Internet

While I was browsing my news this morning I noticed Happy Birthday Internet, Twenty Years. I immeadiately thought it surely is older than 20 years because I have been on it 16 years.

After reading the story, I see the writer was referring to one major event of Internet development in 1991 which really helped it take off and we all still use it today, hyperlinking or hypertexting.

I did use the University system in 1987 but it was not the World Wide Web anyone could link to today. We had an AgVax system at Ohio State that Extension Agents used.

One of my active farmer friends got on the Internet shortly after that, sometime in the early nineties, and told me about the new websites like agweb, agonline and that I should get connected. I kind of put him off because I think I knew I would become hooked on it like I had with ham radio and tractor pulling and got online in January of 1995.

I definitely did get hooked and have been on here ever since and boy has it ever changed my life! Met my wife, my pioneering ag friends in other states and around the world and travelled all over just because of the Internet!

Now I talk to the farmer friend's son more than I do the farmer friend we got into a discussion about using technology to spot specific problems in crops like the two spotted spider mite he called me about in their soybean crop. The technology has not advanced that far yet but I would not be surprised when you can scan a crop for insects or weeds or nutrient or other problems.

So I join the write of the linked piece and say Happy Birthday Internet and thank you all who helped put it together and especially to those of you who read this today!

Ed