What was life like before social media?

zeffabelli · 08-04-2015 8:37pm

SKype, facebook etc...all it does for me is amplify the absence.

Stop pretending this is connection. It's a symptom of disconnection and that is all it is.

whatismyname · 08-04-2015 8:42pm

Before social media, my facebook 'friends' had no practical way of sharing pictures of all their valentine's day presents with me.

(Yes, I was shocked and appalled this year that this is the thing).

Now we've social media, I have the hassle of unfriending people once I realise that's the type of person they are. Yay.

smash · 08-04-2015 8:44pm

whatismyname wrote: »

Now we've social media, I have the hassle of unfriending people once I realise that's the type of person they are. Yay.

I've unfriended people in real life because of their social media antics.

zeffabelli · 08-04-2015 8:46pm

Mix tapes. The love letters of the 80s.

whatismyname · 08-04-2015 8:48pm

smash wrote: »

I've unfriended people in real life because of their social media antics.

Totally. I also downsized vastly the number of friends I had on Smugbook lasts year, and kept it to a smaller, safer, more reasonable number.

In my opinion, social media antics can tell a lot about a person.

If you're the type of person who has any desire within you to show off presents to everyone online, and rave about how wonderful the person who gave them to you is, and how lucky you are... etc... etc... etc... I'm not sure you're my kind of person.

Am I jealous? Honestly don't know. Quite possibly, but it's not even all that relevant.

To me, there's a lot more to it than that.

Mister Vain · 08-04-2015 9:25pm

Macavity. wrote: »

You could drunkenly expose your penis and shake it all about while singing the chorus of Flashdance's hit song Maniac without having to worry about someone putting the video up on Facebook.

Or get a blowjob from a girl in a nightclub in Magaluf.

superelliptic · 08-04-2015 9:26pm

Bob.Carcass wrote: »

Ah come on dude, It wasn't the stone age.

Phoning people was very easy, most had landlines and some had mobiles

Nearly everyone had a camera, events were organised for niche interests all the time and they were much bigger better and better promoted than they are nowadays

Also, the part about wasting loads of time waiting on your mates to show up was by no means a universal experience. I was never left waiting for anyone longer than about 15-20 minutes max, and then only rarely. You'd stop getting invited to things if you were always the last one to show.

TheBeardedLady · 08-04-2015 10:01pm

zeffabelli wrote: »

Mix tapes. The love letters of the 80s.

As were love letters.

4zn76tysfajdxp · 08-04-2015 10:08pm

whatismyname wrote: »

If you're the type of person who has any desire within you to show off presents to everyone online, and rave about how wonderful the person who gave them to you is, and how lucky you are... etc... etc... etc... I'm not sure you're my kind of person.

Am I jealous? Honestly don't know. Quite possibly, but it's not even all that relevant.

Yeah, you're just jealous.

whatismyname · 08-04-2015 10:12pm

Willa Modern Roundworm wrote: »

Yeah, you're just jealous.

Yep, probably jealous, but far from 'just' jealous... things just aren't that black and white.. and I do have some standards :rolleyes:

Mister Vain · 08-04-2015 10:26pm

There were no duck faces back in them days.

MRnotlob606 · 08-04-2015 10:48pm

I'm 20 also, but I really think that Social media has made us worse off in most respects and made us more self-conscious.It violates natural human interactions.

El_Dangeroso · 08-04-2015 11:01pm

Your Superior wrote: »

We didn't have to worry about people posting photos of us on nights out. We actually took the time to see our friends in person. We didn't have mobile phones so would arrange to meet at a certain time, and then actually be there. We didn't seek likes or retweets to validate ourselves. We read books, listened to music, played and watched sport, went to the cinema, even watched TV believe it or not.

We honestly seemed a lot happier and more rounded than people in their teens and 20s today. Less concerned by what others thought of us, as other than your friends, you didn't really give a shït what anyone thought.

People were not more rounded and happier, and people always cared what others thought of them. I think people are far less insecure now than they were.

People still read books (on a kindle allowing access to thousands of books in seconds)
People still listen to music (paying nothing or a small monthly fee for all songs rather than £25 for a CD!)
People still watch movies in the cinema, but also can stream content directly into their homes
You're right about sport though, absolutely no one follows sport anymore

Things are a gajillion times better now than they were in the 90's and the great thing is that if you don't want to partake in technology you don't have to.

I don't have social media is becoming the next 'I don't watch TV' for those who just love feeling superior to the lesser mortals around them.

Junkyard Tom · 08-04-2015 11:09pm

diomed wrote: »

Cats were cats, not media stars.

Cats were always stars it's just that regular media outlets didn't realise that until they learned it from youtube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faSHV6bBZWI

08-04-2015 11:15pm

El_Dangeroso wrote: »

Things are a gajillion times better now than they were in the 90's and the great thing is that if you don't want to partake in technology you don't have to.

I don't think they are.

Nor are they worse.

They are just...different...

lulu1 · 08-04-2015 11:17pm

My sister in her sixties sent me a text message saying

I want to go on facebook but I dont want the neighbours or anyone to know

that I am on it.
Anyway her daughter set it up
Next thing the phonecall comes and her squelling at the top of her voice
My age is up My age is up the whole flippin country knows what age I am now
I was in hysterics Anyway we got her age off her profile
Another text message saying "i dont think yer woman is right in the head do you see what she posts".
Then I send her a pm when I know she's on line and again I get a tex message this went on for a half an hour and finally i say why are you answering me with your phone why not pm me So her answer to that was
I can write a message but I dont know how to send it

Give me strength Latest text message I think i am addicted to this facebook lark

whatismyname · 08-04-2015 11:20pm

Deleted User wrote: »

I don't think they are.

Nor are they worse.

They are just...different...

Better in some ways for some...

Worse in some ways for some also...

Robsweezie · 08-04-2015 11:49pm

if you were getting bullied at school, going home to the safety of your room was a brief respite until things were sorted, provided your phone number wasn't common knowledge, and you lived a safe distance from your tormentors.

nowadays you flick on the laptop and can read anything said about you on any site, all in your own home( although I question the intelligence of someone openly bullying on social media where it can be fed back to the school) it carries on outside the school gates, that's what makes me feel for the younger crowd today. facebook can be a tool for embarrassment, humiliation and pure venom on a public scale.

the accessibility is a tad excessive. theres no mystery to us anymore, its all laid out on the table for the rest to see. where you've been, who with, who you're seeing, who you're fighting with if you wanna go that far, what you're doing etc.etc. I managed to find a good portion of my former teacher's profiles online, in which I saw them in a new light, shall we say. every night out and social function turns into a facebook photoshoot. a nightmare for those who are camera shy and don't want their mush broadcast on facebook to the judgement and scrutiny of strangers, friends and acquaintances alike.

its worrying when you can tell that someones been to a party, or any other information without actually hearing it from the horses mouth. I found my boss's profile and now know her children's names, husbands name and where she's worked and studied despite never discussing this with her just by her latest posts alone. ''you were a lawyer weren't you'' ''how did you know?'' ''I saw it on your facebook''. ''how was your party last night? '' how did you know bout the party?'' ''facebook, jesus johnny looked **** faced in those photos'' those were fake examples of conversations I wouldn't have, but the amount of dirt you can dig on someone just by looking around their profiles can amaze you.

this 'found out on facebook'' lark ruins the buzz of things like finding out someone is pregnant or engaged or any good news, a cheap status is no substitute for being told in person.

another thing, and its a dark example, imagine some poor girl who was sexually assaulted, who's successfully moved forward with her life and put the past behind her, and stumbles upon her attacker's profile. seeing their face again would undoubtedly bring back horrible memories, that she could've avoided without social media. or worse, he finds her, remembers her and harasses her again, she could block him but its still hard to shake that off. it could be your ex, the **** who bullied you at school, or just an unwelcome face from the past you'd rather forget, the point is essentially everyone is on there these days, like an extension of real life, so much so it's viewed as odd if you're not.

fin12 · 09-04-2015 12:10am

Life was better, Im not on facebook cause I just feel like its a place where people boast about how great their lives are and endless pictures of holidays, I think if you're feeling down at all about yourself and your life facebook is the last place u would want to go on, it will make you feel 100 times worse.

They were actually discussing that on Midday and one person said she left because her friend was going through a really bad time in life but at the same time if you looked at her facebook page you would think everything was fine.

its just fake and it puts pressure on people.

Like if you havent gone on a holiday in years and then you see the facebook pages of people you know with loads of pictures and information about their travels, of course that's going to make you feel like crap.

Facebook just makes me feel depressed so i dont go near it.

Mint Aero · 09-04-2015 1:46am

I was out foreign a few months ago where I didn't know anyone. Happened upon a bunch of Irish cailins in a club. Great says I. From my county too? Great says I

Suddenly

Phones were whipped out, facebook opened. What did you say your second name was again? Which one is your profile, I can't find you?!

I'm not on facebook...

You're not who you say you are etc. what's your real name?! Why dont you know my cousin???

At this point I was like riiiiiight, I'm gonna chat to the normal foreign wimmen then buhbye.

To be fair they were nurses and about 5 years younger than me the group of 6 them but t'was just plain sad & rude on their behalf. Social media have infected them.

fin12 · 09-04-2015 2:01am

Mint Aero wrote: »

I was out foreign a few months ago where I didn't know anyone. Happened upon a bunch of Irish cailins in a club. Great says I. From my county too? Great says I

Suddenly

Phones were whipped out, facebook opened. What did you say your second name was again? Which one is your profile, I can't find you?!

I'm not on facebook...

You're not who you say you are etc. what's your real name?! Why dont you know my cousin???

At this point I was like riiiiiight, I'm gonna chat to the normal foreign wimmen then buhbye.

To be fair they were nurses and about 5 years younger than me the group of 6 them but t'was just plain sad & rude on their behalf. Social media have infected them.

I actually find when I tell people I'm not on facebook they're more intrigued than anything, like there's some interesting story behind it when its just ya facebook makes me depressed. Thats why Im not on it.

the evasion_kid · 09-04-2015 2:04am

You used to have to send a papyrus scroll to friends to tell them what you thought of their dinner

Paramite Pie · 09-04-2015 3:06am

I remember buying Walkie Talkies in Smyths in the late 90s, thinking it'd be so cool to be able to communicate with friends who live just down the road, through crackly static.

They had a very poor range and ate batteries. Also we both actually had to leave our houses and walk a bit down the road to be able to hear each other more clearly.
It was fun testing the range and feeling like a spy or soldier or something though..:pac:

I'm only 28 so it's hard to grasp the difference to people in their early 20s. Phones didn't become popular among teens until after 2000 and it was still very controversial.

I didn't have internet until 2003 and it was so slow I barely used it. Social Networking was new when I was in college and I was the one of the only people I knew with a Myspace in 2007. There were so few on it that it was common to add strangers and make online friends. It didn't interfere with my real life (besides making me more comfortable around real strangers) but it was the start of things to come...:cool:

efb · 09-04-2015 3:08am

Bleak. Very bleak.

Beer Assistant · 09-04-2015 3:14am

When it rained your life was over stuck inside with only Rte1 & Rte2

Jesus Wept · 09-04-2015 3:28am

You can't remember before you were 12?

paleoperson · 09-04-2015 3:34am

Isn't this 2007? oh... errr... damn, time is moving on.

TheBeardedLady · 09-04-2015 6:48am

I wouldn't say the 90s were worse as we'd nothing to compare it to. I wasn't aware of not having access to music in an instant and CDs seemed as high-tec as anything.

I'm going with the "there's positives and negatives of it" side. Few biggies for me right now are the ability to have contact with family while living abroad via Facebook and having access to so much info for my uni course. I don't really know how I managed when all we had in our library was a couple of books between 60 odd students. Whatsapp is brilliant too as is having instant music.

People using their phones relentlessly while in your company in a restaurant or pub does me head in and I can imagine there's more pressure when it comes to physical appearance now than when I was a teen as it's all online and public now. I miss listening to albums from start to finish now and I think I valued new music more than I do now.

I can only see the positives and negatives because I've lived in both times though. What you don't know won't hurt you 'n' all da.

Into The Blue · 09-04-2015 6:57am

All we had was "dads internet" ie aertel.

Redhenrun · 09-04-2015 7:48am

You could go off for a month with a rucksack on your back and your parents wouldn't even know what country you were in, much less who you'd met or what you were having for dinner that day. Bliss!

What was life like before social media?

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