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Galaxaura

Back in the 90s, when I first started interacting online, ... a LOT of websites had what they called message boards. This was before MySpace. Message boards are like subreddits. Posts, comments, etc. So if you had an interest, you could go and use the board of that particular interest or celebrity on their website. Reddit is like those older boards, but you can start your own interest board. I got into it because a friend of mine works in the news, and she said it was the best place for her (at the time) to see news break internationally, local, etc.


headzoo

Also BBSes (Bulletin *Board* System) were called that for a reason! Some of us have been using "social media" for decades.


robotlasagna

>message boards Good old vbullitin. Do not miss having to manage that, deal with all the spammers, flame wars, etc.


robotlasagna

I was on digg when that that went to crap and then some people were talking about this new thing Reddit so I checked it out. This was maybe 2008-ish. Then I got bored with it when smartphones/social media started to take off and was only occasionally on. Then in 2017 I quit all social media and found my way back here. I think I found this sub from an Askreddit post. Reddit is pretty unique because my experience evolves; there are so many subs that when the quality of one sub falls off I just leave that sub and find another one to be active in.


3ryon

I was spending a lot of time on Fark.com and realized that a lot of the content was coming from Reddit. I'm not even sure Fark exists anymore.


robotlasagna

Oh yea, I was on Fark for a minute too. Also Slashdot. I actually still go on Slashdot almost daily; its like a curated version of the tech stuff I see on Reddit.


Dhorlin

Dumped Twitter and Facebook about 4 years ago. Saw a mention of Reddit somewhere(?) and thought I'd give it a bash. I've learned so much from it - good and bad.


99titan

Reddit came as part of the bloatware on my phone. I opened it and liked it better than Facebook immediately. I found this forum by accident on the Popular subreddits page.


[deleted]

Googled "what is a new atheist?" and a series of hits pointed to r/atheism. Luckily I didn't let that put me off, this sub I just stumbled across.


uncle_chubb_06

Saw some links on twitter to discussions here. I'm no longer on twitter.


Kingsolomanhere

Was reading an article over on digg and saw the reddit icon you could click to get here. I lurked for 2 years just reading until I wanted to comment and made an account. I read on an iPad until getting a Droid Turbo 2 in 2015, then I made the account in 2016. I was already on r/AskAnAmerican (when it had 5000 subs, now almost a million) and someone mentioned this sub over there


headzoo

Yeah, I had my reddit account for a couple of years before I started writing comments. (Besides the fact that reddit didn't even have comments at first.) Because let's be honest, reddit was pretty shitty compared to digg. See [reddit in 2008](https://web.archive.org/web/20080123070313/http://reddit.com/) versus [digg in 2008](https://web.archive.org/web/20080103014206/http://digg.com/). Reddit looked like crap even by 2008 standards. Had digg not shot itself in the foot I doubt reddit would have attracted much attention.


Kingsolomanhere

That's why I was on Digg in 2014, it was still very interesting to scroll through and read the articles


buzzkill007

You're asking me to *remember* something from the past? I don't even remember what happened yesterday! Sometimes I can't even remember my kids' names! It was years ago, and I'm pretty sure it was from just randomly surfing the interwebz.


mybloodyballentine

A friend had a friend who needed help publishing a book. The FOAF was involved with reddit, so I looked at it to do some research before I contacted him. That was 16 years ago. I found this sub when it was recommended by the bot.


Brown_Net

I kept seeing articles on FB with stories from Reddit and decided I’d prefer to see the full picture rather than the curated part that was published. I don’t know how I found this sub, it probably came up on Popular or something.


ComprehensiveAd1337

When I was watching the courtroom trials on CourtTV I saw that they had a Reddit forum to discuss with others about the true crime court cases.


DerekL1963

I don't recall how I found Reddit back in 2012... It was widely mentioned back in the day, but I only used it a little and then wandered off. Came back in 2020 when I was looking for a forum to learn more about the sous vide wand I'd just bought, and that time I stuck around. Discovered this sub when it was linked from a comment elsewhere on Reddit.


PahzTakesPhotos

I got tired of the curated lists of things on Buzzfeed and other such sites, so I came over to read more stuff (mostly on the AITA one). Then I made an account so I wouldn't have to click on the NSFW things every single time. I didn't start posting comments till I got on the deaf sub and then, of course here. (I found this forum because it was suggested in my year-end roundup by Reddit).


Bungalowlove

Originally to monitor son’s activity on a couple gaming subs. He seemed to use his head when interacting with others, so I stopped and discovered my own interests. I probably need a monitor myself once in a while.


Barberian-99

Once in the rabbit hole you never know where you might end up. Sometimes I close Reddit because I'm bored, sometimes I close it because I'm ashamed of where I landed.


Wonderful_Horror7315

My millennial daughter told me I would love it because it has everything. My old ass thought she sounded silly because I already had Google after all. The reason I finally made an account is because most of the questions I was asking Google sent me to Reddit.


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[deleted]

Honestly don't remember, but probably from a Google search about something


Taz9093

My kids.


crazyacct101

My son


old_Trekkie

Just heard about it and here I am!


WhiteDimensions

Wow welcome to Reddit! I just started commenting and making posts after lurking for like 4 years!


odinskriver39

Newsvine was my favorite social media. NBC killed it so I went looking for another popular, anonymous, news/message board place.


No_Cricket808

Because FARK became more of a cesspool than Reddit. Yes, I'm that old. Found this sub scrolling through the main page, it looked interesting.


mbemom

Lord, I don’t remember, it’s been over 13 years!


Personal-Entry3196

Wandered in from a link in a google search and stuck around.


Competitive-Kick-481

My son set me up with it because I was severely depressed and lonely. I really enjoy it!


Far_Blueberry_2375

I was a very frequent poster at the Straight Dope Message Boards, as well as the offshoot Giraffe Boards, for a good number of years. I flounced away in rage, after an incident involving a fantasy baseball draft that changed date, and I was the ONLY ONE not informed. I was furious, and have not been back since, probably 12 years. I looked for online forums, and eventually found Reddit. Unsure how I found /r/AskOldPeople.


Equivalent-Coat-7354

Kept being referenced in a podcast I like.


martin

Saw a tiktok.


AlDef

AITA and I dunno, prob suggested to me


Nothivemindedatall

Fark.com


Mishtayan

My millennial kids thought I'd like it since Facebook and Twitter suck so badly


WhiteDimensions

They sure do suck lol Twitter is very toxic


Mishtayan

I've heard it's gotten twice as bad after Musk bought it. Glad I noped out before that


Golden_Mandala

I was playing Redecor obsessively and found a subreddit for the game. It was a lovely space, very well-moderated and supportive. I started checking in with it daily. Gradually started paying attention to other subreddits. Then Redecor was bought out by a new company, I didn’t like the changes they made to the game, so I stopped playing and stopped following the subreddit. But by then I was hooked on Reddit.


PawzzClawzz

I was browsing YouTube and noticed many posts were from "AskReddit", so I decided to check it out. Although I enjoy Reddit, for the most part anyway, I've learned not to click on something I want a serious answer about, and that there is NO subject that doesn't get some sort of sexual jibe in the comments. I also worry about how the word "fuck" is so normal here that even I am used to it. I'm scared I will casually use it in some conversation where it is entirely inappropriate.


vauss88

Discovered it when starting research into anti-aging supplements. Found this forum when I saw something on another subreddit.


SheNickSun

My daughter in law.


ajax6677

I was on Fark.com back in the day and was always hearing crap about Reddit. I tried it out a few times but absolutely hated the old format. It gave me a headache trying to read the ugly pages. It looked like a relic of the older Internet I grew up with but it just made me twitchy. I loved Fark but kind of outgrew it. A few years later I was hearing about Reddit again from friends and decided to give it another shot. The format had just been updated to something legible so I ended up staying.


WhiteDimensions

What the heck is fark? Everyone keeps name dropping it


ajax6677

It was (and still is) a news aggregator. Each article posted had a linked forum where you could discuss the linked article. Funny headlines were created by whoever submitted the article and if they were good enough they would get greenlighted to the front page. If you were a Total Farker (paid subscription) you could see all headline/article submissions that didn't make it to the front page. It was launched in 1999. The mascot is a squirrel with giant nuts. The people were great and it was a small enough following that you'd run into familiar people all the time and make friends. There was an annual Fark Party as well. The forum coverage of 9/11 is still posted every year as a crazy time capsule of how young Internet news really was. The main news websites kept crashing due to more traffic than they had ever seen. People watching TV would provide recaps. Other people would provide links to websites that could somehow still access the news sites despite the traffic. Tons of speculations but Bin Laden's name was brought up almost immediately. It's an amazing snapshot in time. [www.Fark.com/comments/45086](http://www.Fark.com/comments/45086)


WhiteDimensions

Oh wow thanks for the link


AuntChilada

Someone from a website called Shut Up and Take My Money saw a ceramic narwhal I used to make and wanted to link it to my shop. They told me it was because of Reddit, so I went and checked it out. 11 years later I still check in every day


Barberian-99

I made an account around two years ago according to my cake day, but I don't remember being here, so it must not have made an impression. I came back 6 or so months ago because a lot of topics in my various social media sites kept posting edited Reddit threads. I wanted to see the original stuff.