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       Cyberspace
       April 08th, 2018
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       A few minutes ago in the #gopher irc room on sdf.org, zcrayfish
       just mentioned remembering connecting to sdf over old modem
       programs (xyzmodem). It brought back a flood of memories. I last
       remember using zmodem to connect to my friend Kris's new machine.
       We connected via blank term sometimes and just typed messages back
       and forth in the same buffer. When we switched to zmodem I can
       remember the thrill the first time we successfully resumed a file
       transfer, not having to start it all over. Brilliant.
       
       Mostly what stood out to me in memory is that the setting of these
       memories was virtual. I did not remember sitting at my computer
       using zmodem, but as if my place in the world was within zmodem.
       I embodied it to the fullest extent of existential awareness.
       I had no body, only idea form.
       
       That makes me think more broadly on that concept. I did not have
       it before that time when connecting to Prodigy and spending time
       on the Xanth Chatroom I would eventually moderate. Those memories
       involve seeing my hands typing, and the texture of the monitor.
       I wasn't "in" the computer then. Ahh, but later, connecting to
       Snakes Lair BBS in South Jersey, I am there in the door games, in
       the discussion boards, in all of it.
       
       BBSes are the start of virtual existance for me. That feels pretty
       cool.