My experience with BBSes started around 4th grade, in 1983 or early 1984. 1200 baud US Robotics external modem, a Heathkit CPM machine my dad built, and typing

My experience with BBSes started around 4th grade, in 1983 or early 1984. 1200 baud US Robotics external modem, a Heathkit CPM machine my dad built, and typing AT commands by hand. My favorite at the time was Bongoland, a pacific northwest bbs which was designed more like an adventure game with message boards tucked away in various places, and I'm sure a larger, secret segment I never gained access to. I later discovered some amazing communities (Thrasher Skateboard magazine had a great system) and some horrifying ones (some people loved their pets in ways different than I was accustomed to.) Within a few years, we got a second phone line and I started up my own. Through a lot of incarnations, but it was most popular as the Chelsea Hotel and was a hangout for miscreants, hackers, and skaters. Through it, I got to meet some people who are very influential today, as well as plenty of anonymous friends. The experience certainly piqued my interest in other areas of tech, and I can easily trace my path from there to where I am today. I miss the limited access and smaller communities of BBSes, the excitement of hearing the connection tones after having auto-redialed for 30 minutes of busy signals, and of course, Trade Wars.