I'd like to begin by thanking everyone for coming to my bloggy blog today to celebrate The Internet's life. The Internet was by far the most compelling sign of human decency that I have ever seen and I know many of you would say the same. I first encountered The Internet in 2001 in the computer lab of junior high. They would screech out a harrowing and crackled plea to give us a dial-up connection and together we would scroll through Deviantart and send chain mail.
A proud Scorpio, The Internet was born on October 29th, 1969 (nice), in Santa Clara, California. They were the youngest child of Communications, and are survived by all their siblings, Postal, Radio, Telegraph, Telephone and Carrier Pigeon. They had a rough upbringing, with a lot of misconnections until their move to ARPANET in 1973 and were finally able to flourish in 1983 with the adoption of TCP/IP.
They began their community outreach work in 1993 and for the next decade, dedicated themselves to revolutionizing communications around the world. Lovingly referred to as "The Web" by their friends, The Internet became the social glue for many circles, bringing people together, and sharing cool info with cool graphics. Their friend Tim Berners-Lee remembers "The Web as the answer to an open challenge. Through the swirling together of influences, ideas, and realizations from many sides," The Web was always a true pal.
An incredible matchmaker, The Internet brought countless romances together but never tied the knot themselves. They were widely known as a workaholic and preferred to spend their time buffering and creating space for others. Humble to their core, The Internet never asked for any recognition or praise, and their greatest achievement was the creation of the Webby Awards to honour others for their online work. They never sought fame, yet became the backbone of modern communications.
The Internet was known for their quick wit and ability to adapt to any situation. Remember the early days of Netscape Navigator and GeoCities? Or when they had us dancing along with "Numa Numa," and Rickrolling our friends? They gave us messaging services like ICQ and MSN Messanger, where new friendships were forged and new lingo made us ROFL 4eaeae <3. We've been surfing their depths for decades, and it's hard to imagine a world without their charmingly chaotic nature.
Even their more contemporary efforts, filled with social media and cat memes, The Internet never lost their ability to connect us. They brought us together in ways we never could've imagined, through communities like LiveJournal, MySpace, and Tumblr. Though we all felt the pain of dial-up modems and long load times, we persevered because The Internet was worth it.
No remembrance of The Internet would be complete without acknowledging their mischievous side. Napster and Limewire were the digital Wild West where music, movies, and viruses flowed freely. With every download came the thrill of uncertainty: would you get "We Can Make Sandwiches" by Detriot Grand Pubahs or would The Internet have unleashed a little joke, a trojan horse or a love bug, into your unprotected computer?
We'll always cherish the memories of our beloved Internet – the countless hours spent watching "Charlie bit my finger," and the endless excitement of stumbling upon bizarreo websites like "Zombo.com." They were a beacon of light, guiding us through the darkness of a world without memes and Vines.
So here's to you, Internet – the birthplace of millions of meaningful connections, late-night laughs, and unforgettable experiences. May your spirit live on in every dancing banana GIF and nostalgic viral video that graces our screens. You will be missed, but never forgotten. A/S/L forever.
Rest in peace, Web.
~ Tim Berners-Lee quoted in Weaving the Web, 1999 but taken out of context because that's what The Internet would have wanted.
Awesome!
nice!
: )