The internet, dubbed as the Information Superhighway because of the mountains of information that one can tug from it. It was originally made to share information from all parts of the globe but it soon evolved and also became known as the Entertainment Broadway.

Throughout the years, the internet has been all kinds of changes. It has never ceased to change and evolve into something much better than the previous one. The phrase “the only thing constant is change”, sums it all up pretty nicely.

How long has it been since it has first landed here in the Philippines? What changes has it undergone and what effects did it have on the minds of our countrymen? Pinoy Blogero looks back and recounts the evolution of the internet here in the Philippines.

The Stone Age
I remember the first time when the internet was just starting to attract mass appeal here in the Philippines. I was one of those first few who bravely yet cautiously took a step forward to get a feel of the new world that is promised by the internet.

It was somewhere around 1999. The only things to do at that time was to go sending out e-mails to those who have e-mail accounts, to chat with anonymous people from Ireland and other countries using MIRC, and to build web pages with horrid bright color schemes using Geocities.

Geocities. The very first web page which has marked my first online presence had a picture of a book and a torch on a black background (I bet most of you would recognize it), a banner text hovered the top of the page which reads “Karlo’s Home Page”, and a couple of entries which contains “Tips and Tricks” on the latest Computer game that I played. Maybe I really was destined for this kind of thing?

The Dark Ages
Pinoys soon found out of more ways to utilize the internet. Google came in handy for thesis making and MIRC became a place to find a future husband. The Philippine internet community quickly grew, but it wasn’t fast enough. There are still a lot of people who doesn’t know the internet’s existence.

This is because of the limited access of Pinoys on the internet at that time. If you could not afford to plug into the net on your own home, a rental on an internet cafe costs around 40 pesos. So if you don’t have any money to spare, the internet would be an absolute waste of cash.

The Golden Age
Then came Friendster. It was the one of the few that has actually dragged Pinoys from their TV screens to a vaster world behind the computer monitor. Everyone got hooked, most notably, the younger generation.

Internet rental rates dropped considerably during this time. As expected more and more were starting to discover the internet. This spurred the growth of Friendster and everyone was already starting to get a bite at the pie.

People were given the chance to meet other people online by giving them a page where they could pour their personalities in it. It became such a big hit that Friendster became the ultimate ruler of the local internet scene for the longest time.

It was indeed a great concept but personally, I got tired of all the monotony and the limited features. You were indeed given a chance to showcase your personality on a page, but nothing does it better than pouring your thoughts and feelings on your very own blog.

The New Age
Blogging took a long time to emerge here in the Philippines much because of the fact that Friendster was hogging up all the potential customers. But it only took a couple of years for it to be discovered by those who were hungry to be heard.

Blogging offered far more features and benefits than Friendster that it became a threat to their throne. They tried to shut their customer’s eyes to the existence of blogging but it was no use, blogging was on the rise. It didn’t take long before Friendster gave up and embraced blogging to offer to their customers (Smart move, if you would ask me).

One can say that blogging is the ultimate tool for establishing a presence on the internet. It is not just about showing yourself to others, it is about personal ideals and views. It is about being heard and learned from. Thanks to blogging, the internet is not anymore made up entirely of big companies as it always had been. Individuals now have a major part on the evolution on the internet. Every move ripples throughout affecting everyone and everything.

The Future
The internet has greatly changed throughout the years. With every tick of the clock, a new milestone is made. But of course, the evolution of the internet would not stop here. It would still continue to grow to give out information and entertainment.

As bloggers, let us help in shaping and directing the course of the internet for a better future.

Ever met with an Irish over at mIRC? Have you ever built a homepage using Geocities? Have you ever tried out Friendster before Blogging? Share your thoughts below!

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