Instant messaging wasn’t just chatting. It was strategy. Subtlety. Performance. And occasionally chaos.
Crafting the Perfect Away Message
Song lyrics, vague emotional hints, inside jokes. Your away message was basically your public diary — but cooler.
Logging Off and Back On for Attention
You knew exactly what you were doing. That little sign-on sound was the original notification flex.
Buddy List Politics
Who was on your list mattered. If someone disappeared from it? People noticed. No one admitted it, but everyone noticed.
The “Typing…” Suspense
Watching “is typing” appear and disappear was emotional whiplash. You’d sit there wondering if you said something wrong.
Neon Fonts and Overstyled Text
There was no such thing as subtle formatting. Pink Comic Sans was a choice. A bold one.
SmarterChild Conversations
Talking to a bot felt revolutionary. We truly believed we were living in the future.
Dramatic Offline Exits
Ending a conversation by suddenly going offline? That was the digital version of slamming your bedroom door.
The After-School Login Rush
Getting online after school felt like entering a second social world. Even if nothing exciting happened, being “there” felt important.