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People Reflect On The Fads From The Year 2000 That Are Now Completely Passé

People Reflect On The Fads From The Year 2000 That Are Now Completely Passé
Wahyu Setiawan/Unsplash

If you were around in the 90s, you probably remember the Y2k Bug. Everyone thought that the end of the world was coming because many of our computer programs were set to read the year date with only the last two digits.

People really believe that there would be huge system failures if our software and hardware read the date 00 as 1900 instead of 2000.

Kids born after the year 2000 can't even imagine what the world was like before smart phones became computers in our pockets.

Since there's a whole generation who doesn't remember much of the early 2000s, we thought we might take a trip down memory lane and school these kids on what it was really like. Some aesthetics from the 90s were carried over, some technology never made it past 2003.

Redditor BtownBrelooms asked:

"What is something that was used heavily in the year 2000, but it's almost never used today?"

Here's a great dose of Y2k nostalgia for you.

Devices just for music.

"Any sort of dedicated music-playing device, before that just became a part of your phone."

- Confusionator5000

"RIP my mini disk player."

- Mikebot3000

"RIP Zune."

- Redditor

"RIP Creative Zen Touch. You were a wonderful green brick."

- HELLOhappyshop

"I kinda miss my iPod shuffle. The small thin brick one that literally had no buttons."

- Peng_win

"For me, that was portable CD players which replaced portable cassette players (mainly, the Sony Walkman). MP3 players came almost immediately afterward."

- CriminalSpiritX

The file sharing, social networking software.

"LimeWire."

- FRB2992

"Giving me flashbacks of desperately trying to hear the preview of the song while it downloaded to make sure it was the actual song and not 'my fellow Americans.'"

- Legitimate-mistak3

"Or the Dj yelling in the background."

- Vapirate04

Re-writable CDs.

"Re-writable CDs. I used to burn so many mix CDs after downloading from Napster, BearShare, LimeWire, FrostWire. Then my mother would call, disconnecting the internet and I would have to start the download all over again. Except one file wasn't an mp3, but a virus. I would just reinstall windows before my mom got home as we saved every picture and document on a zip drive.....then those fancy Jaz drives."

"Also Adobe without a subscription."

- Sh*ttinwithmykitten

"And the praying to the 'buffer overrun' gods during every burn..."

- iguana-pr

"I would borrow CDs from my Library and then burn a copy to keep."

- tootsie404

Long processing times for downloads.

"Download Managers."

"Start the download right after Mom goes to bed, wake up before her to pause the download and disconnect the dial-up connection, resume tomorrow night. Repeat..."

"A week later, you're playing Counter-Strike."

- Laserwulf

"And now you can download the torrent in like 2 min."

- ZarafFaraz

"The perspective is staggering. A 1080p 30fps video using old 2000 codecs like MPEG-1 at high quality is like 40mbps instead of modern h.264/265 being like 8."

"A YouTube video of that quality takes like 2 minutes today at that quality. In 2000 on dial up using contemporary codecs would have require 165 hours."

- Shandlar

Spiker Colorz.

"Colored spikey hair gel."

- AdamoclesYT

"Bro, I am still waiting for the day frosted tips make a comeback."

- ShowMeYourTorts

"Honestly man the kids these days look straight outta the 90's, though most of them seem to think it's original. Wouldn't surprise me if frosted tips are next."

- thricetheory

AIM messenger.

"AIM and msn messenger."

"Bringing back even more memories of the late 90’s early 2000’s rushing home to fire up the dial up and start chatting with the same friends I’d already spent hours talking to that day."

- Boodagga

"'Wanna Cyber?' God. We were awful."

- icanbeafrick

"A/s/l."

- levi_verzyden

And ICQ.

"ICQ."

- DamnedMonkey

"Couple of years ago, I had a number come into my head. Recognized it but didn’t know where from. For over a year it kept bugging me. Was it my college enrolment/password? Number for someone I worked with when I worked overseas? Not a clue for the longest time."

"Random convo with a friend about old memes and things we miss about the early internet days, and I just blurted out “its my f*cking ICQ number!” with no context…"

- Squallypie

Giant, rear projection TV.

"If you had a big screen TV it was probably a ridiculously thick rear projection TV."

- ParoxysmAttack

"My parents can’t get it out of the house."

- CristyTango

"My Dad Busted it apart to get it out of the house."

- And1mistaketour

The sound of Dial-Up.

"Dial-Up."

"weeeeeeeee WOOOOOO_OOOOOO_"

E E E E E E E EEEEEeeeeee

"eee"

"eee URRRRRRRRR"

"BEDULUDOLEDULUDOLEEPEEPEEP"

"R R R R R R R R R R R R RUMMMMMMMMMMMM"


- Martini_Man_

"Is it sad that I miss this sound? Reminds me of logging on age 15. Midnight till 6am was my ISPs off-peak and was the only time I could get my internet fix."

- trev2600

Websites had a specific aesthetic.

"Spinning under construction gifs on websites."

- starkiller_bass

"Remember when most websites had a hit counter on them?"

- starkiller_bass

"Every 90s website."

- emtag

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Computer mice with a ball.

"Computer mice with a ball:"

"My friend had one of the first Microsoft IntelliMouse , which did not use a ball."

"As I recall, it was the first laser mouse without a ball that was commercialized in a popular way. It was released in October 1999. So in 2000, most mice were with a ball, and slowly faded away."

- fmaz008

"Remember having to clean the ball? Who even knows how that much gunk got in there in a relatively short time."

- FloydEGag

Oh, Blockbuster. How we miss you.

"Blockbuster card."

- larrythetarry

"I live a half-hour away from one. Granted, it's the last one, but still..."

- zippyslug31

"It’s surreal walking around that store. Closest thing to time traveling I’ll ever get to do."

- pegleg_1979

"Damn. I miss blockbuster."

- NOTZawp

Geocities.

"Geocities, neopets, livejournal, kazaa."

- papaweir

"Geocities was so powerful for the time. I used to build my website there, steal the html and use it for my own domain. This was pre-social media. If you wanted to share your weird goth poetry and fuzzy webcam selfies, you had to have your own website. Using the steeling html method for years eventually taught me how to write it."

"Also, for a cross over episode, I stole the html from the pet 'painting' page from Neopets, uploaded it on my geocities, tinkered with the code and was able to log in and paint all my pets for free. Baby h4x0r. Those were the days."

- j-u-n-i

"For those of you who miss the old days, neocities is a free hosting service where you can put up simple websites. Nothing fancy, but still very awesome."

- MarqueeSmyth

And Neopets.

"Neopets don’t die though, I logged in after a long time and my Neopet was starving, so I fed it a piece of the omelette and he said 'yuck I don’t like omelettes' so I logged off and let the sassy little bat starve for another 10 years."

- goblinsexologist

"Neopets was the reason my dad buckled and got us DSL internet... because I once spent the entire Saturday on Neopets and he wasn't happy with the phone bill that month."

- GingerBeardicus86

Blue eye shadow was in.

"Blue eyeshadow. You could always tell when a junior high school aged girl finally got the okay from her parents to start wearing makeup. She'd show up at school everyday for the next month looking like a blue panda."

- blickyjayy

"Butterfly hair clips and I believe the white eyeliner were huge then too."

- HotIronCakes

"Kids today with thousands of YouTube make up tutorials at their disposal don't know how we suffered."

- 44morejumperspls

Smoking inside.

"Indoor smoking. My young-ish kids marvel at the fact that people used to sit in restaurants and smoke."

- TurdFergDSF

"I remember gold foil disposable ashtrays at burger king."

- J_Hitler_Christ

"I remember going to friendly’s as a kid for breakfast or dinner and they asked if we wanted smoking or non-smoking with ceiling fans blowing everything everywhere."

- soline

VHS tapes.

"VCRs."

- Murtamatt

"Tape rewinders!!"

"BE KIND, REWIND!"

"I liked the ones that had the form of a sports car."

- xtracto

There was no GPS.

"Maps or Mapquest."

- Ocean927

"My wife calls Google maps MapQuest if we need directions she'll tell me to MapQuest it on my phone."

- deadlymoogle

"Printed Mapquest instructions!"

- surlycanon

"World Wide Web."

"The term 'World Wide Web.'"

- No-Sheepherder-2896

“'Visit us at h t t p colon slash slash w w w dot p b s dot o r g.'"

- Bilbo_nubbins

"Information Superhighway."

- wagu666

Generation Z will probably never fully understand the struggles and joys of the budding technology and wacky fashion of that time.

Though, before you know it, these kids are going to be saying the same thing about the next generation.

And the cycle continues.

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Men Who've Gotten A Vasectomy Share Their Experiences

Reddit user GaleNotTheWind asked: 'Men of Reddit who have gotten a vasectomy, what was your experience?'

Pair of scissors
Markus Winkler/Unsplash

According to the Cleveland Clinic, over 50 million men have had a vasectomy.

Although avoiding sexual intercourse is the only effective way to avoid pregnancy, the male birth control procedure still has a low failure rate.

Those who are apprehensive about having a vasectomy fear the following: pain, impact on sex life, effectiveness, and side effects like cancer. (The National Cancer Institute and the American Urological Association have found that the procedure does not increase the risk of prostate cancer).

To seek some reassurance, Redditor GaleNotTheWind asked:

"Men of Reddit who have gotten a vasectomy, what was your experience?"

Guys discuss what happened after the snipping.

Making Sure

"For the love of God, do the follow-up appointment. The last thing you want is to be accidentally playing with a loaded gun."

– sleepypanda59

Wise To Wait

"The paper work I got for mine which was done less than 2 weeks ago said that you could have sex 2-3 days after but... definitely said to wait another few days."

– SisterPhister666

Follow Post-Surgical Procedures Or Else

"Had it done twice while living in Japan no less. Why twice? The first one failed."

"... apparently, so did the second (says my now 6 year old daughter)."

– shoelessmarcelshell

These men found that the procedure itself wasn't a big deal.

Assurance

"I was super anxious, but I had a great procedure. I was more freaked out about the shot of numbing agent to the balls, but it was legit nothing to worry about."

– Reddit

Normal In No Time

"Little operation, blue balls and no wanking for a week, then back to normal but without getting anyone pregnant."

– Bright_Composer_3901

"Made the mistake of having a pop after a couple of days. Jesus, the regret."

– Alante

Best Money Ever Spent

"When I woke up after the anesthesia - yes I asked to be put under, best $55 (after insurance) I ever spent - the caffeine headache I had upon waking was the most painful part. The preoperative instructions were nothing but water the evening before, no water for 4 hours before going under. The Safeway brand cola that the angel aftercare nurse brought me was pure refreshment."

– HarrumphingDuck

Cherry On Top

"Local anesthesia stings for a second or two then all you can feel is tugging after all is done the pain I would describe is like blue balls for like 2 days tops. I took a week off work recommend by doctor since I’m a construction worker and the heavy lifting but I felt like after day 3 I was good to go. Cons: minor pain discomfort, no hanky panky until last semen sample came out clear. Pros: , no unplanned pregnancies(it’s still possible very rarely)."

– Secure_Requirement84

Some final thoughts.

Only Pros

"To me, the only bad part was the smell of the cauterization of my vas deferens.. the procedure was fine. Local anesthesia before and during just felt slight tugging no pain. Recovery was easy. No pain. No cons. Only pros. And if absolutely need be it’s reversible. Much easier and less invasive than a woman getting her tubes tied and significantly less harmful than birth control. I’m an advocate. Get it done!"

– PunchARacist

One Unsettling Thing

"For me, it wasn’t the smell but watching the little puffs of smoke during the cauterization. That was truly and deeply unsettling."

"Otherwise, yeah, nothing major to report. Stayed in bed for a day watching old horror movies and assembling a Lego plant. Pretty much business as usual after that."

– GuestCartographer

The One Constant

"Got a vasectomy, it worked. Got it reversed, that worked.... twice Got another vasectomy...17 years later, all good. Just go to a legit great Dr. I mean top of the field Dr. For ANY messsin around down there. Vasectomy is WAY easier now than 25-30 years ago. In/out in an hour... The only thing that hasn't changed? ... The bag of frozen peas ..😂"

– richwat00

Vasectomies are performed via two methods, the incision vasectomy or a no-scalpel vasectomy, and both use local anesthesia to numb the scrotum.

Always consult a healthcare provider before undergoing the procedure and–most importantly–make sure you don't want to have children or that you and your spouse don't want to add additional family members.

Based on the anecdotes above, there's nothing to fear, so feel free to man up and get to snipping.

gray conveyor between glass frames at nighttime
Tomasz Frankowski on Unsplash

I've always enjoyed a good scare on film and my Mother indulged my preferences as she also loved a good horror film.

While we thoroughly enjoyed a good Disney movie together, I was also allowed to watch Jaws, The Exorcist and The Omen before I was 10 years old.

Slashers and sci-fi frights were good, but to me the most effective scares involved nightmarish scenarios that might easily happen in the not so distant future.

For me, growing up Roman Catholic meant demonic possession and the AntiChrist were on the list of plausible fears.

But what films offered possible Hellscapes for others?

Keep reading...Show less
wedding bands on dictionary
Sandy Millar on Unsplash

Infidelity in marriages isn't as widespread as people think. While some cynics would have us believe faithful partners are scarce, they account for over 4 out of 5 spouses.

Still, 16% of married couples in the United States admitted to being unfaithful at some point in their marriage.

And 57% of divorces were due to cheating.

In marriages where infidelity occurs, but doesn't result in divorce, the loss of trust is still a problem. It can make emotional and physical intimacy challenging.

So why do people cheat instead of ending their relationship before moving on?

Keep reading...Show less
shallow photography of man hugging woman outdoors
Photo by freestocks on Unsplash

When it comes to flirting, everyone has their preferences of how they like to be flirted with. Some people like cleverly crafted pickup lines.

I always thought pickup lines were a cheap way to get someone's attention. That being said, there are some good ones out there. I've been on the receiving end of both. "On a scale from one to America, how free are you tonight?" and, "You must be the square root of two because I feel irrational around you."

Both got me to engage in conversation, and I even dated the guy who used the first one for a while.

I'm not the only one that knows some good pickup lines. Redditors have both heard and used some pickup lines and are eager to share their favorites.

It all started when Redditor Sauce_Dealer420 asked:

"What's the best pickup line of all time?"

Read It And See

"You put the sexy in dyslexic."

– koookyko

"This made me laugh so hard."

"Because I can read properly."

– TappedIn2111

I'm Hooked

"This girl I used to work with and I went to a bar after work and we’re having fun, and she leans over to tell me a joke. And she says:"

"Three boy mice and a girl mouse were all stuck in a room with no doors and no windows. One of the boy mice asked the girl mouse how to get out and she said, “Sleep with me tonight, and I’ll tell you in the morning.""

"The next day, he is gone. The second boy mouse asks the girl mouse how he got out and she says, “Sleep with me tonight, and I’ll tell you in the morning.""

"Next day, he’s gone too."

"So now the girl telling me this joke says to me, “Do you want to know how the last mouse gets out of the box?”

"And I say “yes.""

"And she says, “Sleep with ME tonight, and I’ll tell you in the morning”. All this while staring me in the eyes and smiling."

"I said, “Check please bartender!!""

"I forgot to ask her in the morning, but that was the best pickup line I’ve ever heard."

– reb678

Statistics

"The odds we sleep together are 50% because half of us agree so far."

– AlfheimKitteh

"Math is always super sexy."

– Acceptable-News-6811

Money, Money, Money

"Hey girl, are you the English financial system? Because I'm about to give you a weak pound."

– onemanwolfpack21

"Yo girl, do you know exchange rates? Because Euro 10."

– kkirchhoff

Winner, Winner

""Are you a magician? Cuz every time I look at you, everyone else disappears.""

"This line got me a wife and three kids. 😊"

– PRSHZ

One Liners

"Are you a beaver? Cuz damn."

– Starry_Night-

"If you were a fruit you'd be a fineapple."

– Slainna

"Hi, do you want to go for a ride on a Harley?"

"(My name is Harley) 😁"

– OMNIxvTRIX

No Losers

"If I asked you for a date would the answer to that question be the same as the answer to this question?"

– SchemePale6222

"I got blue screen in my head."

"Explain please."

– TastyToothpasta

"You can't lose. Say no, the answer is yes. Say yes, the answer is also yes."

"Dang sounds kinda creepy writing it out like that. Still clever wordplay though."

– Steeze_Schralper6968

Clever

"My go-to was always:"

"I used to be a history teacher, so I know lots of important dates. Want to help me make another one?"

"A little corny, but it usually worked."

– StuffToday

Refreshing

"That one actually worked with my ex on the first try."

"-Hey, do you like water?"

"-Yes."

"-Then you like me in 70% already."

– azurskyy

Sneaky

"Would you date a complete stranger?"

"If she says “yes” you’re in."

If she says “no.”

“Then allow me to introduce myself.”"

– Blastspark01

Playing Coy

"Once a girl came to me and told there was somebody who thought I was cute."

"I asked her who and she said “Me.""

– evil_boy4life

Prop Lines

"You have to have a handful of limes available to do this:"

"Hold the limes, drop the limes in front of the lucky person. Then say 'Sorry, I'm not very good at pick up limes.'"

– cannibalcats

Egg-cellent

"Best one that worked for me was:"

"Me: How do you like your eggs?"

"Her: Over easy, why?"

"Me: Just making sure I have things right for when I make you breakfast in the morning."

– Radiant_Boss4342

The Best Line

"How you doin?"

– 2x4x93

"There was a time when this was the ONLY line you could use!"

– JohnsLong_Silver

That line would definitely work on me!