Writing about multiplayer Starcraft reminded me how strange networking was in 1998. I remember connecting a computer to a modem, which was connected to a phone line (many homes had a second phone number specifically for this purpose). The modem would dial a number and “talk” to a modem on the other end.1 Networking two computers over a phone line seems bizarre to me now. You could connect without an IP address, packet switching, routers, network address translation, or firewalls – all t...
