodigy, etc. BBSes were much smaller operations.

I'd still count GEnie as being closer to a BBS than anything else, even if it was larger and covered a broader area. Or maybe that was just the way I used it.

I wouldn't call Wang's board or The Lighthouse small by any means, and those were definitely BBSes.

 

[Captain Pike]

I used to go to a few gatherings (as we in the Victorian BBS & hacking community called them back in the 80's) now and then.

Always met at McDonalds in Swanston street, then next door to Flashbacks for competitions on things like the old Star Wars sit-down cabinet, or later, Discs of Tron. Catch a movie in Bourke street Midcity cinemas then back to someones house where certain attendees would demonstrate their 'abilities' in various illegal fashions at 300 bps..

Those were the days..

 

[FordSVT]

Yeah some bloke got in trouble in my area for doing that, he would operate a "late night BBS" and had illegal files, and porn. He was only 14 years old though (not much older than I was back then), he got into some trouble although I'm not sure how serious it was. He never logged on to another local BBS though from what I remember, so he was either too embarrassed to show himself, he had his PC taken away, or his parents grounded him for awhile.

That kid is now 33 and worth $87 million due to his webring of porn sites.

 

[General_Phoenix]

Yeah some bloke got in trouble in my area for doing that, he would operate a "late night BBS" and had illegal files, and porn. He was only 14 years old though (not much older than I was back then), he got into some trouble although I'm not sure how serious it was. He never logged on to another local BBS though from what I remember, so he was either too embarrassed to show himself, he had his PC taken away, or his parents grounded him for awhile.

That kid is now 33 and worth $87 million due to his webring of porn sites.

I guess he was just ahead of the curve back then.

 

[CaptMurdock]

Started with a few BBS back with old Commodore 64 (also dabbled with an old online service named Quantum-Link -- anybody remember that? The precursor to America Online) and then on my Mac.

I remember one bbs called Easy Street. We'd meet biweekly at a Round Table, or a Bullwinkles and just hang out. I became a minor hero to some of them because I was only one at that time who could get tapes of Red Dwarf!

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

I had free accounts on Compuserve and GEnie, way back when...

 

[John Picard]

Started with a few BBS back with old Commodore 64 (also dabbled with an old online service named Quantum-Link -- anybody remember that? The precursor to America Online) and then on my Mac.

I remember one bbs called Easy Street. We'd meet biweekly at a Round Table, or a Bullwinkles and just hang out. I became a minor hero to some of them because I was only one at that time who could get tapes of Red Dwarf!

*raises hand* Yepper. I was on Quantum Link. That was a blast.

 

[Amaris]

This thread makes me so happy!


J.

 

[ThunderAeroI]

I recall using a 300 buad modem when I was in the seveth grade to access the BBS scene. Then 2400, then 14000, and then 56k. I loved every minute of it, to this day I wonder aloud what my life would have been like had I not had the computer.

My kids are not even into the third grade and my oldest uses the computer like an extension of his own body. My second youngest cna browse the internet and play computer games and hes only in Pre-K.

I bet when my youngest gets to pre-K he'll be programming games as my oldest one is already learning YoYo.

 

[TEH BABA]

i am the best god damn wing commander on this board

 

[Robert Maxwell]

i am the best god damn wing commander on this board

Not better than me, son.

 

[USS Triumphant]

i am the best god damn wing commander on this board

Not better than me, son.

I was about to offer that that is pretty doubtful, myself.

"You're going home in a box."

 

[Neopeius]

I remember political discussions on Fido-net, sort of like the ones we have on TNZ but much slower and with far fewer people. I argued the politics of the Middle East with one guy for weeks at a time. That was around 1990.

 

[ThunderAeroI]

I remember political discussions on Fido-net, sort of like the ones we have on TNZ but much slower and with far fewer people. I argued the politics of the Middle East with one guy for weeks at a time. That was around 1990.

I recall being scoled by a SysOp not to use Fido-Net for long distance communications because he had to pay for the phone call to the other country the other BBS was in.

 

[Alpha_Geek]

i am the best god damn wing commander on this board

Pick yer ship, I'll explodify you from my Broadsword turret, whether the rest of the Broadsword is there or not!

 

[Robert Maxwell]

i am the best god damn wing commander on this board

Pick yer ship, I'll explodify you from my Broadsword turret, whether the rest of the Broadsword is there or not!

Pfft. Broadsword? I'd stomp both of you in a crippled Scimitar.

Yeah, I went there!

 

[Neopeius]

I remember political discussions on Fido-net, sort of like the ones we have on TNZ but much slower and with far fewer people. I argued the politics of the Middle East with one guy for weeks at a time. That was around 1990.

I recall being scoled by a SysOp not to use Fido-Net for long distance communications because he had to pay for the phone call to the other country the other BBS was in.

Hahaha. The guy shouldn't have offered the service then.

 

[General_Phoenix]

i am the best god damn wing commander on this board

Yeah, I loved Wing Commander all the way up to III. I wasn't really big on the FMV sequences, and preferred the style of WC1 and WC2, but it was still a fun game. I still played The Price of Freedom (think that's what it was called...) but don't remember much about it for some reason, think it had something to do with the Confed splitting into two factions or something...anyway.

I still prefer Privateer to any other Wing Commander game though, played the heck out of that game back in the day.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

i am the best god damn wing commander on this board

Yeah, I loved Wing Commander all the way up to III. I wasn't really big on the FMV sequences, and preferred the style of WC1 and WC2, but it was still a fun game. I still played The Price of Freedom (think that's what it was called...) but don't remember much about it for some reason, think it had something to do with the Confed splitting into two factions or something...anyway.

I still prefer Privateer to any other Wing Commander game though, played the heck out of that game back in the day.

WC4 was pretty good, but admittedly different than the previous games. They were more traditional war stories, while The Price of Freedom was more of a political story. The stakes were high but the particulars were more subtle. I thought it was a nice change of pace, although maybe a bit too easy to beat...

Prophecy, on the other hand, got back to a war-centered story, but they relegated most of the previous cast to supporting roles. The graphics were good but the game itself was missing something.

I do wish they'd make more games like Privateer, though.

 

[ThunderAeroI]

I think WC2 was the best. When i first heard Midi sound I was gaw dropping. WC 4 just feels wrong. Prophacies was good execpt for the ending (downloaded content excluded).