The Computer Chronicles - Battle of the Browsers (1997)

Special thanks to archive.org for hosting these episodes. Downloads of all these episodes and more can be found at: archive.org/details/computerch...

[@SlimbTheSlime]

I love how he just lays Disk Tracy to waste at the end. No remorse.

[@ronhoek69]

Let's write a 600 page book about a browser and publish it a full year after the browser went public. Wow, things really have sped up.

[@tonycowin]

I couldn't believe the size of that book. It had more pages inside it than were in the whole of Netscape.

[@bcarpiothetek]

I love this channel, it brings me back to my teen years. I was a closet computer nerd and LOVED Netscape Navigator but I could never tell anyone because no one in my circle even knew what Netscape was or understood the difference between their operating system and browser (they still don't lol).

[@ZZealot]

Hahaha i was like that, no one would get what i said if i was talking computers, couple years later got very popular (me) because i was able to burn cds and to actually make music (not amazing).

[@apoolofwomen]

These are shows that should always be enjoyed!!!!!

[@hedayatsm553]

Even Computer Chronicles used Netscape as their choice. Browsing would have been different today if Netacape was still around.

[@hedayatsm553]

@SteelRodent I meant it would have been different as in the experience - being more nostalgic and all.

[@SlimbTheSlime]

It was rebranded a few times and it’s actually still around today. In fact, I bet you’ve used modern Netscape without even realizing it! I do wish they kept the old “Netscape” name, though.

[@hedayatsm553]

@@SlimbTheSlime it's Firefox isn't it?

[@twisterwiper]

It’s funny how Stewart is always super time focused. If demonstration of a certain feature takes a split second longer than expected he gets dismissive REAL quick - “Don’t have time for that”! 😂 Was it broadcast live, back in the day?

[@therealAZLN]

The show has to meet a 30 minute timeslot. I don’t imagine editing out wait times was super high in their priorities, so the demonstrations had to be snappy and to the point.

[@bneyens]

They have a long intro, opening theme, and long transitions… but they rush the actual content.

[@KabelkowyJoe]

He explained in his talk on Vintage Computer Federation "VCF East XI - Stewart Cheifet" that guests used to speak uninterrupted for 20-30 minutes, and they cut material later, they never answered questions, they used to make multiple takes, it was main problem to him, everyone got paid for hours, none of guests paid money to be there, yet they used to talk and talk - maybe it's not true it was just his point of view, to him it was main problem

[@twisterwiper]

@@KabelkowyJoe Hmm, makes sense. Thanks for the background info 👍🏻

[@MannyDer]

@@KabelkowyJoe He even responded to emails on that subject at the end of one of the episodes of CC. He said the people were basically salesmen used to a 20 minute pitch.

[@apoolofwomen]

The shot of the crew walking in position and a slick transition and they get right to business.....i fucking love this show

[@DaxVJacobson]

Google was born the year after this video, so it's missing from the list of search engines

[@weaponofmassconstruction1940]

10:30 It looks she, Megan Caughran, did indeed get into law school and is now a corporate lawyer. I don't know why but that makes me emotional. In a good way.

[@AmandaMeowMeow]

On top of browser war, there's a glimpse of the pre-Google era for search too...

[@ytgadfly]

I remember before there were any search engines. You would find out about new websites via mailing lists or newsgroups.

[@CityLifeinAmerica]

@@ytgadfly I wish that was still a thing because Google does unfairly bury small sites.

[@McVaio]

The thing I loved most about Alta Vista was that you could search for mp3 files.

[@totoroben]

Integrating a website into email with a preview panel? What could go wrong?

[@Cryo837]

In 1997 my Mac Performa 6500 had a built-in 28K modem. I replaced it with a new external 56K modem with Qualcomm SW to interface with it. Typically my dialup speed ranged from 28K to 44K. I only got past 50K once, I think it was 53K (must have been a quiet day on the internet). Still it seemed ok at the time. Waiting was just part of life. Now such a slow speed would be a joke.

[@Fastwinstondoom]

Realplayer, djebus ... now there's something I'd utterly forgotten about!

[@weaponofmassconstruction1940]

7:05 I wonder how many times he double-checked that before pressing it on national TV 😅

[@AlexanderSchwalbe]

Fast forward to 2020 Chrome: [laughs in googlish]

[@JimFromAccounting]

13:32 Fun fact. Philip Rosedale founded Linden Lab which made Second Life.

[@DumpsterFire2048]

25:56 is so relevant today it's absolutely amazing.

[@GuidoSaal]

26:06 LOL

[@patricknelson]

I like how his pick of the week had such a negative review. At least he was fairly objective about it. The review was hilarious, though. 😂

[@totoroben]

The person in that suit is exactly what I'd expect the real player person to look like

[@yellowblanka6058]

Looks like the kind of guy who would accost younger women with inappropriate pick-up lines in a dance club.

[@klamberext]

@@yellowblanka6058 a real player there eh?

[@yellowblanka6058]

@@klamberext *rimshot*

[@RustyDodd]

i came to the comments looking for this one

[@MannyDer]

He came up with "second life"

[@wallacelang1374]

I remember that when I began using internet browsers there were features and functions that I liked from both Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator/Communicator. I know that IE had improved certain functions and looks of Windows 95/98 so that I could have more icons on my monitor.

[@floydjohnson7888]

Some web developer summed it up on his/her homepage by presenting the logos of Netscape and Explorer throwing punches at each other.

[@tracyfortune3297]

How stupid have we become in 2021? This video, if set up for it's time, would be a course, in itself!

[@moow950]

Wow, that’s some good thick book for a browser 😆

[@tonycowin]

I think he just printed the whole of Netscape at the time.

[@Right_Said_Brett]

Haha, the ending with Stewart's review of the Disk Tracy (surprised they didn't get sued for copyright on the name and logo alone) spy software is hilarious.

[@CloneShockTrooper]

Good old Netscape, brings back memories

[@julskechap]

I miss these white/beige colored computers of the 90s.

[@julskechap]

@Nevermore oh ur absolutely right. It's weird during the late 90s to early 2000s when black peripherals were just starting to pop up, I was one of the people who were excited to jump to the black side because I thought it was cool and edgy but now I just miss the white and beige ones. :(

[@McVaio]

When you got a brand new computer, it was that fresh shiny white with some cool new shape... those were the days!

[@balesjo]

A dial-up 28.8 connection. Man, hard to believe that was ever considered a fast connection. Within a year or two after this video, I got DSL through AT&T in Dallas and never used aa dial-up connection again.

[@HuggieBear39]

0:44 Best keyboard I ever owned. Had it for 14 years and just now traded it for a new one and will keep that one as a backup.

[@infinitecanadian]

Why trade it?

[@HuggieBear39]

@@infinitecanadian I guess the RGB pulled me in. I have gone back to my Microsoft Natural Keyboard. No RGB but I type so much better with it.

[@weaponofmassconstruction1940]

If I was the age I am now, then, I'd be old by now. Life is short 😭

[@morbidmanmusic]

Well that just ruined my day. I watched it live when I was young.

[@sandwichbreath0]

Why did Netscape decline to send someone 😂

[@McVaio]

Because they were stupid and arrogant. Hence also why they lost against IE.

[@floydjohnson7888]

26:10 nice one! He'd proven the app "Disk Tracy" to warrant a different name - as in "what you put a condom over".

[@In-N-Out333]

2:22 That's not overwhelming at all 🤣

[@talanock]

Damn Stuart went no remorse on Disk Tracy.

[@topazbear2]

Imagine if they knew about internet speeds now back then with all of the streaming these days.

[@blackneos940]

Topazbear We'd probably be in space... No, seriously, think of that DC comic series where, in an alternate universe, technology was accelerated and by the 1970's, humans had a base on Europa. :) Also, I love your Linux Sound Collection. :D

[@tomek8bit]

August 1997 i see it on mac magazine(or is it earlier or later than the month written on magazine?)

[@tomek8bit]

21:52 October 1997?

[@deltakid0]

Browser buttons were 1/4 of screen space...

[@McVaio]

In IE you could make them smaller but by default yes. IE7 changed that and it was actually a very good UI design with UI elements taking up minimal space, leaving most available for web pages.

[@McVaio]

This is where Netscape went wrong. Instead of focusing on improving the browser, they made it into a huge piece of bloatware. Also, the arrogance of Netscape not wanting to appear on the show to promote it is staggering.

[@TH3R34L5H1T]

Wait, did he basically just say I shouldn't download porn? Oh my.

[@Coreyztv]

you should but keep it to your self you dirty dog :)

[@klamberext]

I also browse images off. Instagram is very fast.

[@belstar1128]

11:27 Bonzi buddy prototype?

[@BlownMacTruck]

No. They’re all MS Agent frontends.

[@kuropixeljp]

Philip Rosedale from Real! Went on to create the virtual world Second Life.

[@kevingrems]

Hahaha, "Drag 'n Drop"

[@stevie7702]

None of them, google owned them in the end 😂😂😂

[@KabelkowyJoe]

24:45 Program found that Windows boot screen "Turning on computer", is questionable file - potentially naked woman turning you on

[@NoirHammer]

LOL. It's 2021 and I'm slightly triggered by people talking shit about Netscape. Gotta love it.

[@NEWCASTLE.UNITED.]

Why didnt they just google it?

[@thikhuyennguyen427]

There's no Google in 1997, so you must Vista it

[@FBHSswimmer2006]

Khách Hàng Or you Asked Jeeves.

[@SteveMacSticky]

That channels gimmick from Ms tanked hard

[@arielsantos3060]

How quaint hehe 👍😁

[@AllboroLCD]

Funny Im watching this on the day adobe announced EOL for flash,

[@AllboroLCD]

@@JPX64Channel My best guess would be porting or emulation of some kind to run atop html 5. Im no programmer fyi, so there may even something already out there for just that purpose.

[@weaponofmassconstruction1940]

Ethiopia Online?

[@AllboroLCD]

@@weaponofmassconstruction1940 end of life

[@vyrgozunqk]

Mozilla Firefox is basically Netscape... n00bs :D

[@JS-wp4gs]

No it isn't

[@Moruma]

Sheepdog Wrangler Firefox was created from Netscape.

[@klamberext]

Starting fom 7 or 8 or smt, netscape was firefox actually 😂. But if you want the experience today, look into Seamonkey.

[@McVaio]

They had to rewrite the entire crappy codebase before making it open source to prevent embarrassment lol.

[@RealHealthyGuidance]

Mhhhmmm mhhhmmmm

[@Moskito844]

13:19 "Real networks vaginas"????

[@jamnbryan1]

“from real networks to join us”

[@lakshmipriya1676]

One more - OS wars windows Vs Mac Vs linux

[@McVaio]

I'm sure Linux will get there if we only give it 30 more years. Lol.

[@broncofun5636]

Built in search engines in explorer did not have google.

[@McVaio]

Because it didn't exist yet.

[@lakshmipriya1676]

Next up :-Browser wars 2021edition. Microsoft edge Vs chrome Vs Firefox vsopera.

[@CasioMaker]

Not really a war TBH. Edge and Opera use the same underlying tech as Chrome and with the way things are moving forward, Mozilla seems destined to disappear

[@tomp7621]

How the hell do you write a 3 inch thick book about a web browser?

[@cheeseburgersuperior1874]

Put everything in it. EVERYTHING.

[@FBHSswimmer2006]

There was a lot to Netscape Communicator. Not just Navigator and Email.

[@BlownMacTruck]

Plenty of people had no idea how a web browser functioned back then. Also the tech they were using was wildly inconsistent even across browsers since standards were still rapidly developing at breakneck speeds. Finally, Communicator had a giant suite of programs - it wasn’t just a browser. Frankly I doubt most people would even understand how to configure an NNTP server on their NNTP client *today* (let alone how to use it) and it was one of the central parts of Communicator. So calm down there.

[@alfredooliva5175]

Microsoft Bill Gates took it personal and crushed Netscape...

[@CommodoreFan64]

Funny in 2017 I'm watching this video via Google Chrome Browser on my Lenovo Thinkpad X131e Chromebook, and Netscape(Firefox is almost dead as well), and IE are both no more, and Chrome took over all on platforms and even became it's own OS lol!

[@eila2088]

Neither are dead unless 10% each is "dead".

[@HuggieBear39]

@@eila2088 I heard Microsoft is dumping edge in favor of Chrome. Even Cortana is going away for Alexa

[@blackneos940]

Commodorefan64 Firefox isn't dead.

[@Fiilis1]

Firefox is dead, this funniest shit i've seen for a while.

[@Windfarmer]

Firefox is far from dead

[@KabelkowyJoe]

19:45 Senior technology editor Windows Magazine (possibly Microsoft sponsored) after long talk trying to convince the audience to Internet Explorer she said - pushed against the wall to tell truth 22:00, privately she preffer Netscape Navigator :>

[@DumpsterFire2048]

FLASH PLAYER>>>>DAMN YOU>>>>DAMN YOU TO HELL!!!

[@McVaio]

Why?

[@martinlagrange8821]

In 2022, Microsoft capitulated at last - MS Edge is built on a Mozilla core - which is of direct descent from Netscape.

[@McVaio]

No that's incorrect, it's based on the same engine as Chrome; namely WebKit. Different technology from Mozilla.

[@SteveMacSticky]

I can't abide those Microsoft shills

[@GeorgeLuisGoN]

Real.... Real piece of crap. Ba-Dum-Cha!

[@SteveMacSticky]

Geez pal, if you always run out of time, why even do a show? Irritating

[@McVaio]

It would have made sense for them to use shorter intros and outros and add in more content.

[@sheikfrankicechibu1827]

this shit is wak