{Not Quite} Susie Homemaker

Las Vegas Mommy Blogger, Foodie, Brand Ambassador & Product Reviewer

An Ode to 90’s Technology

By 53 Comments

Now that I’m about to have my second child, I’ve definitely been realizing that I’m a full fledged adult now. Granted, I have been for some time, but sometimes when I close my eyes I still feel like I’m back in school. Sometimes it’s high school, where I met Justin ten years ago next month, and sometimes it’s junior high, where I had a rather interesting time, but when I think about my favorite years of school, they were all in elementary school.

With my own little one already in preschool {& starting elementary school himself this coming year}, I can’t help but notice how different a role technology plays in schools today. Not that we didn’t have technology in the 90’s- it just wasn’t the same. Here are some examples:

VCR

VCR’s: You knew it was going to be a special day when the AV department had to wheel in a TV & VCR on a cart! In addition to learning Spanish through educational videos, we celebrated holidays with special movie days {&our substitute teachers survived because of them on more than one occasion}.

nano baby

Virtual Pets: When I was in 2nd grade, you omghadtohave a virtual pet, preferably a Nano Baby. They were sold out everywhere but you were nobody without one of these guys. They weren’t allowed during class so everyone spent their recess cleaning up a ridiculous amount of virtual baby poop & feeding their child who had almost starved to death in the last three hours.

oregon trail and kidpix 90's computer games

Oregon Trail & KidPix: Ask any 90’s kid what their favorite computer game was from their childhood & they will likely name one of the above, mostly because those are the only games anyone seemed to have access to. KidPix was our first opportunity to create things virtually, and Oregon Trail was all fun & games until someone got dysentery.

Floppy Discs

Floppy Discs: While I only vaguely remember using floppy discs, since they became obsolete when I was still very young, they floated around in my classrooms for years after I actually stopped using them in favor of CD’s. I can’t actually remember the last time I saw a computer that actually accepted floppy discs though!

If you find yourself longing for the simplicity of the technology of yesteryear, I don’t blame you. While I love the new advances & how much easier they make most aspects of life, including education, I am always a little hesitant to try new things because hackers are everywhere. To help keep myself safe even when trying new things {like the internet-based KidPix-like games that Shane enjoys, or streaming shows over the internet instead of watching a VHS tape with tracking issues}, I rely on my Hotspot Shield subscription.

Hotspot Shield gives you complete Wi-Fi security, as well as anonymity, so you can browse the internet, download or upload, and even stream while keeping your personal information {think bank info, passwords & download info} safe from identity thieves. You can download Hotspot Shield for free today or learn more about their services on their website or Facebook {where they often have giveaways}.

What technology from your childhood do you miss the most?

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Note: This post is part of an ambassadorship with Hotspot Shield. All opinions are my own.

Comments

  1. My kids talk about their early PC games all the time with fondness. I remember playing Pong in my mom’s basement as a child and thinking that was the coolest thing EVER. Shoot, I remember when cable tv started. LOL!!

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  4. Ugh. I feel old now. Not only do I remember those floppy disks but I remember the ones BEFORE those. Believe it or not, the one thing that I thought was state of the art was Merlin! I think my folks still have it somewhere (or stashed it in one of the boxes they delivered of my childhood stuff.)

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  8. LOL, I had not thought about virtual pets in years. I still remember the craze like it was yesterday
    My parents still have tons of VHS and Disks …I am not sure why or what they plan on doing with them.

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    • My dad still watches VHS tapes- he refuses to install a cable box {despite HAVING digital cable} so he doesn’t have a DVR & instead he records his shows to VHS. It’s kind of ridiculous how many tapes he has waiting to be watched one day.

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  9. Well, since the first computer I ever owned had to be used writing code for everything, it was not my favorite piece of technology. (This was W-a-a-a-a-ay back when the only game was PONG). We have come a very long way though, and I am definitely going to check out your HotSpot Shield!

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  10. I really miss the transistor radio and was giving this some thought the other day. I feel it is just a nostalgic thing and not practical at all. I also remember running with my “Walkman”and it being so ridiculously big.

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    • I remember Walkmans! I had a tape one that wasn’t TOO huge but then the CD one I got after was giant- I mean, it had to hold a whole CD after all! I thought it was SO cool because you could change the color of the cover.

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  11. I had a Nano Baby! I don’t remember those games though. We were old school and didn’t have a pc until mid 90’s haha and we couldn’t do ANYTHING on it. Fun post!

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    • Yeah I didn’t have those games at home- I didn’t even get a computer until after Windows 98 was a thing. I just remember playing them at school & thinking they were the BEST EVER.

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  17. I had boxes of 3.5″ floppies. There are probably still some in a box in the basement with no computer to put them in any more. I am sure I had great college papers and coding assignments on them! lol

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  21. Oh boy, I remember we coveted our neighbors Intellivision console because we never had a video game system. Those spiral corded controllers that kept you attached to the box were so limiting and the 8 bit graphics, so funny to look back at all of that as retro now!

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  23. My oldest literally asked me why a phone in a movie had a long curly thing attached to it (cord!). I explained how phones weren’t always cordless and when they first came out they had these super long antennas that you had to pull up.

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    • YES! Shane asked me once what a play-dough cookie cutter was supposed to be- it was of an old school phone, like you’d see on a sign. {The kind where you hang the receiver up sideways across the top.} Too funny!

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  26. I remember party lines, huge floor model TVs with the rabbit ears (antennas) and everything else you mentioned as well as the other commenters. I am so old. Sigh.

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    • I remember party lines! In middle school my friend liked to prank them &he’d always include me on a three-way call so I could silently listen to it. I forgot all about that!

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  27. So about four years ago i was doing some business with the City of Detroit and they couldn’t email me the required paperwork it was too big so they said they would put it on a disk. I expected to get a CD but what showed up was a floppy disk. I don’t even think our computers had a slot anymore for them LOL!

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  35. I can honestly say I don’t miss floppy discs (half of time they didn’t work) or VCRs. I guess I miss portable CD Players. I thought I was something the day I got one along with a Spice Girls CD. 🙂

    Reply

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