AOL was definitely a trash heap and as you describe with the ads, but it was ridiculed for being that way. I can definitely remember using the web pre-walled ga

AOL was definitely a trash heap and as you describe with the ads, but it was ridiculed for being that way. I can definitely remember using the web pre-walled garden and pre-advertising. Back when the primary way to log on was through a shell account it was definitely this way. Gopher was similar. Even when I got my first PPP dial up account and could properly browse without Lynx the web was very enthusiast driven. Companies just weren’t there yet. I agree that we can’t remake the 90s, but there was definitely a point where the internet was very much like a worldwide computer club or mega BBS.