Comments on: CompuServe & My Journey to the Internet

By: Steve

Steve — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 13:25:39 +0000

The University of Phoenix’s Online Campus, which was founded in San Francisco in the late 1980s and operated out of SF until 1999, used CompuServe for the first 10 years of the campus’ existence to link its farflung students, faculty, and administrators.

By: Om Malik

Om Malik — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 12:56:04 +0000

of course…. but gave me all the info i needed to find you :-) haha. worked out for me and totally qualifies as “good” experience. I think for you not so much. ;-) I know real men (and women) launched websites. i wonder what is the new launch: social presence on the web?

By: David Churbuck

David Churbuck — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 12:18:52 +0000

Putting Forbes on CompuServe was a bad experience Om. Real men launched websites.

By: Janet

Janet — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 01:08:14 +0000

Thanks for the post! I, too, remember those early days online.I discovered online service because one of my writing clients was a medical publisher who discovered they could save money by transmitting all their copy to their printer over a modem. They then required all their writers to send data to them over a modem, or go to their office and type their articles into the company’s VAX system. I had a computer, so I bought a modem, which contained fliers and free trial coupons for CompuServe and GEnie.I tried both and got hooked on the capabilities. I was amazed at how easy it suddenly became to find people to interview for articles and to spot emerging trends. After a couple of years I launched my own online forum and eventually turned my fascination for online services into a business – one that’s seen a lot of changes over the years :)

By: Jesse Kopelman

Jesse Kopelman — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 21:51:36 +0000

@Om

It wasn’t Compuserve, but your comment about your first computer being an AST that brought back the memories for me. I never owned, one, but AST was the first stock I ever bought — all the way back when I was in high school. I made about $500 or $600 on it, too. Wasn’t so lucky with my next stock pick . . .

By: richard jones

richard jones — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 20:11:02 +0000

I remember paying for both prodigy and Aol …the programs at nearly 40 dollars a piece .. Prodigy came in this big box with a manual

By: Biloxiblue

Biloxiblue — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 19:15:40 +0000

Oh yes, I remember Compuserve too, in fact I just looked it up on http://picktorrent and saw a lot of info about it in years past. I personally won’t miss it and happy with the direction that the internet and providers have gone!

By: Sean

Sean — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 19:03:33 +0000

Awesome! I had a 300 baud modem that plugged into the (serial) joystick port on my Atari 800. The thought that the characters displayed on my screen came from another city was awe inspiring. I can still recall that excitement.

By: Sean

Sean — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 19:01:02 +0000

Makes me sad too. Thanks for the eulogy.

That was also my first taste of IM (via the CB service). The very dawn of trolling and flame wars. :^)

By: Mary Ellen Stone

Mary Ellen Stone — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 17:23:54 +0000

CompuServe gave me my first job out of college – they came on campus at Miami University to recruit new hires for tech support. A professor helped me prep for the interview by explaining what a modem was. I spent a couple of years helping people in Bermuda and all over the world set their software parameters (baud rate, parity, dial-in numbers) and get online. The charted growth rate for CIS subscribers was a 45 degree angle going up the white board then. A lot of great people in SIGs, forums, sharing information.

By: Edunetsys

Edunetsys — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 17:18:10 +0000

Om is one of the lucky guys who has been able to carve out a niche for himself. Others might be more talented but are not so lucky. The mantra remains the same. You have to be in right place at right time to grab the opportunity by your both hands.
Om was there.

By: Richard

Richard — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 16:47:44 +0000

Also have fond (ish) memories of Compuserve in the early Eighties. I was (and still am) in Bermuda so had to make a long distance call to New York at $1.50 per min (I think). Did not use it too much because of that. It was also a problem to find other people to communicate with. All my friends were non-techy and could not understand the need for something like that. It must have been like having the first phone- no good until somebody else got one.

By: Joseph Spiegel

Joseph Spiegel — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 16:44:06 +0000

Wow, memories. I remember buying a 300 baud modem cartridge and a CompuServe starter kit for my Atari 400 in 1982 or there abouts. The modem was fancy, because it connected to the jack in the headset and was not an acoustic coupler (ala War Games). The clerk at the store told me, “you don’t have a computer UNTIL you have a modem” how prophetic!! And so far ahead of his time. For a while I maintained both a Compuserve & Prodigy subscription whne I later moved to my first PC. A friend of mine still has and uses his Prodigy email address, WAY cooler than any AOL address!!

By: courtney benson

courtney benson — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 15:28:09 +0000

Remember coming up with the idea to use (early 90′s) as a way to send certain software patches overnight to clients. It took forever and was costly but customers loved us.

By: Mark

Mark — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 14:49:03 +0000

Yep same memories as everyone else, but i was using it is Australia at a time when it was the best way to connect to this new thing – used it all over the world as I travelled alot in those days – it worked but as Om says its became a distant memory and now poof!

By: Gadget Sleuth

Gadget Sleuth — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 14:39:24 +0000

I remember CompuServe from the 80′s/90′s. It was overpriced for the content it offered, but it did offer a window to the internet world that little else could match at that time.