Do I count as 'old time' then? I first read Tolkien in the early 80s (when it was deeply uncool, and the province of D&D fans, who were also deeply uncool then). In fact it is my silver anniversary this year...
There was certainly no internet then. I remember my first 'go' on the net was sometime around 1996-ish when my mate sneaked me into the University computer rooms because "this internet is brilliant and you've got to have a go on it, I reckon you can find anything on it, honest"
I looked up Stereolab, F1 and... Tolkien. Even then there were silly numbers of sites. I didn't get home internet until about....oooh....2000? And that was considered luxuriously 'high tech'! How times change...