Internet Makes 5 Everyday Experiences Obsolete as Nearly 75% of the World Goes Online
Updated
Updated · Mentalfloss · Sep 9
Internet Makes 5 Everyday Experiences Obsolete as Nearly 75% of the World Goes Online
1 articles · Updated · Mentalfloss · Sep 9
Summary
Nearly three-quarters of the world is now online, turning once-routine offline habits into obsolete experiences for many younger users.
Five examples stand out: waiting on radio or MTV for new music, handling VHS tapes and floppy disks, browsing video rental stores, building printed family albums, and not knowing a song or business hours instantly.
Smartphones accelerated that shift by putting search, streaming, photography, and sharing tools in users’ pockets, replacing libraries, hi-fis, phone books, and film development.
The change also altered how culture is consumed—algorithmic streaming and social media have displaced the slower, more tactile, and often more social routines that shaped pre-internet daily life.