These days, Israel is celebrating 25 years since the country's connection to the World Wide Web, or as it is better known - the Internet.<\/p>\r\n
From a distance of half a century, it is both amazing and intriguing to access the archive materials and discover how Israelis prepared for the new era, which in just a few years completely changed the world.<\/p>\r\n
In its early years, the Internet was used mainly by universities, which even jointly established the first Internet provider in Israel - IUCN (Inter-University Computing Center).<\/p>\r\n
Towards the end of the 1990s, the 'Israeli Internet Association' became "responsible for the Internet"... and in 2000, home customers began connecting to the network via broadband.<\/p>\r\n
\""In the middle of this month, Israel will connect to the world's largest electronic highway network, known as the 'Internet.' The network has 25 million users, most of whom are computer and communication freaks" - this is how a 1990 publication by the National Library of Israel began, which attempted to explain to its readers the wonders of the new magic.<\/p>\r\n
The fascinating article, titled "A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Internet," tells the story of the Internet, details the uses that will be possible on the new network, and even explains to Israelis the rules of etiquette that must be followed on it (yes, there used to be such...), with the addition of a friendly warning: "If you curse or insult - no one will talk to you online..."\"<\/p>\r\n
\""The news of Israel's connection to the Internet is making tens of thousands of teenagers and young adults happy," the article says. "For example, Omri Lederman, 15, from Neot Afeka, is eagerly awaiting the connection.<\/p>\r\n
\""It's fun," he says. "I get to meet hundreds of people from all over the world on a superficial level and dozens of them on a deeper level. I get to talk to them about everything from new dirt bikes to the Woodstock show.".<\/p>\r\n
It was later reported: "The Internet was established by the American government in the late 1960s as an alternative communications network in the event of a nuclear attack on the United States (by the former USSR). Over the years, it has become a vast network that anyone with a personal computer (IBM or Macintosh) and a modem can connect to.".<\/p>\r\n
\""You can read daily newspapers, weeklies, monthlies, and magazines for those with a rare interest. You can get a list of all doctoral theses submitted in all subjects on your computer screen, shop at an electronic mall and have the product delivered directly to your home, watch short clips from the newest music videos, get free software to try and express your opinion, meet friends at the keyboard, in short \u2013 everything.".<\/p>\r\n
\""Each of us can connect to this vast network for 30-90 shekels a month, plus a fee for airtime (the time each international call from Israel to the US takes). Communication will be via satellite or submarine cable.".<\/p>\r\n
\""But you also have to be careful. There are certain rules, and it's worth adopting them as you would before your first visit to a certain country. For example, you can't go wild online, you can't interrupt other people's conversations without permission, you can't curse, insult, or make racist comments, and you shouldn't be arrogant. Proper behavior pays off, because it's enough to make a mistake twice, and you're considered dead online - no one will talk to you anymore, and it's a waste of time and money.<\/p>\r\n
\""Internet rules explicitly state that before connecting, one must read the network's code of conduct. Only then is permission given to watch, initially only passively, the conversations taking place there, and after weeks of watching and studying, one can request permission to join the forums.".<\/p>\r\n
\""Recommendation: If your keyboard friends - and they could be in Congo, Washington, Paris, or anywhere else in the world - don't tell you about themselves and where they're from, then there's no point in immediately telling them that you're from Israel, live in Givatayim, and other personal details. Such a personal outburst against the backdrop of their desire to remain anonymous could be considered impolite.".<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\""Israel is connecting to the world's largest electronic highway network," proudly declares an article from 1990, which purports to explain to readers what the Internet is. \u2022 Innocence: "You must not curse, insult, or make racist remarks, and you should not be arrogant. Proper behavior pays off." \u2022 Looking back","protected":false},"author":53,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[94],"tags":[647,12959,12958],"class_list":["post-307298","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-94","tag-647","tag-12959","tag-12958"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n