
The golden age of computer user groups - rbanffy
https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2020/08/the-golden-age-of-computer-user-groups?
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wenc
I was a kid in the 80s and 90s, and computer user groups gave me a unique and
somewhat unusual community where I got to interact with people much older than
I was, and who worked in varied professions (there were lawyers, engineers,
consultants, etc.). We all bonded over the fact that we were all computer
nuts, which was a fairly rare demographic back then.

I think having that community helped to grow up quickly and gave me a view of
world that few of my peers had. I had many interesting peer relationships
(through email conversations) with adults who weren't my parents. This sounds
like a red flag these days, but those days it wasn't because it was a closed-
knit moderated community: we would chat about DOS, OS/2, Gravis Ultrasounds,
Macintoshes, etc. I was only a kid but people would treat me like an adult.

I know of no other environment where kids and adults could interact as equals
(more or less). I say that because in the computer world, competence is not
always correlated with age. The sysop of one of the BBS's I hung out at was a
brilliant computer guy and it was only when we met in real-life I found out he
was only 15.

p.s. I don't know if anyone remembers dialing into a BBS using software like
QmodemPro, downloading a mail packet (usually QWK -- a compressed file with
unread emails), replying to emails offline using a reader like Bluewave or
Offline Express, and then logging in to upload replies. Those were the days.

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FearNotDaniel
As a 1980s kid, I had similar experiences. Some bright spark in my northern
England smalltown had the idea of bringing together all the families and
professionals and their 8-bit machines and having them all set up on a bunch
of trestle tables in some old church hall or scout hut. It was wild. I
remember seeing a Macintosh for the first time and freaking out with
excitement.

There were also genuine red flags though in a less well supervised setting.
Some dodgy bloke with a little shop in the back of a rundown mall created a
"community" of computer enthusiasts which turned out to be a front for some
extremely unsavoury "grooming" type activities.

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coded
Fun read. Some of the local tech Meetups I’ve been to, particularly ones
discussing open source, capture the spirit of user groups.

I don’t think the internet can completely replace the tight knit communities
that are created from in person gatherings.

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6c696e7578
There are still user groups around, plenty in fact.

[https://lug.org.uk/](https://lug.org.uk/)

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mikewarot
Our Chicago area group (APCU) is down to about 50 members, and we meet
virtually thanks to the mismanagement of the plague here in the US, last time
was a Zoom call.

The hardware has gotten reliable, and even the software isn't so cringy as it
used to be. Gone are the days when we started each meeting with "Microsoft
Bashing" just to get it out of the way.

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dhosek
Surprised that A.P.P.L.E. didn't get a mention. They were influential enough
for me to be aware of them a a high school student halfway across the country
in Chicago.

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_Pugetsound_Program_Libra...](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_Pugetsound_Program_Library_Exchange)

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ohjeez
The most common response (or at least gentle complaint) I've gotten was, "Why
did you leave out...?" From DECUS (one of the oldest groups) to Melbourne PC
User Group (one of the largest), people have been sad that their favorite
wasn't included.

But the story isn't about the groups' size or age. It was about the experience
and what they meant. The whole point is that these were worldwide, in tiny
towns (like my own Deer Isle Maine) and in huge cities.

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mstuyt
Fond memories of the old Commodore 64 group that I attended back in the '80s

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Reflecticon
I learned a lot, thanks for posting!

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ataylor32
This reminds me of MUPTs

