This was one of my most favorite television shows in the 1990's on PBS and I watched it even when I couldn't afford my first new PC until many years later in the year 1999. I did have a used second hand IBM PS/1 486 @ 25 MHz in 1998 though but it was quite obsolete even then. I had a Commodore Amiga in the late 1980's and even some micro computers as far back as the year 1975
Cybersmith closed after only 3 years.Internet cafes sprung up and closed rapidly in the 90s.Cost of computers dropped, people where getting Internet at home. Cable modems up to 28mbps where becoming available. No hourly cost or a expensive latte to use a computer at home.Besides 50 computers sharing a single T1 cable is extremely slow.T1s were also extremely expensive due to telecoms charging businesses outrageous fees.
These days, many "ordinary" coffee shops throw Internet connectivity in - perhaps the telecom cost (IP over cable or business-grade DSL) is built into the price of the paninis, bagels, gourmet teas (Russian Caravan smells like barbecue in progress), oddball coffee, etc.
@@floydjohnson7888 pretty cheap for connectivity today. it's not like they need mission critical rated service for real-time surgical medicine, so just a generic business cable connection is enough. that's like $250/month service for a business at 200mbps. In contrast, back in the day they needed at least a T1 connection (1.54 mbps) to support enough users at high speeds and the bill at the end of month easily exceeded several thousand dollars, and that was mid 90s dollars which is like twice as much today. not to mention, very expensive hardware was needed for the infrastructure and you needed a service contract with a real engineer to ensure everything would actually work reliably. that's a lot of money and easily seen why these types of businesses were not sustainable on $5 cups of coffees.
I remember when Mario 64 first came out and as an 11 year old kid it was amazing the graphics were so advanced compared to the old 2D games we all were used to before and obviously Ocarina of Time even to this day one of the greatest games ever made.
My first experience with Super Mario 64 was me jumping into the moat and not being able to find my way out. But it was okay, because swimming to the waterfall and then into the lake was such a cool, first time experience with a 3D worldspace.
@@dsouth7754 Yeah also Zelda and Banjo Kazooie were amazing games for the day and one of the best was Star Wars Rogue Squadron N64 it was first time Star Wars was in true 3D 😱
Wow, you know what I've never heard that one before. Nope. You're the first one to mention that witty and original "left/right ear enjoyed this" comment. Thanks for being so awesome and unique.
just watching this makes me smile beyond my severe anxiety and mental problem, how simple and hype every moment at that time.. thanks you for uploading such a good old show like this.. forgive my engrish.. :)
In my hometown there aren't any Cyber Cafes, the closest thing that we have here are the workstations at the public library, FedEx Office & the UPS Store. Those computer workstations have a limited time for people to work on their projects.
05:50 Interesting, I noticed many novice users even now call the system unit / tower the CPU (incorrectly) , but I didn't know this was a thing even back then.
19:43 I really want to try one of those Virtual Reality headsets to compare it with the ones today. Seriously would be so fascinating, why isn't that a thing at retro games conventions?
I suspect the experience is terrible and these machines were very expensive and proprietary. I believe Nostalgia Nerd did a video about one of these VR systems.
@@jessihawkins9116 I seriously doubt they 'exactly the same', we have so many improvements from higher frame rates to better visuals, smaller visors etc.
well it happens when you compared apples with pears, for example today most CPUs have several gflops processing power but gpus have over an tflop. So on paper it is 10 times as fast at least. But there are many task that you cannot run on a gpu very performant vice versa. So depending on the task the cpu or the gpu considering they are designed to work on both. So yeah they just fool you with fucking numbers those vial salesmen persons are quite the scum, but I don't blame them, they have to in their work.
the gpu was highly vectorized so certain functions would likely run 10x as fast back then. not long after came the pentium mmx though, which essentially started having some highly vectorized abilities as well.
Two months later after the introduction of the Nintendo 64 in the North American market the 3Dfx Voodoo (1) 3D accelerator card was released in November 1996 (First model was an Orchid Righteous and shortly later the Diamond Monster 3D) which was more powerful than the feature rich GPU in the N64. Those PC 3D accelerator cards were costlier than a N64 by itself. The N64 had a great advantage in that it was an inexpensive console where as PC's back then cost upwards of $2,000 USD to $4,000 USD back then and a Voodoo card would set you back another $300 USD so it was preferable to have a high end costly PC to match it with.
Remember back in 96 nintendo 64 did look better than most Playstation titles however because of the cartridge limitations it was more difficult to develop and took more time. It wasn't until final fantasy 7 when people started to take the Playstation more serious as a console.
22:22 Very cool I don't remember ever seeing a cyber Cafe that used magnetic stripe cards to control usage. That wouldn't fly now since someone would have reverse engineered it and given themselves unlimited time.
Improtantes estos documentales, deberian subtitularlos al español ya que muchos no sabemos inglés, pero estos videos cubren la historia de la computación personal desde sus inicios
You all prolly dont care but does any of you know a method to log back into an instagram account?? I was dumb forgot my login password. I would love any assistance you can give me.
@Leonardo Cayson Thanks for your reply. I found the site thru google and im in the hacking process now. Seems to take a while so I will reply here later when my account password hopefully is recovered.
The sound in this video is a little messy, the balance is shifted to the right. Computer Chronicles, would you be able to restore the audio to full stereo?
technically, it has two channels, one for the music and sounds effects and the second for voices, because that allows dubbing to other languages... but yeah, they should have that downmixed to mono for UA-cam :)
I'm sure they still exist in developing countries to an extent. But the rise of smartphones have reduced their need. Still though for stuff like printing, scanning etc might be useful.
It's more like gaming cafes, if you do not have fast enough internet at home you can visit a place where they use fast fibre cables. And pay for playing your favourite games.
I always gets confused when people calls the computer the cpu, you still get people now a days who says it. was buying some old pc second hand online, and they called the picture with the case for the cpu, also some people calls it the hard drive... it always annoys me, it seems more common with older people, in their 50's or more... I guess looking at this old episode, it was more common before to call the computer case with the actual computer for just a cpu...
I think you are thinking about this the wrong way. CyberCafe's came about when the internet was picking up and businesses were trying to find a way to make money off it and they came up with the concept of a Cyber Cafe where you can buy food and browse the Internet, anything you are using now is just a descendant of that idea even if the cafe part is there or not.
This was one of my most favorite television shows in the 1990's on PBS and I watched it even when I couldn't afford my first new PC until many years later in the year 1999.
I did have a used second hand IBM PS/1 486 @ 25 MHz in 1998 though but it was quite obsolete even then.
I had a Commodore Amiga in the late 1980's and even some micro computers as far back as the year 1975
Cybersmith closed after only 3 years.Internet cafes sprung up and closed rapidly in the 90s.Cost of computers dropped, people where getting Internet at home. Cable modems up to 28mbps where becoming available. No hourly cost or a expensive latte to use a computer at home.Besides 50 computers sharing a single T1 cable is extremely slow.T1s were also extremely expensive due to telecoms charging businesses outrageous fees.
Yes
These days, many "ordinary" coffee shops throw Internet connectivity in - perhaps the telecom cost (IP over cable or business-grade DSL) is built into the price of the paninis, bagels, gourmet teas (Russian Caravan smells like barbecue in progress), oddball coffee, etc.
@@floydjohnson7888 pretty cheap for connectivity today. it's not like they need mission critical rated service for real-time surgical medicine, so just a generic business cable connection is enough. that's like $250/month service for a business at 200mbps. In contrast, back in the day they needed at least a T1 connection (1.54 mbps) to support enough users at high speeds and the bill at the end of month easily exceeded several thousand dollars, and that was mid 90s dollars which is like twice as much today. not to mention, very expensive hardware was needed for the infrastructure and you needed a service contract with a real engineer to ensure everything would actually work reliably. that's a lot of money and easily seen why these types of businesses were not sustainable on $5 cups of coffees.
Don't forget Cyber Cafes couldn't serve the number one use of the Internet... porn.
Libraries invested too and started getting computer access for free (if you have a membership)
I remember when Mario 64 first came out and as an 11 year old kid it was amazing the graphics were so advanced compared to the old 2D games we all were used to before and obviously Ocarina of Time even to this day one of the greatest games ever made.
My first experience with Super Mario 64 was me jumping into the moat and not being able to find my way out. But it was okay, because swimming to the waterfall and then into the lake was such a cool, first time experience with a 3D worldspace.
@@dsouth7754 Yeah also Zelda and Banjo Kazooie were amazing games for the day and one of the best was Star Wars Rogue Squadron N64 it was first time Star Wars was in true 3D 😱
My right ear enjoyed this video
Wow, you know what I've never heard that one before. Nope. You're the first one to mention that witty and original "left/right ear enjoyed this" comment. Thanks for being so awesome and unique.
@@johnalbertson79 haven't gotta be rude about it, he did nothing wrong
@@johnalbertson79 who pissed in your cereal?
Just clean your mid ear
Quit you’re bitching and post it yourself. Now go hug Mommy in your basement bedroom.
just watching this makes me smile beyond my severe anxiety and mental problem, how simple and hype every moment at that time.. thanks you for uploading such a good old show like this.. forgive my engrish.. :)
Same !
Closest thing to a time machine sadly.
the Nintendo 64 shame they aren't playing doom 64 on it
I still have the picture me and My family took at one of those photo stations at Cybersmith!
Oh man! This is such an awesome throwback!
my right ear loves this video lol
yeah the audio was done by a guy that found out his wife is cheating on him and he's going to be fired in two days
And my left ear loved the background music
Stick a 💾 into a CPU sounds dangerous
thanks for sharing The Computer Chronicles
In my hometown there aren't any Cyber Cafes, the closest thing that we have here are the workstations at the public library, FedEx Office & the UPS Store. Those computer workstations have a limited time for people to work on their projects.
My right ear frigging loved this.
13:47 picture was sharp... must have been a camera of sorts over RCA and capture card...
you stuffed the audio up good and proper.
21:35 I heard something else for the first time. I had to listen to it again lol
Eh Yo! Homeboy is HYPED to be on tv! Where is that man today???
Never had the pleasure of visiting a cyber cafe since I got Net access at home in 99. I wonder if there are still any around.
Damn. Chefeit in space wallpaper would be pretty dope.
you know it
Some things never change. (11:33)
6:46 Bleeding-edge console tech.
19:00 VR from before.
05:50 Interesting, I noticed many novice users even now call the system unit / tower the CPU (incorrectly) , but I didn't know this was a thing even back then.
VR helmets looks almost the same as today, just better 3D graphics inside. It's been almost 20 years, I was expecting something better.
19:43 I really want to try one of those Virtual Reality headsets to compare it with the ones today. Seriously would be so fascinating, why isn't that a thing at retro games conventions?
I’ve tried them before. They’re the same as today.
I suspect the experience is terrible and these machines were very expensive and proprietary. I believe Nostalgia Nerd did a video about one of these VR systems.
@@jackkraken3888 no they’re the exact same as today
@@jessihawkins9116 I seriously doubt they 'exactly the same', we have so many improvements from higher frame rates to better visuals, smaller visors etc.
@@jackkraken3888 no they are the same
I love how he calls anyone that might not know what they're doing, idiots..... Jesus Christ, lmao! That would nottttt fly today.
Interesting to watch.the .90s cyber.cafes..!! I am a 90s kid....!!!!
Loved to see san francisco cafe culture in the 90s. I moved there in 2002, so i missed out on that era.
oh you poor thing
awww poor u 😔
15:50 - I wonder if Cheifet was thinking, "Now there's an idea for getting the Computer Chronicles brand out there".
N64 has the processing power of 10 Pentiums?! Highly doubtful... And Pilot Wings looks like the predecessor to Superman 64, LOL.
well it happens when you compared apples with pears, for example today most CPUs have several gflops processing power but gpus have over an tflop. So on paper it is 10 times as fast at least. But there are many task that you cannot run on a gpu very performant vice versa. So depending on the task the cpu or the gpu considering they are designed to work on both.
So yeah they just fool you with fucking numbers those vial salesmen persons are quite the scum, but I don't blame them, they have to in their work.
the gpu was highly vectorized so certain functions would likely run 10x as fast back then. not long after came the pentium mmx though, which essentially started having some highly vectorized abilities as well.
Two months later after the introduction of the Nintendo 64 in the North American market the 3Dfx Voodoo (1) 3D accelerator card was released in November 1996 (First model was an Orchid Righteous and shortly later the Diamond Monster 3D) which was more powerful than the feature rich GPU in the N64. Those PC 3D accelerator cards were costlier than a N64 by itself.
The N64 had a great advantage in that it was an inexpensive console where as PC's back then cost upwards of $2,000 USD to $4,000 USD back then and a Voodoo card would set you back another $300 USD so it was preferable to have a high end costly PC to match it with.
Remember back in 96 nintendo 64 did look better than most Playstation titles however because of the cartridge limitations it was more difficult to develop and took more time. It wasn't until final fantasy 7 when people started to take the Playstation more serious as a console.
Marshall Smith? Same guy that was CEO of Commodore for a couple years after Jack Tramiel was forced out?
22:22 Very cool I don't remember ever seeing a cyber Cafe that used magnetic stripe cards to control usage. That wouldn't fly now since someone would have reverse engineered it and given themselves unlimited time.
Improtantes estos documentales, deberian subtitularlos al español ya que muchos no sabemos inglés, pero estos videos cubren la historia de la computación personal desde sus inicios
You all prolly dont care but does any of you know a method to log back into an instagram account??
I was dumb forgot my login password. I would love any assistance you can give me.
@Major Trace instablaster ;)
@Leonardo Cayson Thanks for your reply. I found the site thru google and im in the hacking process now.
Seems to take a while so I will reply here later when my account password hopefully is recovered.
@Leonardo Cayson It did the trick and I finally got access to my account again. I am so happy:D
Thanks so much you saved my ass !
@Major Trace you are welcome =)
I want those copies of myst in the background
The sound in this video is a little messy, the balance is shifted to the right. Computer Chronicles, would you be able to restore the audio to full stereo?
yeah they didn't care to much about the audio past it having audio 😂😂
technically, it has two channels, one for the music and sounds effects and the second for voices, because that allows dubbing to other languages... but yeah, they should have that downmixed to mono for UA-cam :)
Only 1.5 megabit for all of those machines
he cut it before she landed.... or otherwise.
Are cyber cafes still around, or now the business is very much dead?
@somna I see them all the time where I’m from
They still are popular in South Korea but everyone uses them to play games like league of legend or cs go.
I'm sure they still exist in developing countries to an extent. But the rise of smartphones have reduced their need. Still though for stuff like printing, scanning etc might be useful.
It's more like gaming cafes, if you do not have fast enough internet at home you can visit a place where they use fast fibre cables. And pay for playing your favourite games.
Its Mah-rio not Maaaaario
I always gets confused when people calls the computer the cpu, you still get people now a days who says it. was buying some old pc second hand online, and they called the picture with the case for the cpu, also some people calls it the hard drive... it always annoys me, it seems more common with older people, in their 50's or more... I guess looking at this old episode, it was more common before to call the computer case with the actual computer for just a cpu...
N64
Doom 64 muhahahaha better played on the n64 then pc but still pc is pretty good
Mig 29
The Covid store 😅 but if I could try this place I would then or today 🎉
frig w have come a long way!
Two episodes in a row starting with the word 'cyber'... I'm glad that didn't catch on. Sounds so stupid.
what’s wrong with “cyberspace” and “information superhighway”?
It was the late 90s man we thought by 2020 we would have flying cars by now lol
Glad its almost forgotten now. I hated this fuckin' Word
that dude said he brought a floppy to a cafe to download is mail 😆
What a looser lol
wow what a concept….so they’re basically ripping off Starbucks 😐
Starbucks doesn't offer computers?
I think you are thinking about this the wrong way. CyberCafe's came about when the internet was picking up and businesses were trying to find a way to make money off it and they came up with the concept of a Cyber Cafe where you can buy food and browse the Internet, anything you are using now is just a descendant of that idea even if the cafe part is there or not.
@@jackkraken3888 no they tried to rip off Starbucks. I’m glad they failed
“Some people who come here and they’re already on the Internet.” Lol they talk as if the Internet is a membership or product of sorts.
It was. i paid almost $20 a month for my aol membership back then
19:20 Cutie nerd girl!