A reader remembers the BBS days:
What’s really strange is that my time as the system operator of a BBS was over 15 years which seems scarcely believable now. However there are times when I have dreams where keeping the board running figure prominently – that I need to perform maintenance on the board or back up the database or do other tasks I used to do to keep it running. And this is about 16 years after last running a board regularly. I’m not really sure what that says. However it seems like only yesterday I had to do all these things to keep the system running and it was a task which I attended to with a fairly religious fervor.
Don’t I know it. I recall the second time I moved, it was absolutely necessary that the system was down for a minimal amount of time – so many people used it! It felt like I was letting them down if I didn’t get the system back up.
Another doesn’t like some of the implications about social aptitudes:
I don’t think our lives on BBSs were so “derivative” of actual human contact, so much as an adjunct and catalyst. After all, we contrived to get together in person about as often as possible. And look at today — at least for me, most of my circle of friends are those people I met in person on the BBS. I went to their weddings, and they to mine, etc.
Which I might argue proves the argument. We were comfortable with each other, but the rest of the world was a little off-putting. And, for another reader, what impact does the suggestion of not using a smartphone have?
One, because I’m reading it on my smartphone.
Too bad, Andrew. It’s permanently affixed.
