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Featured Image Credit: theglasssniper/TikTok
Topics: TikTok, Technology
Gerrard Kaonga
It's quite amazing how one simple sound can immediately spark so many memories.
And for a good few of us, we grew up in the internet age - which has come a long way, as we have gone from small forums complaining about Star Wars online to...still complaining about Star Wars online.
We've seen the massive technological boom from the 80s to the modern day - with many of us having fond memories of MSN and Myspace before they were eclipsed by TikTok, the app formerly known as Twitter, as well as every other social media platform.
However, according to one TikToker, there's one defining sound of internet history that divides people into the old and new generations.
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Content creator @theglassniper took to the platform to share his way to figure out if you can call yourself a Millennial or Gen Z.
He also claimed interestingly that those born after 1998 might not have a clue why the sound is so significant.
“There is only one sound in this entire world that will forever separate the old generation from the new one,” he said.
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“When the new generation hears it they will have no idea what we are talking about but when the old generation hears it, we cringe.
“For we know the struggle we had to endure that the new generation will never have to, so here is the sound that will forever separate our generations.”
He then proceeded to play the dial up internet sounds that has haunted so many people's dream.
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Yep, that takes me right back.
So, if you are wondering what the big deal is, I'll fill you in.
Back in the earlier days, if you wanted to use the internet you basically couldn’t use the house phone at the same time.
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And if you did pick up the phone you would hear bizarre computer-esque robot noises which was quite piercing to the ears.
For those in the know, this sound was known as the ‘handshake’ and while unpleasant to the ear, it was how one modem communicated with another through the telephone line.
The audio could be understood and decoded and in turn would relay the needed information.
So in a basic sense, the audio was essentially your computer going ‘hi modem really far away, can I have some internet information please, words, pictures and sounds?’
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To which the modem would reply ‘sure you can, here you go, here is that information you requested’.
Thankfully, we now live in the future where you can use the internet and the phone at the same time without a second thought.
Important to remember how far we have come, eh?