Defunct Technology or Websites that You Miss?

jeffbase34 · 07-02-09, 01:22 PM

Here are some of mine:

MP3.com –

Damn the greedy corporations. Mp3.com used to be completely free and all about sharing the power of music. It was a mecca for unsigned artists to upload and share their original work. Users could browse by genres and find unique music not available anywhere else! Then it got bought out, and converted to a pay to play service or whatever.

Freetel –

You know this wouldn’t last long. For a couple of years, users could make phone calls and voice chat for free over the internet using a mic. Freetel was a fun program that looked like a telephone pad. You would click on usernames in a list, and the program would dial the user. They could either answer you or hang up. A great way to meet and talk to people all over the world.

Ebay – circa 10 years ago

Those were the good ole days. When Ebay cared about sellers, and sellers could make great profits. When buyers had money to burn and would pay ridiculous amounts for junk. When you could get paid outside of paypal. When fees didn’t gobble up most of your profit, and competition wasn’t that stiff.

Radio scanners in the 90s

I got into scanning when I worked as a 911 dispatcher. I bought a Radio Shack scanner, and loved it. I could listen to police, fire, my EMS coworkers, Careflight helicopters, highway crews and Ham radio.

Then the switch to digital squashed a lot of those broadcasts.

Amazon Marketplace –

Eventually, even the diehards will admit that Marketplace’s glory days are over. Marketplace used to be a great place to unload your media and make big profits.

Now, Amazon will ban you at the first sign of trouble, no increase in shipping credits, and soon, they will require that sellers prove that the item was shipped before getting paid. What kind of business sends out their product before getting paid?

Broadcast.com

Simple to browse and listen to live radio stations. Now, it’s a PITA to look for podcasts of radio shows.

PC Gaming

Ten years ago, store shelves were full of PC games. Turn based strategy was a popular genre. Now, we get mostly delayed ports of console games with a few exclusive gems to appease the masses.

al_bundy · 07-02-09, 01:45 PM

clearchannel broadcasts a lot of their stations over the internet and to mobile devices. since they are all pretty much the same, you only need a few

most PC games were utter crap 10 years ago. it finally caught up with the design houses that didn't know how to make a quality game like Blizzard. I played CC last year and it's pretty much the exact same thing as it was 15 years ago

and ebay sucked before paypal. it was the most annoying thing to buy money orders because idiots couldn't get a bank account and wait 3 weeks just for your item to ship. and you had idiots who would report you if they didn't get your MO 2 days after you won the auction

HN · 07-02-09, 02:52 PM

valueamerica and the golden age of internet hot deals

VinVega · 07-02-09, 03:34 PM

Freeride.com

al_bundy · 07-02-09, 03:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HN

valueamerica and the golden age of internet hot deals

free dvd's

pinata242 · 07-02-09, 03:48 PM

dvdspot still stings...

Mikael79 · 07-02-09, 04:55 PM

SACD and DVD-A - Not technically dead, but they may as well be. Such potential, but not enough people cared.

Drexl · 07-02-09, 05:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mikael79

SACD and DVD-A - Not technically dead, but they may as well be. Such potential, but not enough people cared.

Well, there's a chance it could work on Blu-ray Disc, and I believe some stuff is already available. Even Joe Jackson (Michael Jackson's dad, not the British artist) was promoting a new album with "Blu-ray technology!" in the recent media coverage.

I think it may have a better chance of catching on for music, because compatibility is simplified. DVD-A or SACD, outside of the high end, were mainly treated as optional features of DVD video players. You had to look for them, and they tended to get dropped from mainstream players when the formats didn't take off. See the PS3, for instance.

Now, it's much easier. All you have to do is get a player capable of BD video playback and you're set. The only thing to worry about is maybe the audio decoding, but that's becoming less and less of an issue. They can include video features, which were non-existent on SACD. There's also no format war anymore.

It has an uphill battle because people seem to be happy with compressed music, but it could carve out a niche. Even current and future PS3s will play them (wow!).

sracer · 07-02-09, 06:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VinVega

Freeride.com

Between Freeride.com, Firstlook.com, and Jaboom.com, I received about $5000.

Ranger · 07-03-09, 01:24 AM

Ah, pc gaming. Anyone remember DOOM? Played it on win95. Last pc game I had was GTA vice city. Good times. But gave up gaming in general afterwards, just as part of growing up.

I loved the dvd catalog guzzlefish. DVDaf is ok.

EDIT: Oh, I'll also add the mini disc format. I had such high hopes for hi-MD but Sony just couldn't come through with better software and music files still had to be converted (atrac?) to be playable on it.

emachine12 · 07-03-09, 01:35 AM

- Freeride.com
- MP3.com
- G.I.. Joes that actually had points of articulation

CKMorpheus · 07-03-09, 09:55 AM

ZDTV/TechTV

Mikael79 · 08-02-09, 06:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CKMorpheus

ZDTV/TechTV

I absolutely agree. I really miss those days, and it's too bad that they had to kill that network.

Bluth54 · 08-02-09, 07:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pinata242

dvdspot still stings...

Quote:

Originally Posted by CKMorpheus

ZDTV/TechTV

Yeah I was thinking of those two. Both will be missed.

Filefront was almost among those but luckily it was bought by the original owners before they closed down the site.

Timber · 08-02-09, 10:11 PM

800.com

andicus · 08-02-09, 10:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pinata242

dvdspot still stings...

Agreed!

superdeluxe · 08-03-09, 12:16 AM

another vote for guzzlefish.

RM811 · 08-03-09, 12:49 PM

No love for HD-DVD?

Just Lurking · 08-03-09, 05:55 PM

Pointcast.com

emachine12 · 08-03-09, 06:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RM811

No love for HD-DVD?

I don't know about you but my HD DVDs still work; so do my VideoCDs, Laserdiscs, and my VHS tapes (althought I don't have a VHS machine anymore). So thankfully for me, I don't miss most of these formats since I can still watch them except VHS, of course.

orangecrush · 08-03-09, 06:06 PM

I miss the days when e-music would give me free computer speakers just for signing up for a free trial. They were $80 speakers too.

Drexl · 08-03-09, 06:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RM811

No love for HD-DVD?

It's hard to miss something that has been supplanted by something that's just as good, if not better. There wasn't really anything special that HD DVD could do that BD can't do now.

sniper308 · 08-03-09, 10:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Drexl

It's hard to miss something that has been supplanted by something that's just as good, if not better. There wasn't really anything special that HD DVD could do that BD can't do now.

Yep, I'm just waiting for Toshiba's player, and hopefully the sub $100 price for a stand alone player, and I'm in.

http://www.electronichouse.com/artic...oming_in_2009/

TheMadMonk · 08-04-09, 07:52 AM

Another vote for ZDTV/TechTV.

al_bundy · 08-04-09, 08:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ranger

Ah, pc gaming. Anyone remember DOOM? Played it on win95. Last pc game I had was GTA vice city. Good times. But gave up gaming in general afterwards, just as part of growing up.

I loved the dvd catalog guzzlefish. DVDaf is ok.

EDIT: Oh, I'll also add the mini disc format. I had such high hopes for hi-MD but Sony just couldn't come through with better software and music files still had to be converted (atrac?) to be playable on it.

i was in the army back then and built my first PC a little while after Wing Commander Prophecy came out. Before i flew back to Italy i picked up a Voodoo2 card the day they hit store shelves and was the only one in the barracks able to run Doom in 3D

07-02-09, 01:22 PM	#1
jeffbase34 Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Posts: 923	Defunct Technology or Websites that You Miss? Here are some of mine: MP3.com – Damn the greedy corporations. Mp3.com used to be completely free and all about sharing the power of music. It was a mecca for unsigned artists to upload and share their original work. Users could browse by genres and find unique music not available anywhere else! Then it got bought out, and converted to a pay to play service or whatever. Freetel – You know this wouldn’t last long. For a couple of years, users could make phone calls and voice chat for free over the internet using a mic. Freetel was a fun program that looked like a telephone pad. You would click on usernames in a list, and the program would dial the user. They could either answer you or hang up. A great way to meet and talk to people all over the world. Ebay – circa 10 years ago Those were the good ole days. When Ebay cared about sellers, and sellers could make great profits. When buyers had money to burn and would pay ridiculous amounts for junk. When you could get paid outside of paypal. When fees didn’t gobble up most of your profit, and competition wasn’t that stiff. Radio scanners in the 90s I got into scanning when I worked as a 911 dispatcher. I bought a Radio Shack scanner, and loved it. I could listen to police, fire, my EMS coworkers, Careflight helicopters, highway crews and Ham radio. Then the switch to digital squashed a lot of those broadcasts. Amazon Marketplace – Eventually, even the diehards will admit that Marketplace’s glory days are over. Marketplace used to be a great place to unload your media and make big profits. Now, Amazon will ban you at the first sign of trouble, no increase in shipping credits, and soon, they will require that sellers prove that the item was shipped before getting paid. What kind of business sends out their product before getting paid? Broadcast.com Simple to browse and listen to live radio stations. Now, it’s a PITA to look for podcasts of radio shows. PC Gaming Ten years ago, store shelves were full of PC games. Turn based strategy was a popular genre. Now, we get mostly delayed ports of console games with a few exclusive gems to appease the masses.

07-02-09, 01:45 PM	#2
al_bundy DVD Talk Legend Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Transfatfreeville Posts: 22,164	Re: Defunct Technology or Websites that You Miss? clearchannel broadcasts a lot of their stations over the internet and to mobile devices. since they are all pretty much the same, you only need a few most PC games were utter crap 10 years ago. it finally caught up with the design houses that didn't know how to make a quality game like Blizzard. I played CC last year and it's pretty much the exact same thing as it was 15 years ago and ebay sucked before paypal. it was the most annoying thing to buy money orders because idiots couldn't get a bank account and wait 3 weeks just for your item to ship. and you had idiots who would report you if they didn't get your MO 2 days after you won the auction Last edited by al_bundy; 07-02-09 at 01:48 PM.

07-02-09, 02:52 PM	#3
HN DVD Talk Ultimate Edition Join Date: Oct 1999 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 4,399	Re: Defunct Technology or Websites that You Miss? valueamerica and the golden age of internet hot deals

07-02-09, 03:34 PM	#4
VinVega Moderator Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Stuck in the middle with you Posts: 21,057	Re: Defunct Technology or Websites that You Miss? Freeride.com __________________ History is the witness that testifies to the passing of time; it illumines reality, vitalizes memory, provides guidance in daily life and brings us tidings of antiquity. - Cicero

07-02-09, 03:48 PM	#6
pinata242 DVD Talk Legend Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Owasso, OK Posts: 16,533	Re: Defunct Technology or Websites that You Miss? dvdspot still stings... __________________ XBL: pinata360 Wii/DS: Click for codes! PSN: pinata242

07-02-09, 04:55 PM	#7
Mikael79 DVD Talk Gold Edition Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: IA Now, From MN Posts: 2,543	Re: Defunct Technology or Websites that You Miss? SACD and DVD-A - Not technically dead, but they may as well be. Such potential, but not enough people cared. __________________ This is where my DVD Spot link used to be. XBL: SirMikael79

07-03-09, 01:24 AM	#10
Ranger DVD Talk Legend Join Date: Apr 2002 Posts: 15,806	Re: Defunct Technology or Websites that You Miss? Ah, pc gaming. Anyone remember DOOM? Played it on win95. Last pc game I had was GTA vice city. Good times. But gave up gaming in general afterwards, just as part of growing up. I loved the dvd catalog guzzlefish. DVDaf is ok. EDIT: Oh, I'll also add the mini disc format. I had such high hopes for hi-MD but Sony just couldn't come through with better software and music files still had to be converted (atrac?) to be playable on it. Last edited by Ranger; 07-03-09 at 01:29 AM.

07-03-09, 01:35 AM	#11
emachine12 Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Posts: 881	Re: Defunct Technology or Websites that You Miss? - Freeride.com - MP3.com - G.I.. Joes that actually had points of articulation

07-03-09, 09:55 AM	#12
CKMorpheus DVD Talk Limited Edition Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: New York, NY Posts: 7,295	Re: Defunct Technology or Websites that You Miss? ZDTV/TechTV __________________ And death shall have no dominion... Xbox 360 Tag: ChainsawPup My Countdown Counting down to: iPhone 3GS Mmm! Apple!

08-02-09, 10:11 PM	#15
Timber DVD Talk Ultimate Edition Join Date: Feb 2000 Posts: 4,182	Re: Defunct Technology or Websites that You Miss? 800.com __________________ "That's why the Black Guys like me"- Alison BB4

08-03-09, 12:16 AM	#17
superdeluxe DVD Talk Limited Edition Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: seattle Posts: 6,474	Re: Defunct Technology or Websites that You Miss? another vote for guzzlefish. __________________ My Sparkpeople profile! Follow me on Facebook

08-03-09, 12:49 PM	#18
RM811 Member Join Date: Jun 2001 Posts: 246	Re: Defunct Technology or Websites that You Miss? No love for HD-DVD? __________________ XBOX Live Gamertag - Ruben Rybnik Currently Playing: Gears of War 2, Call of Duty 5, Mario Kart Wii, Shaun White Road Trip

08-03-09, 05:55 PM	#19
Just Lurking DVD Talk Special Edition Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Columbia, MO Posts: 1,082	Re: Defunct Technology or Websites that You Miss? Pointcast.com __________________ Wii Code: 2249 5813 7598 3185

08-03-09, 06:06 PM	#21
orangecrush DVD Talk Limited Edition Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Formelry known as "orangecrush18" - still legal though Posts: 6,942	Re: Defunct Technology or Websites that You Miss? I miss the days when e-music would give me free computer speakers just for signing up for a free trial. They were $80 speakers too. __________________ Everyone else is bound to leave, but you. And they swear their love is real; They mean, I like the way you make me feel.

08-04-09, 07:52 AM	#24
TheMadMonk DVD Talk Gold Edition Join Date: Feb 2001 Posts: 2,979	Re: Defunct Technology or Websites that You Miss? Another vote for ZDTV/TechTV.