4 ms·

Hmm, to me the term "multimedia PC" already sounded outdated from the start, similar to the "a CD ROM can contain a whole library shelf worth of data" hype. I

Hmm, to me the term "multimedia PC" already sounded outdated from the start, similar to the "a CD ROM can contain a whole library shelf worth of data" hype. I just thought like, this 386 PC could make sound and graphics and games. This Pentium can do it too, granted with more colors and a CD ROM drive and a fancy "where do you want to go today" movie, but does that warrant all this hype of being called "multimedia"? Oh well, that was the 90s, things moved so fast then so of course things would sound outdated and cheesy very fast.

bemmu 6y ago
Exactly. Back then it seemed like a word that people not much into the computer scene or non-specialist magazines would use, while to geeks the word was a joke.
daniellarusso 6y ago
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multimedia_PC https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multimedia_PC There was an actual group with recommended ‘standards’.
theandrewbailey 6y ago
I see your multimedia PC, and raise you an "information superhighway". That sounded cringey from the start.
- redwall_hp 6y ago
  Not as cringeworthy as Bill Gates' book in the 90s opting to entirely use that term, abbreviating it to "the Highway," and outright refusing to say "Internet."
  - juststeve 6y ago
    Don’t forget Microsoft.Net
- mrmonkeyman 6y ago
  Don't forget "cyber"-anything.
NoSorryCannot 6y ago
I agree. Even today I would be very reluctant to use the term "multimedia" because it sounds very dusty and boring to me. I would use "audiovisual" or something else in its place. Though it's not really necessary to call this out anymore, seeing as virtually every corner of computing is capable of a whizz-bang multimedia experience and has been for a long time.
- reaperducer 6y ago
  Even today I would be very reluctant to use the term "multimedia" because it sounds very dusty and boring to me. I would use "audiovisual" or something else in its place. A term from the 1990's sounds dusty compared to one from the 1950's? Interesting.
dehrmann 6y ago
> "a CD ROM can contain a whole library shelf worth of data" hype CD-ROMs were pretty incredible for their time. Remember that when they became mainstream around 1994, hard drives were only 200 MB and floppies were 1.44 MB, so they really were game changing.

bemmu 6y ago

Exactly. Back then it seemed like a word that people not much into the computer scene or non-specialist magazines would use, while to geeks the word was a joke.

daniellarusso 6y ago

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multimedia_PC https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multimedia_PC There was an actual group with recommended ‘standards’.

theandrewbailey 6y ago

I see your multimedia PC, and raise you an "information superhighway". That sounded cringey from the start.

redwall_hp 6y ago
Not as cringeworthy as Bill Gates' book in the 90s opting to entirely use that term, abbreviating it to "the Highway," and outright refusing to say "Internet."
- juststeve 6y ago
  Don’t forget Microsoft.Net
mrmonkeyman 6y ago
Don't forget "cyber"-anything.

NoSorryCannot 6y ago

I agree. Even today I would be very reluctant to use the term "multimedia" because it sounds very dusty and boring to me. I would use "audiovisual" or something else in its place. Though it's not really necessary to call this out anymore, seeing as virtually every corner of computing is capable of a whizz-bang multimedia experience and has been for a long time.

reaperducer 6y ago
Even today I would be very reluctant to use the term "multimedia" because it sounds very dusty and boring to me. I would use "audiovisual" or something else in its place. A term from the 1990's sounds dusty compared to one from the 1950's? Interesting.

dehrmann 6y ago

> "a CD ROM can contain a whole library shelf worth of data" hype CD-ROMs were pretty incredible for their time. Remember that when they became mainstream around 1994, hard drives were only 200 MB and floppies were 1.44 MB, so they really were game changing.