I am what you might call now, an early adopter. I discovered the Internet before the word Internet even existed. On a cold winter's day in 1971 I sent my first email on what was called the Arpanet. That changed my life forever.
In the early 1980's, it was possible to connect to "Information Services" with a speedy 300bps modem and a subscriber account. It was expensive back then, and cutting edge. However, you could send email from one account to another.
I am proud to say that by 1990, I had all of my family "connected" via email, and even more fascinating, we chatted live and in person every Sunday night en masse. Although we were spread out from Pennsylvania to Arizona to Connecticut and Georgia, on Sunday night we were together. I even saved most of the logs of those conversations, and have them to this day.
I lost my father in November 1995. In the last year of his life, I received about 300 emails from him, and I have carefully archived and preserved them. In one of them he indicated that his cancer was terminal, and that he wished for everyone to continue on as though nothing was different.
At some point early on, we even attempted voice over internet, but even at the new and improved 56Kbps, the delay was so long that most of what we heard from each other was laughter!
Is it possible that we invented the first social network? Well, it was a network, and it was definitely social. And it peaked in late 1994 and early 1995. Hmmm I may have to go to Wikipedia and make some editorial adjustments!
This post was inspired by Lenn Harley's feature post: Planning for 2009. Agents and brokers, the time is now. Or, be left in the dust.
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BBS. Bulletin Board Systems.
Boy am I old :-)
Richard: I remember being at InterOp 1988 in Santa Clara and using a MAC to login to my IBM Mainframe email account at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, AL. I helped build the NASA backbone at that time with early Cisco router technology. Wow! Much has happened in 20-30 years, huh?
If my dad were alive today he'd be amazed at the changes. We had a 300 baud phone modem at our house in the 1970s too, when computers less powerful than today's laptops filled whole buildings. We do live in interesting times...!
You have a beautiful family. I remember back in college we had an email system but we could only send nad receive email at our college email address on these special "VAX" machines in the computer lab. Email was very new back them. I am not that old but when I think about it, it makes me feel like a dinasaur!
Great story. It's one of those feel good kind of reads that are perfect for a Monday morning.
Might I suggest that your creation of the first social network be dubbed. "The Weisser Project"?
Richard, I would say something funny here, but that would be disrespectful. I am certain you cherish the memories of the time you and your father had....internet, social network or not.
Arpnet?
Bo
Kris...
Oh wow, I forgot about BBS's. That was a wild, weird world. BTW you had to pay extra to get to the interesting stuff! lol
Steve...
At CMU we had an IBM 360 mainframe, and the email had to be typed in on punch cards! The response probably got there in ten or fifteen minutes, but the line printer was not assigned the job for hours! We sure have come a long way!
Suzanne...
My first personal computer, the Vic-20, had a whopping 2K of memory. Wow.
Rebecca...
Interesting side note: the "@" symbol was used in the very first email ever and has been in use ever since!
Craig...
The Weisser Project. Hey, I like that a lot. Thanks.
I believe you may have created the first social network on the internet. But even before emails and every thing there was the old fashion letters. An art form today, but I believe that would be the first social network. The longing for a response instead of getting irritated when no response right away. We always want instant gratification. But with family I think its ok to wait.
Richard, it sounds like with your family you were way ahead of your time. I will call you a Renaissance man : )
Great looking family. Gees, there are certainly a lot of you! My father passed in 2002. He made a video message and sent it to my email months before he passed. I still have it but cannot bring myself to watch.
On a lighter note- Great pic!
Richard, When my Dad died a few years ago none of his kids realized the network of friends he had on the internet. If it wasn't so easy to communicate via email today I'm sure he never would have been able to meet all his new friends.
If you were first, you done good.
Hi Richard ... I remember Arpanet! You are bringing back memories :) It was very exciting back then and no traffic! Nice family story!
Richard,
Looking for the first social network? How about the days of the party line telephone?
Steve
Bo...
Funny is ALWAYS allowed on this blog! My father and my family always enjoyed a good laugh. And I know that no disrespect would have been intended!
Ashley...
My mother-in-law still uses snail mail, and it is very nice to get one of her frequent letter.
Gary...
I believe that we were. Many others were aware but I wonder how many other families were fully immersed at that time?
Mel...
My last photo of my father is eerie ... I will post it one day!
Richard...
It is amazing at how we develop real relationships. And thanks, I feel as though I did good! ;)
Marie...
You are giving yourself away! lol and thanks.
Steve...
HAHA When you're right, you're right! My high school girlfriend had a party line, wow, are we that old?
I would love to see it whenever you are ready. I wouldn't post my video. Too many mannerisms that would choke me up.
Richard- I think that is awesome. I think the fact that you've kept that and have it archived is a testament to the kind of man you are and it shows just how much your family means to you and that is so wonderful, especially in this dysfunctional society that we live in. I'm glad I've gotten to know you via your blogs and AR. You're a special person so keep up the wonderful blogging, keep smiling and above all else keep the faith. BTW-Did you get any good ideas about what you were going to do about the spammer. I hope it works out well for you. What a beautiful family. Which one is your wife? Take care and talk to you again.
P.S. Only 94 days and 134 blogs to go now. Tick! Tock!
I thought of that, Richard, but how often do you get to reminisce about Arpanet?
Richard: Sounds like you are a cutting edge kind of guy. And I'm jealous of the close knit family you have. I have always dreamed of such togetherness with my immediate and extended family. They are just not cut out for it.
Mel...
I understand. My photo is interesting ... I have to look for it, it's not a digital!
Pat...
Thanks. About the spammer ... I have reported and deleted and will see if it continues. Thanks for the reminder, like telling a child hours before they have to take their medicine! lol
Marie...
So true ... you had to be in the DOD system and it was so cool! Remember the graphics made with ascii characters?
Chris Ann...
I am sorry to hear that. Family is very important!
Richard, You were ahead of your time and you are fortunately that you still have your father's emails. Sometimes I think about the fact that we no longer write letter and then when we send emails they are deleted. Besides emails don't have the same quality that letters had back in the day. Anyway, congratulations on your forwarding thinking-ness.
Wow what a great story Richard. I can't even get most of my extended family to e-mail now. I didn't even know how to send an e-mail when I started in Real Estate in 2003 and I was only 23 at the time!
I don't know if you had the first network, but you can be proud of the network you have!
You told me on the phone how much you are into the newest technology but I had no idea it went back so many years. Great family memories you have stored Richard. Priceless.
Richard ... I'm a librarian and was lucky enough to have worked at major libraries .... Libraries were very early adapters, using technology for internal purposes way before any public interface. I was an .edu at a time when the only other suffix I remember was .gov. I had the research angle!
If I recall correctly, there are enough members in your family to make quite a large social network indeed.
Shirley...
It's true ...old letters are wonderful ways to remember the past!
Mandi...
Quick math tells me that I sent my first email 9 years before you were born! lol
Bill...
Now that I am! THX
Cameron...
Thanks, things are so much easier than they used to be!
Marie...
Libraries were prime targets for technology. The Library of Congress is great!
I see you Richard! Back row, third from the left. What an awesome family you have. And you are blessed to have all those emails from your father!
Richard... you were waaay ahead of the curve on this one. That you have all those conversation logs is outstanding! That's an amazing treasure.
JL...
There are indeed, I am blessed in that way!
Lori...
Yes, that's me ... wondering when the timer on the camera will trip the shutter! lol
Jesse...
Yes, they are. I think I'll look over some pf them soon! Thanks, my cold-country friend!
LOL...yes Richard I was born in 78 so actually only about 7 years. It only took me another 23 years to catch up to the e-mail craze!
I see you in the back row!
Mandi...
Wow, you're the same age as my daughter! lol
Howard...
Yes, that's me!
Richard - Wow. Arpanet. My first foray onto the internet was in 1993 or '94. It was pretty much just text, from what I recall. It's come a long way, baby, and not all for the good. Very cool post idea!
Lotus Notes. Anyone else remember that?
Thank you for the fascinating history Richard. Good for you that you have made a family record.
i wish I kept mine archived. amazing. what a great history. I had an Apple in 1988, that was cutting edge with 24KB meomory
Alright... congrats on the gold star buddy!
Good heavens, I haven't been doing this very long compared to all of you OLDER FOLKS!! The first email that I ever sent was a resignation letter in 1998, I think. ;-)) I had to wait for Al to invent the internet before I got my feet wet.
BTW, Congrats on the Gold Star my friend.
Richard you were so far ahead that I'll bet you fell behind. Its amazing to see that you are still open minded to new ideas.
Jason...
I know what you're thinking, and a post is in the works for later in the week! Thanks for stopping by!
Margaret...
I was never a big Lotus fan, but I remember the product. WOW!
James...
There were two schools back then, the Apple and the Commodore. I was a Commodore! lol and thanks.
Jesse...
Our little crowd has been on a roll lately! Jer got one today too!
Don...
LOL! I am glad that he invented it in time for you to resign ... I guess!
Scott...
I have to admit though, that I am a little battle-weary. Thanks.
Richard,
Great post! I love 'Family First' stories!!! Thanks, Fran
Richard, do you think you were ahead of Al Gore in the internet department?? Lol! Nothing against Al Gore, I like him, but my husband is always chastising him over that!
Richard - you beat me by a few years on Arpanet. I did work with some of the developers at LLL in the 70's though (giving me more claim to it that Al Gore).
It is great that you have those emails from you father.
Fran...
It was a unifying force, that's for sure!
Susan...
I didn't invent it, I was just an end user. But I will tell you that we had to code the terminal program to connect to the compuer in Philly, of all places!
Mike...
We sure have come a long way. I still have my PL/1 and FORTRAN manuals!
Richard - PL/1!. We are probably half of the group here that might know what that is. My first Fortran programs were on punched card.