Tuesday, October 13, 2026
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Report:  81% of Americans miss the early Internet

The early internet era had a unique charm—iconic platforms like Ask Jeeves, MySpace, and Xanga shaped a generation’s online experience. A survey from HostingAdvice.com reveals that 81% of Americans miss the early Internet.

The most missed social platforms include MySpace followed by AOL/Instant Messenger, and Napster. The survey also found 37% believe the early Internet offered better opportunities for genuine connection. Here are some highlights from the HostingAdvice.com report:

  • Over 3-in55 miss the early internet’s relative freedom from spam and AI-generated content.
  • Forty-six percent miss the early internet because of less political discussion.
  • Over half believe the early Internet encouraged more creativity and helped discover hobbies, interests.
Dennis Sellers
the authorDennis Sellers
Dennis Sellers is the editor/publisher of Apple World Today. He’s been an “Apple journalist” since 1995 (starting with the first big Apple news site, MacCentral). He loves to read, run, play sports, and watch movies.