I am definitely not the only person who thinks that. There are many people who share similar sentiments, maybe even including you, dear reader.

Nostalgia is a very common feeling, just look at how many Russians want the USSR back! Having been born in 2005, I pretty much grew up with the internet going mainstream, with YouTube being created the same year I was born.

Back when it was new, it was mainly used by hobbyists that wanted to show off pirated anime episodes cool and/or funny things they made for fun. (Forgive me if this just sounds like a rose-tinted petty bourgeois fantasy.)

Then you know what happened next. Like so many fun stuff under capitalism, like JoeMarx has mentioned recently with video games, the internet was commodified and made into a dumbed-down addictive tool for instant gratification, all for profit.

EDIT: I am referring specifically to web culture, not the actual technology of the internet.

  • LarkinDePark
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    5 months ago

    I’m still dumbfounded that people happily pay a subscription for their doorbell. Are they stupid?

    • redtea
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      5 months ago

      If this is real the only answer is yes. I thought they just bought a spy doorbell and connected it to their WiFi. They pay a subscription? Jfc. (I’m not so much doubting you as expressing my flabbergastedness as questions.)

    • Doom4535@lemmy.sdf.org
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      5 months ago

      I’d assume the subscription would be for a webcam enabled doorbell with cloud storage of the video (which is probably designed in intentionally, because I don’t believe the larger vendors provide an easy way to self host the storage)

      • LarkinDePark
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        5 months ago

        Yes. I have a Eufy version that doesn’t need a subscription. Because I’m not a pigeon.