[ueroc]

Go read old IRC logs, it's pretty "meh". You can join mailing lists where there mostly "old schoolers", which is also pretty "meh". The people or the conversations where never that exciting. It was all about the context of being exposed to something emerging. You were chatting with people from the other side of the world while most people had barely read a foreign newspaper. I'm sure one could have similar experiences today, but it's unlikely to be in a text interface among adults with $3000 laptops.

[tux1968]

I'd argue it was only "meh" in the same way the average verbal conversation is to a dispassionate listener. For those now able to exchange ideas on a favorite topic with people who were previously inaccessible, it was great. And not because it was emerging, but for the experience and capability itself.

[ueroc]

I'd still argue that those experiences and that capability had 'merit' because it was emerging. If you go and try and manufacture hardware in China you can have those same meaningful mundane conversations. Because that's something emerging so there's scarcity of information, everyone is to some extent a beginner and there's therefor incentive to share information. So I don't think it's the people or the conversations, but the environment.

[wcummings]

Sounds like more a reflection of you and your conversations than IRC as a medium.

[ueroc]

Judging by your comment I don't seem to be missing out on much in terms of conversation.

[alanfranzoni]

Possibly. But at least there wasn't one million of them and they weren't out of context. Don't like a thread? Don't read it, mark it as mute. Won't see it again.