Was Ireland’s social life better before the Internet: JOE’s verdict

Tinder was once something you used to start a fire and broadband was what that 'wan down the road' wore to keep her hair out of her eyes.

Yeah, the Internet has certainly changed the Irish social life. Whether that's for better, or worse, is certainly up for debate. Actually, it's not. JOE is about to settle it, once and for all. Read on...

Nights in

Pre-Internet Before the Internet, the family all gathered around Glenroe and watched the fire... or something like that. Nostalgics would have you believe that people spent their evenings bonding around the pig's head, having things called 'conversations.' How this would work without emojis and being able to Instagram your grub is beyond us. Sounds interesting enough though... Post-Internet Well there's Netflix, gaming, social networks and JOE.ie for a start. The Internet generation are never going to be stuck for something to do or a cat video to watch. Just last night I watched a show that took 16 years to make in an evening. What a time to be alive. Verdict: We're declaring this one a draw. If Glenroe ever goes on Netflix, our minds will be made up though.

Dating

Pre-Internet Dating techniques such as the local dance, speed dating and dropping your keys in the bowl were all the rage prior to the Internet. They were fads which involved much effort (well maybe not the keys in the bowl one) and were not for the shy, or the faint-hearted. On the plus side, you usually knew the person quite well before you scored them. Which was handy, because you know, nobody* wants to shift their cousin. *some people do want to shift their cousin.  Post-Internet  First there was Match and now there is Tinder. We're expecting the next development in the digital dating age to be called Briquette.com. Whether you like digital dating will solely depend on whether you're a stud muffin, or you eat a lot of actual muffins. There's no room for 'he's got a lovely personality' on the web. You're hot or you're swiped and being swiped is not a good thing. Verdict: Internet dating probably takes this one for efficiency, although there are definitely a few flaws which need to be ironed out.

A night out with the lads

Pre-Internet Imagine... being able to tell as many lies as you want without anyone consulting Google and making you look like a complete arsehole. That was the joy of a night out before the internet Nowadays you can't get away with even a smidgeon of shite-talk. Of course, you can always just stop talking bull, but where's the fun in that. Post-Internet Google is God. It solves all your problems. Now if you want to know who scored for Everton in the 1995 FA Cup final, you check with your phone, not your dad. It's less social, but way more accurate... no Dad, it wasn't Neville Southall. Verdict: The internet age takes this one again. Because if you're going to bullshit, now you have to be really, really good at it. So there you have it, it looks like the internet age has improved our social sphere... but then again, we would say that. We're a website for heaven's sake.

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