NeXT
Veteran Member
So before the Dreamcast there was the Saturn and unlike the Dreamcast the modem was purely optional. Like the Dreamcast however it promised the ability to connect with other players online for multiplayer gaming, so long as the game in question supported it. Of course, the NetLink could double as a way to turn your console into a web browsing machine should you not have Netscape or Internet Explorer installed on your computer.
For the longest time the Modems were unobtanium but for a few months on 2011 they popped up on ebay. In kits. Shrinkwrapped kits. CHEAP shrinkwrapped kits!
For $35 you got it all. The NetLink, the Mouse, the PS/2 keyboard adapter and the Sega branded keyboard. Everything was brand new and I couldn't wait to rip the plastic shrinkwrap off and throw it in the garbage (really? you're never going to use this stuff??) followed by slamming the cartridge into the expansion port and dropping in the browser disc.
Hnng. Mind the cables. I don't have extension cords for the Saturn.
So like any other 90's web browser it laid out the Internet as a city. Each section being something like sports, movies, shopping etc. Selecting anything on the first go causes the browser to ask if you are to register for an internet package (lolno) or use an existing account (hell yeah!)
.......Oddly it will let you scroll around even though there's nothing there.
The NetLink modem itself is a 28.8K modem that supports the Hayes Command set. No idea how fast exactly the COM bus is but this means if you were crafty you could attach a faster Hayes compatible modem if you have a soldering iron.
As expected with a 15+ year old browser, all of the locations on the map are dead. Their servers long since shut down (that includes Excite). Thankfully you can enter in your own URL's like google!
Oh, okay, I guess this is a little TOO new for the browser. Lets try a website coded to conform to Web 1.0 standards!
...huh. That didn't work either. Okay, so a text-only site like retro.hackaday.com??
Wow...so uh, everything is broken. Even if I directly enter a URL it will redirect to a parked page. Amazing. Now I'm curious WHY everything is broken and redirecting. I know I can check the above sites with older browsers and they will load. I guess the Sega browser wants something else?? I dunno....
For the longest time the Modems were unobtanium but for a few months on 2011 they popped up on ebay. In kits. Shrinkwrapped kits. CHEAP shrinkwrapped kits!
For $35 you got it all. The NetLink, the Mouse, the PS/2 keyboard adapter and the Sega branded keyboard. Everything was brand new and I couldn't wait to rip the plastic shrinkwrap off and throw it in the garbage (really? you're never going to use this stuff??) followed by slamming the cartridge into the expansion port and dropping in the browser disc.
Hnng. Mind the cables. I don't have extension cords for the Saturn.
So like any other 90's web browser it laid out the Internet as a city. Each section being something like sports, movies, shopping etc. Selecting anything on the first go causes the browser to ask if you are to register for an internet package (lolno) or use an existing account (hell yeah!)
.......Oddly it will let you scroll around even though there's nothing there.
The NetLink modem itself is a 28.8K modem that supports the Hayes Command set. No idea how fast exactly the COM bus is but this means if you were crafty you could attach a faster Hayes compatible modem if you have a soldering iron.
As expected with a 15+ year old browser, all of the locations on the map are dead. Their servers long since shut down (that includes Excite). Thankfully you can enter in your own URL's like google!
Oh, okay, I guess this is a little TOO new for the browser. Lets try a website coded to conform to Web 1.0 standards!
...huh. That didn't work either. Okay, so a text-only site like retro.hackaday.com??
Wow...so uh, everything is broken. Even if I directly enter a URL it will redirect to a parked page. Amazing. Now I'm curious WHY everything is broken and redirecting. I know I can check the above sites with older browsers and they will load. I guess the Sega browser wants something else?? I dunno....