Why this blog's name is appropriate
In 1994, I heard from some coworkers that they were now on the Internet. This was a surprise to me, since public access to the Internet hadn't traditionally been available. So I signed up too, with Toronto's first ISP, Internex Online (IO.org).
Side note: in late 1994 (I think it was) IO announced that its users could now create, for free, a personal home page. My reaction was "why?". I'd seen personal home pages and they were mere vanity pages ("my hobbies are ..."). Furthermore, I knew I'd be very unlikely to go back to a page that was probably still the same as when I'd seen it last. Then in January 1995 an IO user named Carolyn Burke (the creator of this blog) used the new feature to create Carolyn's Diary, which as far as I know was the world's first blog. Yet another IO user, Robert Everett-Green, arts reporter at The Globe and Mail newspaper, saw it and (very smart guy that he is) realized that this was an important innovation. He wrote a story. And that's why although both Carolyn and I were on IO (though I didn't know her at the time), she became famous and I didn't.
Now it's 2006. Over 1 billion people around the world are on the Internet. Apparently the Internet was opened to private business (including ISPs) in 1993, and it's been only 13 years since then.
From almost 0 to over 1 billion in just 13 years. Fuck decaf indeed.
Side note: in late 1994 (I think it was) IO announced that its users could now create, for free, a personal home page. My reaction was "why?". I'd seen personal home pages and they were mere vanity pages ("my hobbies are ..."). Furthermore, I knew I'd be very unlikely to go back to a page that was probably still the same as when I'd seen it last. Then in January 1995 an IO user named Carolyn Burke (the creator of this blog) used the new feature to create Carolyn's Diary, which as far as I know was the world's first blog. Yet another IO user, Robert Everett-Green, arts reporter at The Globe and Mail newspaper, saw it and (very smart guy that he is) realized that this was an important innovation. He wrote a story. And that's why although both Carolyn and I were on IO (though I didn't know her at the time), she became famous and I didn't.
Now it's 2006. Over 1 billion people around the world are on the Internet. Apparently the Internet was opened to private business (including ISPs) in 1993, and it's been only 13 years since then.
From almost 0 to over 1 billion in just 13 years. Fuck decaf indeed.
1 Comments on "Why this blog's name is appropriate":
The Internet was opened up to commercial use by ANS-CORE in the 1989/90/91 time frame, depending on your location adn type of business.
UUNET and PSI had been offering limited connectivity for their networked customers by that time.
ANS - Advanced Network and Services - ran the 'Net as it then was in the transition from DARPANET. "CORE" was "CO"mmercial/"RE"search.
I set up Ontario's first (quite possibly Canada's first if you discount university spin-offs) commercial ISP in 1989 and connected to ANS-CORE in 1990 for dial-up access using PPP and leased line service in 1991. By 1993 we were running web hosting services.
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