I think it must be somewhat regional. I started my adult quilting (as opposed to efforts as a child) in 1987. Rotary rulers and mats were the thing that pulled me in and got me excited, and they were the hot new thing in '87 and '88.
The thing I remember (and am pleased to see gone) are rules like -- always include one large print, one medium print, and one small print as well as a tone on tone. Or, make mitered borders by a formula -- 2/1/3 or multiples thereof.
I also remember that pretty much the only options I knew of for quilting were stitch in a ditch (never did like that) or hand quilting using stencils. Many of my early quilts ended up tied or tacked because while I do love hand quilting, the time and space piece were too much for me.