Maybe ten years ago, using the pound symbol on the keypad, as frequently as we do today, didn't really seem like that much of a possibility. In fact, if you really give it a thought, it didn't mean much to us at all! But with the advent of internet broadband, things began to change, and how!

Even Twitter's founder Evan Williams thought that hashtags wouldn't really be popular back in 2007! (The world before fiber internet does seem a little less optimistic than we are today, doesn't it?)But look at any conversation today, hashtags are so popular that it almost seems like you can't have a real online conversation without using a hashtag for emphasis- #KnowWhatIMean?

So if it wasn't the very founder of Twitter who brought the hashtag to us, then who was it? As it turns out, it was Chris Messina, a developer who has worked with Uber in the past, who is known as the first person to have ever used the hashtag!

Here's the actual tweet: How do you feel about using # (pound) for groups. As in #barcamp [msg]?

• Chris Messina, ("factoryjoe"), August 23, 2007

All Chris really wanted, was to have a sort of private conversation with the group of people talking about bar camp and voila, just about a decade later, hashtags have taken over the internet! Unlimited internet services, and social platforms like Instagram and twitter, have made it possible for people to have conversations with each other, and track the topics that interest them, with the trusty hashtag.

Today, backed by high speed broadband services, a boundary-less world that loves to stay connected, and the billions of conversations that occur online every day, hashtags have really changed the way we talk. From representing a cause, to helping people catch up with the latest gossip, and not to mention, meet new people based on interests, the hashtag can literally travel the whole world and reach anyone who's anyone, simply looking to join the conversation!

What are some of the hashtags you find yourself using frequently? Share them with us in the comments below.

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05/05/2017