Back when the internet made strange noises, phones were attached to walls, and nobody knew where you were until you got home.

1. The Internet Sounded Like a Robot Having a Nervous Breakdown

Before you could go online, your computer made screeching, beeping, grinding noises for what seemed like an eternity. And if somebody picked up the telephone, your connection could disappear. Imagine telling a kid today, “Get off the phone! I’m trying to use the internet!” And then AOL would come on – they would charge you by the minute – yes, you paid for internet by the minute. It added up – a lot.

2. We Had to Drive Somewhere to Watch a Movie

Friday night meant going to Blockbuster, wandering around for half an hour, and discovering that every copy of the movie you wanted was already rented. Then you had to rewind the tape before returning it. Forgetting could cost you money! “Rewind. Be Kind,” was the way.

3. We Rewound Music With a Pencil

When a cassette tape got tangled, a pencil could save the day. Stick it into one of the holes and twist. And if you wanted to hear your favorite song again, you had to rewind and guess where it started. No skipping, no playlists, no Spotify.

RECEIVE 10 WITH TOM in your email each time I publish. Sign up here.
Don’t miss when I publish “10 Things From the ’80s that would confuse kids today”

4. We Called People From the Side of the Road

Payphones were everywhere. If you needed a ride, you found one, put in some change, and hoped somebody answered. Sometimes you’d make a collect call and try to squeeze your entire message into the part where you were supposed to say your name.

5. We Took Pictures and Waited Days to See Them

You had 24 or 36 chances to get a good picture. No previews, no deleting, no filters. You dropped your film off at a store and waited to discover that half your vacation photos featured someone’s thumb.

6. We Had to Watch Television at a Specific Time

Your favorite show came on Thursday at 8:00, and if you missed it, too bad! You might have to wait months for a rerun. There was no streaming, no pause button on live TV, and no watching an entire season in one weekend.

7. We Used Giant Pieces of Paper to Find Places

They were called maps. You unfolded one across the dashboard, argued about which highway to take, and somehow never managed to fold it back correctly. If you got lost, you stopped at a gas station and asked a complete stranger for directions.

8. We Saved Our Entire School Project on a Little Plastic Square

The floppy disk held about 1.44 megabytes. That’s right, megabytes. You could carry your homework around in your pocket, provided the disk didn’t get damaged or mysteriously stop working the night before your assignment was due.

9. People Carried Devices That Only Told Them to Call Somebody

They were called pagers or beepers. Somebody dialed your number, your pager beeped, and you had to find a telephone to call them back. Imagine carrying a device whose main feature was telling you to go find another device. But even so, people with beepers looked cool and seemed quite important.

10. We Could Leave the House and Become Completely Unreachable

No texts. No location sharing. No constant notifications. Your parents might say, “Be home by dinner,” and that was the entire communication plan. Nobody knew where you were, and somehow everybody survived.

The Funny Thing Is…
We thought the ’90s were incredibly high-tech. We had CDs, video games, cordless phones, and computers that could connect to people around the world.

Today, a kid can watch a movie, order dinner, talk to someone in Japan, and take 100 pictures without ever putting down their phone.

But there’s one thing the ’90s had that today’s kids might never fully understand:

The wonderful feeling of being unavailable — and nobody expecting an immediate answer.

What do you miss most about the ’90s?

Till next time . . .

RECEIVE 10 WITH TOM in your email each time I publish. Sign up here.
Don’t miss when I publish “10 Things From the ’80s that would confuse kids today”