Much like the majority of the people who use it, the Internet now has its own Facebook timeline.
Grovo, a company based that produces video tutorials to educate individuals about the Web, has helpfully turned its fan page timeline into an extensive history of the Internet.
“We wanted to create a destination where users can discover and learn about the history of the Internet in an easy to use, entertaining way,” said Grovo CEO and Co-Founder Jeff Fernandez via a press release.
Inspired by Spotify’s own History of Music, Grovo’s timeline highlights over a hundred different moments that were instrumental in shaping the Internet as we currently know it. Among these are the development of the first networks (1960), the invention of email (1972), and the creation of the Internet (year zero, or 1985).
The timeline also chronicles the launching of several key companies like Yahoo! (January 1994), Google (Sept. 15,1997), eBay (September 1995), and Facebook (Feb. 4, 2004).
Memes and viral content get their due as well. “Hamster Dance” (January 1999), “Peanut Butter Jelly Time” (2001), “Charlie Bit My Finger” (May 22, 2007), and “Old Spice Guy” (February 2010) make the cut.
However, users may not see the significance of some events on the timeline. One example is the first entry, which notes the at symbol (@) was first used on May 4, 1536 by a Florentine merchant in a letter. Though the symbol does play a role in online culture, particularly in email addresses and Twitter, its origin is not on par with highlighting when the first search engine was created (1990), something the timeline has neglected completely.
Grovo wrote that the timeline is by no means complete, and encourages users to submit their suggestions on what facts and events should be included.
Image via Grovo
