2000, just after dial-up was phased out in my area and broadband was the hot new thing. These were the Windows XP days, and I was a kid, so most of my early memories of the internet were websites where I could play Flash games, like Neopets, Newgrounds, AddictingGames, etc. Maybe it was just because I was a kid, or because it was new to me, or maybe I’m just blinded my nostalgia, but the internet felt much more novel then, and you could spend hours jumping from site to site. It was more interesting to explore. Now it really feels like I cycle around the same 5 sites. Oh also - Googling something worked and was useful back then. Way different than trying to Google something today.
+1 for Bazzite! I converted last year, and have never had to go back. My tip would be to make good use of ProtonUp-QT that should have come with Bazzite by default. Use it to get Proton GE which in my experience has been the best compatibility layer for Steam games. You can also batch update with that tool so that when a new version of GE comes out, you can set games en masse to the new version.