Questions tagged [internet]
Connecting retro systems to the Internet, and historical aspects of the Internet: software, hardware, protocols. DO NOT USE WHEN MERELY ASKING ABOUT HISTORICAL RESOURCES ON THE INTERNET OF TODAY.
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Why did they switch from phone numbers to IP addresses? [closed]
Before IPv4 addresses there were phone numbers.
Why did they switch to IPv4 addresses to address devices in the internet?
I thought one reason is you need addresses in the local LAN. But I could even ...
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1
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Why was there never added C/C++ (native) support to HTML web pages? [closed]
I wonder why they never added an interface to run native code (for example assembly/C/C++/Rust...) to HTML web pages? Because without it CPU intense games will never run in the browser.
Some people ...
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3
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Was QotD (and RFCs 862-867) actually insecure?
I am fascinated by these 6 obsolete internet protocols, all written up as seperate RFCs by Jon Postel in May 1983. They are hilariously simple. (Which I mean as a compliment; their simplicity inspires ...
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When did HTTP start compressing text?
HTML tends to compress well, typically consisting of text interspersed with repetitive tags. Transparently compressing it for download is a fairly obvious optimization to save bandwidth.
When did Web ...
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What led to the fall of shell accounts?
In the early days of the internet, shell accounts were commonly used for Internet access. After the early 2000's, it seems like shell accounts all but disappeared, and after searching, I can't really ...
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Detect ancient web browser server-side to present appropriate HTML?
I am a web developer currently writing my own site (fullstack). There are methods for identifying the browsers users use to interact with the site.
I would like to prepare the server to offer a cut-...
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How the first ARPANET connection was established?
I would like to know how the first "Lo 'message in the ARPANET network was sent. As far as I know - the so-called mainframes were connected through Interface Message Processors (IMPs, known today ...
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Was ARPANET connecting mainframes or terminals?
I would like to understand the stories of the internet, but each source says something completely different. I know that ARPANET was going to connect computers at different universities with each ...
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How can I connect the Psion 5mx email client to a secure email provider?
My Psion 5mx is connected to the Internet via the built in TCP stack, and serial cable to a raspberry pi running a PPP server.
The Psion message suite has an email client which will connect via POP3 ...
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How do I change the MAC address of a iMac G3?
I want to connect an iMac G3 running Mac OS 8.6 to my Ethernet network. The easiest way for me to do this is to change the iMac's MAC address.
Is it possible to change the MAC address and, if so, how ...
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Why does the default base64 encoding use forward slash /? [closed]
As anyone who has been bitten by using base64 instead of base64url is quite well aware, the "original" base64 alphabet uses alphanumeric, +, = (both perfectly cromulent URL characters), and ...
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Why was Wireplay "faster and more reliable" than dial-up Internet, since they both used the same hardware?
In 1997, there was this service called Wireplay in the UK.
Instead of using the Internet, you used it by directly phoning their servers with your modem from your PC, and the point of this was that it ...
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l-------l.com, a weird web page from 2000
I remember a mysterious web page from 2000 with the domain name l-------l.com. This domain name goes against RFC 5891 but it was valid back in the day. It's pretty hard to search for this. Most search ...
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Why doesn't `https://tls-v1-0.badssl.com:1010/` open in Internet Explorer 6, when Internet Explorer 6 supposedly supports TLS 1.0?
Internet Explorer 6 supports TLS 1.0. However, for some reason that escapes me, https://tls-v1-0.badssl.com:1010/ (which is supposed to test whether a browser supports TLS v1.0) fails to open in ...
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Where did the # (hash, number sign) notation for hexadecimal RGB colour triples originate?
The hexadecimal notation #RRGGBB for RGB colour triples has been popularised by HTML and is commonly associated with it, even though nowadays it is not usually used in HTML directly, but rather ...
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What did Prodigy use for pre-web GUI client?
Prodigy was a big early Internet service provider, and of course by the late nineties, the most popular Internet protocol was the web; most users spent most of their Internet time in a web browser.
...
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What did AOL use for pre-web GUI client?
AOL was a big early Internet service provider, and of course by the late nineties, the most popular Internet protocol was the web; most users spent most of their Internet time in a web browser.
But if ...
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When did AOL start offering Internet email?
AOL, one of the most successful early Internet service providers, started life in 1983 as a company called Control Video Corporation selling downloadable games for the Atari 2600; this became Quantum ...
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What was the most common method of internet access for small offices in 1990s in USA?
In mid-1990s, dial-up access was already common, but its speeds were still low (like 14-28 kbps, 56 kbps only in the late 1990s), and I don't know if there were any popular solutions to share dial-up ...
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Would it be possible to run Discord on Macintosh System 7?
I'm toying with the idea of using System 7 as my daily work station at home, most probably via Basilisk II running on some Linux flavour, but possibly on an actual Performa 5200.
One piece of modern ...
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Is it still possible to access a BBS via dial up internet on the C64 (or other retro computers)
I was wondering if it is still possible to access any online BBS using dial up and an 80's era computer.
I'm aware that some dial up internet providers still exist (eg Nippy Internet in the UK), but ...
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How can I visit HTTPS websites in old web browsers?
I'm having trouble accessing HTTPS websites using Netscape Communicator 4.8. This is the error message I get:
Is there a way I can configure some sort of proxy that will allow me to access HTTPS ...
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Internet services that are still compatible with devices (phones/pdas from 2000-2007) [closed]
Though I can identify some technologies like following, I would like to know which ones will surely fail and which ones are worth to test on my old Palm, Symbian, WindowsCE,...
Web
Issues with ...
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When IPv6 was designed were there any specific considerations for other planets?
Seeing Moon base internet functionality in Worldbuilding reminded me of how I began an old Space SE question Are there discussions or plans for extending the internet into space beyond Earth?
Many ...
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What is the easiest way to get an Amiga online?
I'm working on my ultimate CDTV setup, few hiccups along the way with CDROM access on TF536, but we will cross this bridge. As of right now I'm only missing and internet access, before I can finally ...
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Questions about Security over Using an Ancient Mac Computer on The Internet
I've managed to get my hands on a really old mac computer that was probably built in the late 90's. The operating system was last updated in 2001 to 10.1.4. The problem is that I'm not sure if it's ...
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How did Linux servers become the defacto web server? [closed]
Now I understand that Microsoft has a competing technology in the web server field with the Internet Information Services, so not every last web server is done with Linux, but how did Linux web ...
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First implementation of a visual cue for visited hyperlinks?
Who first proposed using a visual cue (of any kind) for hyperlinks the user has already visited? If the individual is not known, what hypertext viewer first offered this feature?
My guess would be ...
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How can I construct a dial-up network in my home, purely for the kicks?
All the technology in my house is modern, but I want to build a dialup network that I can use to produce sounds from Bell 101/103 (if I can find the proper softmodem) to V.92bis. I honestly don't know ...
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Using “vintage proxy” with dial up simulator
I am in the process of building a dial up simulator involving a 1990s era desktop and laptop. The desktop, which is connected to Ethernet, acts as the dial-up server and the laptop computer dials in ...
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Webservers: When did www.domain.net/dir/file.html first not point to $WWWROOT/dir/file.html but to something virtualized?
If I'm not mistaken, the first webserver simply served all files and directories in a certain local directory (WWWROOT) in the identical hierarchy at a certain domain. This is in line how e.g. an FTP ...
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Problem accessing Internet from old phones/PDAs (HTTPS, SSL, certificates, compatible services,....) [closed]
How to connect 18-12 years non supported OSes/devices to Internet?
Specifically PDAs and phones, that are more limited to use additional components/accesories?
(*) Answer related to computers can be ...
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39
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4
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What was the design rationale behind multi-port and multiple connections (and back-connections) designs of the early protocols like NFS or FTP?
Originally, the FTP protocol connected back from the server to a client to actually transfer files through that new connections. 14 years later after the introduction of the FTP, the 'passive mode' ...
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What warning was given on attempting to post to USENET, circa 1990?
I recall a confirmation/warning message that read something like
"this will post to thousands of sites... are you sure?"
What was a typical such message in the days of pay-per-minute dialup access?
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Networking WfW 3.11 between modern ethernet and 56k internal modem card
Is there any way i could use either of those networking cards and use them on a modern ethernet system? We have aDSL where i live. If i couldnt connect it to my home network, is there any way i could ...
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When connecting to the Internet via Dial-Up, were computers directly accessible via their allocated IP address?
From carrying out some brief research, it appears that as is the case today, when using Dial-Up to access the Internet customers were often allocated a dynamic IP address by their ISP. Typically, when ...
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How were customers typically charged when purchasing Dial-Up Internet services from an ISP? [closed]
This is a follow-up from my previous question - When connecting to the Internet via Dial-Up, why did ISPs require a username/password to authenticate the session?.
In the above question, we ...
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When connecting to the Internet via Dial-Up, why did ISPs require a username/password to authenticate the session?
It's been many years now, but when I used to connect to the Internet via Dial-Up back in the day I noticed at the time that as well as entering the phone number for my Dial-Up provider, a username/...
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How to configure NETWORK and TCP on a DOS VM
I'm trying to install and use the Arachne broswer under DOS (6.22). I've DOS installed on VirtualBox VM (5.2.34) under Linux Ubuntu (4.15.0-88-generic #88-Ubuntu).
I'm in trouble in configuring ...
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What were some of the earliest common webservers and how did they work? [closed]
And by Web server I mean actually web server (not BBS), meaning it had to run on the actual IP internet and be browsed with a dedicated browser program.
So what kind of tools were used in the late 80s/...
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Why weren't audio decoders used to create a makeshift internet in the 70 and 80s?
I know ARPANET wasn't available to the public until the '90s, but why didn't people just build modems (which most phone companies already had anyway), connect their phone's phone connector to it, dial ...
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How did 36-bit computers format ARPANET packets?
The contract to develop ARPANET, the first version of the Internet, was awarded in 1969; usage of the system expanded exponentially through the seventies.
The size and format of ARPANET packets were ...
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What is the "Data Language" paper referenced in RFC 309?
RFC 309 is an announcement of the 1972 Data and File Transfer Workshop announcement. The suggested reading section has 12 entries, 11 of which are RFCs and the last of which is:
8. Data ...
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Could somebody remind me how to access the WAP browser on the Nokia N73?
From memory, the Nokia N73 had two web browsers; one WAP browser, and another, fully-functional HTML application. Would somebody be able to remind me what both of these options are labeled as when ...
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Why did modems have speakers?
Everyone who used early telecommunications services, not to mention the early dial-up Internet services, is familiar with the tones and hissing sounds of a modem establishing a connection. I recall ...
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Was the Stack Exchange "Happy April Fools" page fitting with the '90's code?
We nostalgia fans were all treated to a nineties-esque page on the various Stack Exchange sites, complete with guest books, obnoxious tiled backgrounds, Comic Sans, etc.
However, when I went to view ...
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Latest web browser compatible with Windows 95 / 98
Do you know which is the latest web browser compatible with Windows 95 / 98?
At the moment I have an Opera 10 working fine; it is very lightweight but very outdated.
I assume that software that works ...
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TCP over RS-232 with Windows 3.1 and Internet Explorer 5 dialer
I am restoring a Windows 3.1 computer that has Internet Explorer 5 installed. I would like to connect it to the internet using a Linux-based laptop as an intermediary.
The physical connection is ...
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Connecting multiple computers through dialup
I have several IBM ThinkPads with an RJ-11 port that can be used for dialup internet connections. Currently I have one ThinkPad connected to a dialup modem, that connects to the internet through a ...
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When TCP was first invented, was the initial sequence number required to be random?
In current time, when a TCP connection is initiated, the initial sequence number is required to be random.
But I am wondering, when TCP was first invented, was the initial sequence number required to ...
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