14 Minor Problems in the '90s That Could Ruin Your Entire Day

The 90s saw daily life filled with minor inconveniences that had major implications. Music could easily be lost with a tape or CD that had been damaged, while entertainment could only take place according to whether one had VHS tapes and working game cartridges and whether or not television schedules were conducive to entertainment. Similarly, communication was a delicate matter due to busy landlines, non-working pagers, broken pay phones, and the use of dial-up connections, making individuals wait in vain for an answer. Photography itself was time-consuming because film only allowed for a few shots, and there was no way to preview one’s pictures.

1. A Cassette Tape Got Eaten

The most frustrating start to the day was being greeted by the familiar sounds of a treasured tape becoming slow, squealing, and stopping unexpectedly. When the tape was removed from the player, a long brown string sometimes emerged along with the tape, wrapped all around inside the device like a strand of spaghetti. In an instant, the soundtrack of the entire day was lost. Everyone gingerly extracted the tape, praying that it had not broken, and grabbed their pencil to begin winding the tangled string back into its place on the tape. The damage to a well-recorded mixtape would be even more painful.

2. The VCR Jammed With a Rental Inside

A VHS tape borrowed from a video rental shop might have made your movie date into a headache. Press the button to play, and you would hear a disgusting metallic sound, then see some rolling lines on the screen or static images. In addition, the VCR did not want to return the tape at all. It sometimes even ejected a curled-up piece of magnetic tape with the cassette. The whole family had to stop doing anything else and try to save the borrowed film until the video rental shop fined them for it. But when the tape was the latest hit movie, it could be almost impossible to get another one right now.

3. The Movie Everyone Wanted Was Already Rented

Arriving at the video store and discovering that the box was already empty was somewhat of a betrayal. The latest comedy, action film, or kids movie had all already been taken, many times by everyone in the neighborhood. Friday night made things more difficult due to the fact that the good movies were always rented out very fast. People would walk through the shelves looking for something better than their first option, and kids would fight over cartoon movies while adults looked through the cases that they had not previously considered. There was no streaming website to be used from home, and there were no online rentals.

4. A CD Got Scratched

It was a scratched compact disc that could destroy all plans of playing the music scheduled for the whole afternoon. The CD played well until a certain favorite song started skipping at the exact same second each time. While it was possible to clean the CD using a soft cloth at times, the scratches that went deep remained persistent. It was even more annoying when it happened in the portable CD player while walking, traveling by bus, or studying. Sometimes a seriously scratched CD could skip across several songs or fail to play at all. Buying the CD would be costly, hence attempting to repair it at home.

5. The Phone Line Stayed Busy

Placing a call sometimes turned into a test of patience because of the busy nature of the house telephone. There was no easy way to send a text message and find out how long the discussion would take place. All a person would hear would be the usual busy tone, hang up, wait, and dial back. The teenagers would tie up the whole family telephone line by talking to their friends, and thus, it would prevent other members from making and receiving calls. The situation turned very serious when there was a need for transportation, instructions, or information that someone needed. Plans would fall apart after a few failed attempts.

6. A Pager Battery Died

A depleted battery in a pager would leave the user without communication for hours at a time. In the 1990s, the use of pagers was widespread amongst doctors, employees, businessmen and young people, although this technology relied on batteries. Once the screen went dark, no messages could be displayed anymore. Those expecting an urgent message would not know something was amiss until long afterwards. Getting the right battery for the pager was not always easy to do, even when away from home. Being silent could mean missing an important ride, business meeting, parent’s concerns, or any other message.

7. The Camera Ran Out of Film

Running out of film at the wrong time would mean the difference between taking that great picture and feeling frustrated. The camera had a finite amount of film, which amounted to either 24 or 36 clicks. In cases such as birthdays, field trips, vacations, and family outings, the camera would run out of film right when the most interesting thing happened. There was no way of deleting the unnecessary photos to free up more space in the camera for other pictures. Someone needed to change rolls if there was any extra film at all. Without any extra film around, the memory would just pass by without any pictures being taken at all.

8. A Floppy Disk Suddenly Failed

A problem with a floppy disk would mean hours of labor were lost with almost no advance notice. Students relied on essays, assignments, and computer projects stored on small plastic disks, which would become untrustworthy as soon as a computer refused to recognize them. The computer screen may have read “damaged disk” or “unformatted disk,” forcing the owner to sit in shock. Without any backups, the whole assignment had to be redone. It was even worse at the computer labs during the last-minute crunch time, with print jobs pending. A floppy disk could also become unusable due to bending, being subjected to magnetism, or just plain wear and tear.

9. The Photos Came Back Terrible

Even one disposable camera can be enough for a whole vacation but still provide disappointments in the end. It was impossible to review the image on any screen because closed eyes, unwanted fingers, and incorrect exposure would not be seen until after the film had been processed. When reviewing the photographs at the end of the vacation, a family could find out that the birthday photo is blurry or that the image is partially covered by something. Using a flash in the wrong way could result in a very poorly lit indoor photo. The disappointment came only after everything happened, and there was no chance of retaking the photo.

10. A Favorite TV Show Was Missed

Not watching your favorite TV show meant not watching it at all. People could not just watch episodes at any time they chose to, and sometimes the reruns would not air until months later. Dinner time was late, you got caught up in traffic on the way back home, or you simply forgot about the schedule; the show had passed by mercilessly. Even a video recorder would record shows if someone programmed it properly and inserted the correct cassette. This rarely happened because people tended to forget. The next day, everyone would be talking about their favorite jokes, plot twists, or even the ending of the show, and you were trying to block out all of that information.

11. The Pay Phone Did Not Work

A pay phone could be rendered obsolete at precisely the time that the person needed it the most. People relied upon pay phones located outside of shops, in shopping malls, around bus terminals, and in other places around the street when they were out of their homes. Not having sufficient money to use the pay phone presented itself as an immediate difficulty. Having the receiver not work, the coin mechanism being jammed, or the buttons being broken made things even more difficult. Someone who wanted to get a lift may try to find another pay phone while carrying luggage or waiting in the rain.

12. The Printer Ran Out of Ink

The lack of ink on the printer could immediately trigger a state of panic on the morning that the paper was due. It could be completed, proofread, and ready to go, only for the last pages of the report to come out looking either light-colored, streaked, or totally white. Home printers were handy; however, it was not always convenient or easy to afford additional ink cartridges to have in the desk drawer. Students would hurry to their friends’ houses, university labs, libraries, or copy shops in order to print before class. It was even worse when there were technical difficulties, since printers could suddenly get stuck.

13. Dial-Up Disconnected Near the Finish

Internet dial-up would get disconnected right before completing the downloading process. The connection was slow to begin with, which meant that you had to be patient to download any large files, games, songs, or software. If someone called at the wrong time, then the modem would get disconnected, and all your efforts went down the drain. Not many downloads continued from where they left off; they just restarted all over again. The problem with busy tones and poor phone line connections added more to this delay. Since internet access made use of the same line as the home telephone, disputes arose within families about who got priority on that line.

14. A Game Cartridge Would Not Work

A scratch on a game cartridge or dirt on the connection between the console and the cartridge would put an end to an entire day that was meant to be spent playing video games. Players would insert their game cartridge into the console, power on, and get a black screen, distorted graphics, or nothing at all. The routine was well known: take out the cartridge, check it, wipe its contacts, insert it again, and try. People even went as far as to blow into the cartridge despite the warnings by the manufacturers about moisture on its contacts. And when none of that worked, it brought the gaming session to a standstill.