Fair enough. I mean dial-up modems of the 1990s used to connect computers to the internet over the phone network by making a local telephone call. Those were t

Fair enough. I mean dial-up modems of the 1990s used to connect computers to the internet over the phone network by making a local telephone call. Those were the only type people in the broader public ever knew about. Otherwise, the word “modem” both before and since is just niche technical jargon, ignored by laypeople.