10 brilliant examples of what life was like before the internet existed
It's been around for almost three decades – which means it's more than possible to feel nostalgic for the uncomplicated existence we led before the world wide web weaved its spell on our lives.
The hashtag #BeforeTheInternetExisted is trending on Twitter and everyone is piling in with illuminating and insightful suggestions of how they spent time before the stress of counting likes, followers and views on Snapchat came along.
#BeforeTheInternetExisted this is how we did things pic.twitter.com/LC3MDmzH7w
— ⓒⓐⓣⓗⓔⓡⓘⓝⓔ�� (@itssmecath) March 16, 2017
Some miss speaking to their friends and family in restaurants, rather than having their eyes glued to their smartphones; others lament a loss of writing letters and passing notes. And then there's the delayed bedtimes of today – there's always more internet out there to be read – and the shifting sands of vocabulary. Words such as 'spam', 'viral' and 'trolling' all have very different meanings in the age of the internet.
#BeforeTheInternetExisted the only trolls were these things pic.twitter.com/msSVScQuNX
— Original Rich Dollas (@Richie_whatever) March 16, 2017
Here's ten of the best so far – though we venture you can at least match them in the comments box below this article...
1. #BeforeTheInternetExisted I'd shout out all my pointless opinions in crowded places and hope someone gave me a thumbs up
2. #BeforeTheInternetExisted if you told your squad you Googled someone it meant something entirely different
3. #BeforeTheInternetExisted two people sitting at the dinner table actually LOOKED at each other and SPOKE
4. #BeforeTheInternetExisted the only trolls were toy trolls
5. #BeforeTheInternetExisted when someone "followed" you. You ran!
#BeforeTheInternetExisted when someone "followed" you. You ran! pic.twitter.com/8dXgYaHRYe
— Ryan Hassenstab (@xhazzx) March 15, 2017
6. #BeforeTheInternetExisted going viral was a bad thing
7. #BeforeTheInternetExisted microwaves cooked your food, reheated coffee and fried your brains, but they didn't spy on you
8. #BeforeTheInternetExisted when you got sent to your room it was a real punishment
9. #BeforeTheInternetExisted we knew everyone's phone number by heart
10. #BeforeTheInternetExisted you had to have an actual talent to be famous
#BeforeTheInternetExisted this was "the cloud." And it was spectacular. pic.twitter.com/zTUYID6hvT
— Nobody's View (@nobodysview) March 16, 2017