Any ex-BBS users here?

The_Blob · 12-20-2007, 10:22 PM

Anyone here remember the days of Bulletin Board Systems aka BBS. I remember the days when I had to dial and redial on a modem just to connect online. Believe or not, I used to spend 6-10 or more hours just to connect to the Internet - this was in 1993.

The Internet back then was for the ELITE, it was expensive and they charged you by the hour. One hour would cost like 5-10 dollars. Then, there was a monthly fee too like 20-30 dollars. Luckily, there were tons of free online services and I truly enjoyed them.

Back then, there was NO SPAM, all the users were intelligent, a lack a women though, I remember BBS services where there were over 1000 users and there were only like 3 users that are woman. Those were the memorable days, I thought I was so special.

BTW, I was one of the first people in the world to use online chat back in 1988. I have a friend who invented text base chatting, it was called GTalk, short for Ginsu Talk and it was noted as the world's first multichannel online chat systems.

scottwww · 12-20-2007, 11:17 PM

I used them to download files back in the early '90s. That was when Wolfenstein 3D was new. Then later came Spear of Destiny. Then Doom.

The_Blob · 12-20-2007, 11:37 PM

I remember Wolfenstein 3D. It is amazing that you can run that on a 286 which is probably the same power as today's black and white text based cell phones.

Ninjaneer · 12-21-2007, 07:50 AM

Used BBS briefly, but barely remember much of it cos shortly thereafter the Internet gained popularity.

UncleWede · 12-22-2007, 05:54 PM

BBS was cool for gaming and sharing "photos"

Jason · 12-22-2007, 10:29 PM

I ran one back in the day... great memories!

renegade · 12-25-2007, 10:17 AM

yep, definitely remember the days of 28.8 kbps modems and BBS boards - my dad and I were just learning about the internet back then but yeah good days

Alex@AKMotorwerk · 12-27-2007, 08:36 PM

used to log onto BBS's back in the early 90's too. My older brother would bring home a "computer" newspaper from work with a bunch of BBS #'s on the back page and i would spend hours upon hours dialing them. Once you would get onto one, i loved the ASCII graphics that would come up! haha

then AOL, Prodigy and Compuserve started giving away a few free hours on online service and i steered away from the BBS's..... Ahh, the memories!

Wolfenstien 3D on my Gateway 2000!

EdmBimmer · 12-27-2007, 10:27 PM

Hehe...

I went on BBS's to d/l programs and play BRE!

I can remember the days when I use to log on to a local freenet to use the internet. It wasn't a GUI, but I was able to send emails and download "photos".

hockeynut · 01-18-2008, 12:56 PM

CompuServe FTW!

bts · 01-18-2008, 09:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hockeynut

CompuServe FTW!

Good old CompuSpend. Nobody has mentioned The Source. Or Quantum Link. Those were the major commercial ones. Then there was the Garbage Dump, the Gull ... I'll stop dating myself now.

Kev · 01-18-2008, 09:48 PM

Started off with BBS in 1993 with a 28.8K internal modem (state of the art at that time). I was in Hong Kong and was in 8th grade. I used the MSN service a little bit when Win95 came out. Finally migrated to the internet in fall 1995. The monthly charge was around 15USD at that time with hourly charge of around a buck.

Neurorad · 01-18-2008, 09:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hockeynut

CompuServe FTW!

I started with Compuserve back around 1980!

I had the freakiest online chats as an 11 year old: I asked a woman "what does 'Bi' mean?"

The_Blob · 01-21-2008, 01:11 AM

Neurorad, you're a mega nerd. You started online chattin' in 1980 huh? I started online chattin' in the late 80's while logging onto Diversi-Dial aka D-Dial online boards. It just blew me away, and I thought I was so cool. Back then, I didn't really care about real life... I would ask other chatters, when was that last time you talked to someone in real life and the time. Then, I started using STS online BBS systems which I thought was the coolest thing around. Honestly, STS aka Synergy Teleconferencing System was the coolest thing because up to 16 users can chat at a time, and ANSI and ASCII graphics were so trendy back then.

AHHHH!!!!! I spent like 3 days doodling around to get this ASCII pic.

garyhgaryh · 01-21-2008, 05:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The_Blob

Anyone here remember the days of Bulletin Board Systems aka BBS. I remember the days when I had to dial and redial on a modem just to connect online. Believe or not, I used to spend 6-10 or more hours just to connect to the Internet - this was in 1993.

The Internet back then was for the ELITE, it was expensive and they charged you by the hour. One hour would cost like 5-10 dollars. Then, there was a monthly fee too like 20-30 dollars. Luckily, there were tons of free online services and I truly enjoyed them.

Back then, there was NO SPAM, all the users were intelligent, a lack a women though, I remember BBS services where there were over 1000 users and there were only like 3 users that are woman. Those were the memorable days, I thought I was so special.

BTW, I was one of the first people in the world to use online chat back in 1988. I have a friend who invented text base chatting, it was called GTalk, short for Ginsu Talk and it was noted as the world's first multichannel online chat systems.

I ran a BBS in the early 80's in the Bay Area (Horizon) on a 300 baud modem on a trs80 model 1 computer with 2-3 double sided 80 track drives writing on 84 tracks to get the most data out of a disk. I also had online chat working way before '88.

Was a real fun time then.

Gary

scottwww · 01-23-2008, 09:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The_Blob

Neurorad, you're a mega nerd. You started online chattin' in 1980 huh? I started online chattin' in the late 80's while logging onto Diversi-Dial aka D-Dial online boards. It just blew me away, and I thought I was so cool. Back then, I didn't really care about real life... I would ask other chatters, when was that last time you talked to someone in real life and the time. Then, I started using STS online BBS systems which I thought was the coolest thing around. Honestly, STS aka Synergy Teleconferencing System was the coolest thing because up to 16 users can chat at a time, and ANSI and ASCII graphics were so trendy back then.

AHHHH!!!!! I spent like 3 days doodling around to get this ASCII pic.

I like the ASCII pic. Isn't there a Photoshop filter that will also do this for any picture?

Neurorad · 02-01-2008, 09:23 AM

Several Photoshop plugins for sale online, ~$20.

Neurorad · 02-01-2008, 09:25 AM

Speaking of ASCII - Star Wars ASCIIMATION:

http://www.asciimation.co.nz/

Star Wars animated with ASCII!

BayAreaE92 · 02-01-2008, 10:20 AM

I'm a current BBS user!
I run the 18" BBS RG-R's...excellent wheels I love em'!

scottwww · 02-01-2008, 01:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BayAreaE92

I'm a current BBS user!
I run the 18" BBS RG-R's...excellent wheels I love em'!

Your comment is off topic!

CokerRat · 02-01-2008, 03:11 PM

You guys are all a bunch of newbies (except Neurorad)!

I used a 1200-baud modem from my dad's work when anyone else I knew ran at 300... that was a hot piece. Most boards were 300, a handful of 1200 and the odd well-financed business-oriented board would do 2400...except nobody actually had a 2400 baud modem.

Ran my own board for a few years in the late 80's, got into the Fidonet thing for a few years, screwed around with front-end mailers, echomail and netmail.... and then watched them become slowly replaced by newsgroups and forums.

Ain't progress grand?

The_Blob · 02-01-2008, 04:21 PM

Hmmmm... it seems like no one used a genuine online chat system back in the 80's. I'm not talking about 2-3 user chat systems on standard BBS's where you chat with the sysop, but multiuser chat systems where the main purpose of the board was just for online chattin. I swear, I was one of the first people in the world to use it and I buddy of mine was the one of the world's first people in the world to design it, it was called GinsuTalk, we called it GTalk back then.

12-20-2007, 10:22 PM	#1
The_Blob Second Lieutenant 499 Rep 298 Posts Drives: 2008 E92 335i Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Canada iTrader: (0)	Any ex-BBS users here? Anyone here remember the days of Bulletin Board Systems aka BBS. I remember the days when I had to dial and redial on a modem just to connect online. Believe or not, I used to spend 6-10 or more hours just to connect to the Internet - this was in 1993. The Internet back then was for the ELITE, it was expensive and they charged you by the hour. One hour would cost like 5-10 dollars. Then, there was a monthly fee too like 20-30 dollars. Luckily, there were tons of free online services and I truly enjoyed them. Back then, there was NO SPAM, all the users were intelligent, a lack a women though, I remember BBS services where there were over 1000 users and there were only like 3 users that are woman. Those were the memorable days, I thought I was so special. BTW, I was one of the first people in the world to use online chat back in 1988. I have a friend who invented text base chatting, it was called GTalk, short for Ginsu Talk and it was noted as the world's first multichannel online chat systems.
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12-20-2007, 11:17 PM	#2
scottwww Brigadier General 547 Rep 4,760 Posts Drives: 07 BMW 335i, 15 Infiniti Q60S Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: USA iTrader: (0)	I used them to download files back in the early '90s. That was when Wolfenstein 3D was new. Then later came Spear of Destiny. Then Doom. __________________ 2007 BMW 335i E92, Montego Blue on Cream Beige, MT, ZSP, ZPP, CA, PDC, CWP and Style 188 for winter
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12-20-2007, 11:37 PM	#3
The_Blob Second Lieutenant 499 Rep 298 Posts Drives: 2008 E92 335i Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Canada iTrader: (0)	I remember Wolfenstein 3D. It is amazing that you can run that on a 286 which is probably the same power as today's black and white text based cell phones.
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12-21-2007, 07:50 AM	#4
Ninjaneer Shadow Warrior 151 Rep 2,095 Posts Drives: '07 335i Sedan Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Florida iTrader: (0)	Used BBS briefly, but barely remember much of it cos shortly thereafter the Internet gained popularity. __________________ 335i E90 / Arctic / Gray / Burl Walnut / Steptronic / ZPP / ZSP / Paddles / CA / Nav / PDC / OEM Spoiler Mods: PIAA Angel Eyes, Rear Fog Switch, Escort X50 Blue hardwire, 30% Charcoal Llumar Installing soon: Rear Power Outlets (Happy Robot mod!)
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12-22-2007, 05:54 PM	#5
UncleWede Long Time Admirer, First Time Owner 18393 Rep 9,418 Posts Drives: G01 X3 M40i Dark Graphite Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Oxnard, CA iTrader: (0)	BBS was cool for gaming and sharing "photos"
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12-22-2007, 10:29 PM	#6
Jason Administrator 43331 Rep 21,320 Posts Drives: F80 M3 Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: USA iTrader: (0)	I ran one back in the day... great memories! __________________ Check on the Latest BMW News Become a fan of Bimmerpost Facebook Follow us on Bimmerpost Twitter Subscribe to Bimmerpost Youtube Channel
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12-25-2007, 10:17 AM	#7
renegade Private 7 Rep 67 Posts Drives: '06 330i Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: in a spot with Patrón shots swimming in lime iTrader: (0)	yep, definitely remember the days of 28.8 kbps modems and BBS boards - my dad and I were just learning about the internet back then but yeah good days
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12-27-2007, 08:36 PM	#8
Alex@AKMotorwerk 209 Rep 9,339 Posts Drives: 2012 AW F10 535i Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Hillsborough, NJ iTrader: (7)	used to log onto BBS's back in the early 90's too. My older brother would bring home a "computer" newspaper from work with a bunch of BBS #'s on the back page and i would spend hours upon hours dialing them. Once you would get onto one, i loved the ASCII graphics that would come up! haha then AOL, Prodigy and Compuserve started giving away a few free hours on online service and i steered away from the BBS's..... Ahh, the memories! Wolfenstien 3D on my Gateway 2000!
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12-27-2007, 10:27 PM	#9
EdmBimmer Lieutenant 35 Rep 403 Posts Drives: '10 X5 35d Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Edmonton iTrader: (5)	Hehe... I went on BBS's to d/l programs and play BRE! I can remember the days when I use to log on to a local freenet to use the internet. It wasn't a GUI, but I was able to send emails and download "photos". __________________ In the Garage '10 E70 X5d Alpine White LOADED UP - '10 EVO X Wicked White RIP '08 BMW E60 535i - '06 BMW E90 330i - '05 Acura EL - '98 Honda Prelude - '99 Audi A4 - '02 Honda Civic - '06 Nissan Xterra
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01-18-2008, 12:56 PM	#10
hockeynut Private 4 Rep 72 Posts Drives: '04 E46 330cic Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Austin, TX iTrader: (0)	CompuServe FTW! __________________ SteveH
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01-18-2008, 09:48 PM	#12
Kev Critical Care Anesthesiologist 488 Rep 8,824 Posts Drives: SMB F83 Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Seattle, WA iTrader: (24) Garage List 2009 Porsche 911 Ca ... [9.50]	Started off with BBS in 1993 with a 28.8K internal modem (state of the art at that time). I was in Hong Kong and was in 8th grade. I used the MSN service a little bit when Win95 came out. Finally migrated to the internet in fall 1995. The monthly charge was around 15USD at that time with hourly charge of around a buck. __________________ kev { divinum est sedate dolorem } "your friendly neighborhood critical care anesthesiologist"
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01-21-2008, 01:11 AM	#14
The_Blob Second Lieutenant 499 Rep 298 Posts Drives: 2008 E92 335i Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Canada iTrader: (0)	Neurorad, you're a mega nerd. You started online chattin' in 1980 huh? I started online chattin' in the late 80's while logging onto Diversi-Dial aka D-Dial online boards. It just blew me away, and I thought I was so cool. Back then, I didn't really care about real life... I would ask other chatters, when was that last time you talked to someone in real life and the time. Then, I started using STS online BBS systems which I thought was the coolest thing around. Honestly, STS aka Synergy Teleconferencing System was the coolest thing because up to 16 users can chat at a time, and ANSI and ASCII graphics were so trendy back then. AHHHH!!!!! I spent like 3 days doodling around to get this ASCII pic.
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02-01-2008, 09:23 AM	#17
Neurorad Major 89 Rep 1,224 Posts Drives: 2017 340xi Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Location, Location iTrader: (0)	Several Photoshop plugins for sale online, ~$20.
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02-01-2008, 09:25 AM	#18
Neurorad Major 89 Rep 1,224 Posts Drives: 2017 340xi Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Location, Location iTrader: (0)	Speaking of ASCII - Star Wars ASCIIMATION: http://www.asciimation.co.nz/ Star Wars animated with ASCII!
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02-01-2008, 10:20 AM	#19
BayAreaE92 First Lieutenant 20 Rep 368 Posts Drives: 91' 850i Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Oakland, CA iTrader: (0) Garage List 1991 850i [7.75] 2007 328i Coupe [0.00]	I'm a current BBS user! I run the 18" BBS RG-R's...excellent wheels I love em'!
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02-01-2008, 03:11 PM	#21
CokerRat Private 3 Rep 97 Posts Drives: 2015 F10 535i xDrive Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Canada iTrader: (0)	You guys are all a bunch of newbies (except Neurorad)! I used a 1200-baud modem from my dad's work when anyone else I knew ran at 300... that was a hot piece. Most boards were 300, a handful of 1200 and the odd well-financed business-oriented board would do 2400...except nobody actually had a 2400 baud modem. Ran my own board for a few years in the late 80's, got into the Fidonet thing for a few years, screwed around with front-end mailers, echomail and netmail.... and then watched them become slowly replaced by newsgroups and forums. Ain't progress grand?
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02-01-2008, 04:21 PM	#22
The_Blob Second Lieutenant 499 Rep 298 Posts Drives: 2008 E92 335i Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Canada iTrader: (0)	Hmmmm... it seems like no one used a genuine online chat system back in the 80's. I'm not talking about 2-3 user chat systems on standard BBS's where you chat with the sysop, but multiuser chat systems where the main purpose of the board was just for online chattin. I swear, I was one of the first people in the world to use it and I buddy of mine was the one of the world's first people in the world to design it, it was called GinsuTalk, we called it GTalk back then.
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