Your Instagram DMs might look a little different after the company rolled out Instagram Notes on Dec. 13. As soon as the message bubbles starting popping up, people quickly pointed out how the feature is so similar AIM Away Messages — you know, when you’d get crafty with old school emojis and your most angst-filled song lyrics. Even though AIM was shuttered in 2017, you can take a walk down memory lane with these Instagram Notes memes hilariously comparing the short statuses to AIM Away Messages.
AOL Instant Messenger was the communication platform of the early 2000s, but even better than chatting with your friends was crafting the perfect Away Message to let them know you’d BRB. They were short and sweet, and they looked a lot like what the new Instagram Notes are bringing to your app some 20 years later. When it came to making sure your Away Message was on point, song lyrics were a go-to option, as well as movie quotes. Sadly, AIM went away for good in December 2017 due to the lack of users, marking the end of Away Messages. That is, until now?
Instagram Notes, which you can post by going to your DMs and sharing either with Close Friends or followers that you follow back, might just be the reincarnation of the messaging system. Whether it looks more Facebook status-y or AIM to you, it’s definitely a throwback, and that means people came out hard with the memes.
Others felt IG Notes were giving off more of a Facebook status vibe:
But was it actually inspired by tweets?
Let’s not forget MySpace statuses, too:
I’ll be setting my Notes to “It's me, hi. I'm the problem, it's me”:
If you don’t have the same nostalgia for AIM Away Messages as some of the jokesters on Twitter, then Instagram Notes is your sign to try it for the first time. No, there won’t be a little yellow running man or dial-up internet noises, but you can still post your best lyrics to really bring the 2000s nostalgia. To up the ante, channel the OG SpongeBob meme and mix it up with lowercase and capital letters. It might be an Instagram Note on the outside, but there’s an AIM Away Message vibe you won’t be able to deny.
