Gen X Memory Lane: How We Googled Before Google
Hey kid, ask your old man how he Googled in the old days. The old days being just about anytime in the 20th century.
Google was 'officially' born in 1998. So how in the world did that Gen X generation find out answers to anything? Well, it was our 'Google' before Google.
It was something called the Encyclopedia Britannica.
Oh, it was a little more cumbersome than Google. Ok, ok, it was a lot more cumbersome than Google. And it wasn't quick as, ah...quick. It usually had about thirty volumes. That means, rather than on your smart phone, it would take up some space on the ol' bookshelf.
Yes, we had to find the appropriate volume (thankfully they were alphabetical), pull it down off the shelf, scan through page after page to find the right subject and start reading. This classic 1988 commercial will kind of tell you how it worked.
Whew! What a chore! How did we survive?
Well, we did and looking back let me tell you a little secret. While it was a pain in the %^& at the time, now it seemed kind of...dare I say it...fun. It was kind of like discovering something hidden away, uncovering a 'truth' that very few others knew. The subject was playing Hide and Seek, but it couldn't hide forever, although sometimes it seemed that way.
Oh, Encyclopedia Britannica is still around. But now with Google, why would you want to spend all that time, going through a volume and bumping into other cool and fun stuff, when you can just ask google.
Wait, is there some sort of Gen X generation magic still hidden in those books?
Why not find out?
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