Report Abuse. 1996, i'd say, but you have to distinguish between the internet and the Web. The Web became popular in 1996 or so because IE was bundled with Windows 95 at that point. Prior to that, email was popular from maybe about 1992.
https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100524105443AALanTu
1 History of the Internet: An early timeline of the Internet, from precursors in the 1800s up through 1997. 2  A Brief History of the Web: A series of videos from Microsoft to celebrate the launch of Internet Explorer 8.
http://sixrevisions.com/resources/the-history-of-the-internet-in-a-nutshell/
1 A People’s History of the Internet: from Arpanet in 1969 to Today: A timeline of the Internet from guardian.co.uk. 2  History of the Internet: An early timeline of the Internet, from precursors in the 1800s up through 1997.
http://sixrevisions.com/resources/the-history-of-the-internet-in-a-nutshell/
Early Networks. In 1973, engineers began to look at ways to connect ARPANET to the packet radio network (PRNET). A packet radio network connects computers through radio transmitters and receivers. Instead of sending data across phone lines, the computers use radio waves.
http://computer.howstuffworks.com/internet/basics/internet-start1.htm
Using the World Wide Web, the Internet became much more accessible. Colleges and universities began to connect to the Internet, and businesses soon followed. By 1994, Internet commerce had become a reality. Today, the Internet is more complex than ever. It connects computers, satellites, mobile devices and other gadgets together in a massive network millions of times more intricate than the original ARPANET.
http://computer.howstuffworks.com/internet/basics/internet-start1.htm
Now, Facebook, Twitter and other sites are more popular and give users that instant connection that characterizes the social media of our times. In 1985, America Online (AOL) was founded and it became one of the most popular early providers of Internet connections.
http://www.inquisitr.com/830664/the-history-of-social-media-when-did-it-really-begin-you-may-be-surprised-infographic/
Interactions include sharing media such as videos, music, and photos. The first e-mail was sent in 1971 and even though that form of communication is being overrun by texting and Skype, it was the prevailing way to communicate remotely for many years. It is still used, but not as much as it was in previous decades.
http://www.inquisitr.com/830664/the-history-of-social-media-when-did-it-really-begin-you-may-be-surprised-infographic/
Arpanet was the first real network to run on packet switching technology (new at the time). On the October 29, 1969, computers at Stanford and UCLA connected for the first time. In effect, they were the first hosts on what would one day become the Internet.
http://sixrevisions.com/resources/the-history-of-the-internet-in-a-nutshell/
1 You can only upload photos smaller than 5 MB. 2  You can only upload videos smaller than 600MB. 3  You can only upload a photo (png, jpg, jpeg) or a video (3gp, 3gpp, mp4, mov, avi, mpg, mpeg, rm).
https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100524105443AALanTu
You may be surprised to find out that it wasn’t Facebook or Twitter, two of the most popular social media sites who started it all. Back in 1969, yes, that long ago, CompuServe was one of the first major commercial Internet providers in the US. They used the technology known as dial-up to connect to the web.
http://www.inquisitr.com/830664/the-history-of-social-media-when-did-it-really-begin-you-may-be-surprised-infographic/
when did internet become popular
The internet became popular in 1996. Internet became popular in 1996. In 1990s  internet become popular.