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Watch a nuclear family explain the Internet in 1997

This educational video from 1997 will leave you reminiscing about AOL chat rooms. 

 

Fidel Martinez

Internet Culture

Posted on Aug 10, 2013   Updated on Jun 1, 2021, 9:26 am CDT

My first exposure to the Internet happened in middle school, when a teacher took the whole class to the library to explore the World Wide Web. But before the class was allowed to surf the ‘net, we were forced to watch a long instructional.

Now, more than 15 years later, that same visual guide has made its way to YouTube.

The hilariously out of touch video, “The Kid’s Guide to the Internet,” is 27 minutes of the most suburban family ever explaining you the basics of the revolutionary technology. Peter, Dasha, mom, and dad cover topics such as how to get online to how to send email.

A handful of relics also make appearances, including dial-up, the Netscape browser, the old Microsoft Windows logo, and America Online—the one-time king of all Internet service providers.

It’s an odd form of nostalgia, one that will have you reminiscing about AOL chat rooms and a simpler time when the National Security Agency wasn’t browsing over your shoulder.

H/T Reddit | Screengrab via YouTube

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*First Published: Aug 10, 2013, 5:17 pm CDT