Journal: News & Comment

Twenty-five years since the invention of the BBS

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The computerized bulletin board system (BBS) was invented 25 years ago, in February 1978. I first logged on to a BBS more than five years later, in 1983, when they were everywhere, mostly running on Apple II and Commodore 64 microcomputers. I was 14.

It's now been about 10 years since I dialed in to a BBS. The Internet took over for those of us who communicate by computer. Still, BBSs introduced me to a number of my closest friends -- since they were local, dial-up affairs, BBS users were more likely to meet in person than many of today's Internet acquaintances, who can be anywhere in the world. The BBS scene was brief and unusual, and I'm glad I was part of it.

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