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Internet Disks considered relevant here?

L

Lydia

Member
Joined
Nov 18, 2007
Messages
18
Hi All, I've been an on-and-off lurker here for quite awhile. Thought I'd finally post.

I've got some vintage computers that I've held onto, but my interest lies more in internet disks. I collect AOL disks in particular, and yes, I certainlly consider their version 1.0's, like the ones put out on 5.25" floppies, as vintage. :)

About five years ago there were quite a few of us vintage disk collectors -some of us, like me, specialized in one company, others collected anything they could get their hands on- and there was a lot of action on eBay when coveted disks came up, but it seems to have fizzled out. Are there any disk collectors out here, and is that considered relevant to this forum? I figured a vintage computer forum was as good a place as any to ask.
 
being the forum noob, I found your post very educational, go figure.
I'd hazard a geuss that, yes, that is pretty relevant, but most of the time we usually dont acknowledge it. Post some pictures, that'd be great!
 
You want pictures? Haha. www.lydiasaoldisks.com

You might find my FAQ interesting (or not):

http://www.lydiasaoldisks.com/faq.htm

And here's the page with the version 1.0's.

http://www.lydiasaoldisks.com/version1/v1.0.htm

I don't even want to tell you how much $$$ I have in this "collection." About four years ago, when more of us were super active, there were HUGE bidding wars on eBay for the rarer disks (yes, rarer, that word does apply to some of these disks :)

So browse and laugh, or whatever. I know the site is terrible, very Front Page homemade, but I made it years ago and haven't done much with it since. I'll redesign it after I read a book about how to use Dreamweaver, lol.

I have an old Mac which I'm trying to run some old AOL disks on to capture more screenshots, but haven't had much luck so far. Does anyone here actually boot up their old vintage computers for occassional old software browsing?
 
I generally don't judge this kinda thing that well but I don't really see how a 5.25 disk collection is off topic. A lot of good stuff could be found on those. I must have like 100+ in my basement and I don't even collect them!
 
Browsed your site, Awesome!

I thought that I was dredging the depths of nerdiness looking at a chap's collection of railway signalling relays earlier today, but that takes the biscuit.

Mount the whole lot up, and display them in the guggenheim!
 
And to think I just re-used those disks and used the CDs for coasters...
In fact there's one under my coffee mug right now; not very interesting though, it just has holograms of AOL Canada all around it (and rings from the mugs - they add a nice touch).

I coulda been RICH!

But seriously, as I run across these in my cleanups how would I know whether you'd be interested in any of 'em? And do you collect just bare disks or disks & sleeves?

m
 
I forgot to post the other version 1.0 page, this one is more interesting, it has the 5.25" floppies, plus a Superman/Batman design, which hits both the comic book collectors and the AOL disk collectors. :)

http://www.lydiasaoldisks.com/version1/v1.xx's.html

Vlad -if you have more than five, it's a collection.

Nige -old computers, old railway pieces, old disks, it's all equally nerdy.

Mike -I'm always interested in any disk that I don't already have, and of course I prefer them fully packaged, but those are really hard to find now. because, as you noted, everyone used them for coasters, crafts or threw them out. But hold on to them, eventually this will come into its own as a bonafide collectible.

A few years ago v 1.0 disks and some really rare CDs fetched over $100 on eBay. I still regret the three CDs I stopped bidding on at $129 each (they went for $130). Never came across those designs again, and letting that other bidder have them is one of few things I still kick myself about. Oh well.
 
These disks were always worth nothing to me in the beggining, that is, until I learned better.. I'm going to contact aol and tell them to ship me aol disks. Great collector items, Crappy internet service.
 
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I unloaded some of my earlier AOL diskettes last year. I had mostly 3.5" versions of 1.5 and 2.0, and similar vintages. They were not super rare, and I was not expecting to make a ton of money off of them - I just wanted to get them to a better home. Some of them had even worked using the Windows support under OS/2.

I still have the CDs - how does one know when a CD is rare?

None of this is exactly vintage, but I don't think discussing it here is a problem. AOL was more influential in the late 90s than early 80s, but their history shows the progression of an early dial-up service to a (slightly) value-added ISP. I remember back when AOL 'introduced' the Internet to their users .. that resulted in the hundreds of thousands of 'ME TOO!' posts in later years. :)
 
well said, but if you grew up in the late nineties/early 200x, then you'd probably think differently, like me. I had DSL most of my life, and when we went on a dsl strike, I felt like mud.

But collectors wise, It was nice to see the new design they'd put on those discs.. For a minute. But does anyone remember those bigger aol gems like the chex cereal promotion in 96? I still play the game.
 
<< I still have the CDs - how does one know when a CD is rare? >>

You just need a general awareness of which designs were spammed all over and which were themed one-shot distributions (e.g., at an X-files convention, with Mad magazine, etc.). You can post a pic and I'll give my opinion, but I'm no expert, and I can't put a price tag on them because there's too thin a market right now. It was relatively hot three years ago, and then tanked. I have my thoughts on why that happened, but that's neither here nor there.

<< But does anyone remember those bigger aol gems like the chex cereal promotion in 96? >>

Heh, you must mean this one:

http://lydiasaoldisks.com/cereal/chex.jpg

BTW, AOL doesn't mail CDs out on request anymore, in fact, they stopped production of them in 2006.
 
If you are interested, I'll have a dig around at home. I might have some AOL UK disks!

I have quite a few Free ISP disks and CD's from the mid '90s. I used to collect them as I found the range of ISPs quite interesting!
 
(Assuming your talking to lydia about the disks) Heh, those would be nice.
I have garage sales sometimes where the sale owner has a couple aol disks, I can build up like that.

Like for instance, I passed up these early blue aol 3.5 floppies at a church sale, before I knew.
 
Boy, I just looked at some of Lydia's collection and compared to those the AOL Canada CDs & covers I've got in the junk pile sure look bland and boring...

Hrmph!

m
 
Dongfeng, it sounds like Dwo Shwoom (gotta love the names here, LOL) would like your UK disks, so send them to him.

If I've made a convert to the cause, my work here is done! LOL
 
2500 unique discs...I never knew there were so many different types. Most of the ones I received went to File13 without even being opened.

While we're on the subject, do you recall exactly when AOL changed their logo to look like just a round dot and less like an AllSeeingEye inside of a triangle? All I know is that it happened a short time after I began posting my paranoid rantings all over every conspiracy nut site I could find. I never did any follow-up on those posts, but I like to think I planted a seed that will keep those fools jabbering away at each other for years to come. (And AOL (un?)wittingly played along by changing the logo, which of course, amounts to an admission of guilt and an attempt at a cover-up).

--T
 
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BTW, I've also recently uncovered evidence of a connection between the pharmaceutical/health care industry and the NewWorldOrder, but I haven't had time yet to begin informing the public (see the attachment).

--T
 

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I have to admit, I don't think your on to much there. The triangle/eye thing KINDA resembles the same as the New World Order triangle/eye, but I dunno. Nice to hear I am not the only collector on the site who researches and exposes conspiracy theories in my free time.

--Ryan
 
Clever disguise, I'd say. (Ya can't expect 'em to print novus ordo seculorum on everything). Actually, I think most conspiracy buffs are a buncha nutjobs...I just enjoy stirring 'em up.

--T
 
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