Topic: technology that changed you (Read 4383 times)

doomtroll · « **on:** July 13, 2005, 07:11:47 AM »

Is their that certain piece of older hardware or software that spoke to you...and made you the geek you are today?

was it a computer?

a Video Game Console?

A BASIC compiler?

For me it was none of the above...I actually didn't get INVOLVED in computers till my late teens. I DID however do alot of analog electronics tinkering. and what started me out was my 1st boombox back in I believe 86' or 87'. The thing always had issues and I became determined to fix it so I could enjoy my insane love of music.

Turned out to be fun..the rest is history.

Demosthenes · « **Reply #1 on:** July 13, 2005, 08:08:16 AM »

I had a Commodore VIC-20 back in the early 80s.

It came with a book that had a shitload of programs in it that I spent hours and hours typing in. And then after running them to see what they did, I'd go back and change things to see what effect it had.

It was my first foray into coding, and I've never forgotten how fun that was.

Crystalmonkey · « **Reply #2 on:** July 13, 2005, 01:57:20 PM »

I "discovered" the internet in the fifth grade.

It went downhill from there.

Socrates · « **Reply #3 on:** July 14, 2005, 07:07:35 AM »

In the 4th grade my teacher had a Vic20 in the classroom and we could write programs on it. More importantly she wrote a program to generate ability scores for D&D characters and then give you character choices based on your scores. The entire class made characters and she ran us through a basic D&D module. Isle of Dread I think it was.

Hence my first foray into both Computers and RPG's.

Shit that was almost 25 years ago. I feel old.

BizB · « **Reply #4 on:** July 14, 2005, 07:54:42 AM »

I built this kit with my dad when I was a freshman in HS (1980.) Mmmmmm CP/M - Those were the days.

uebergeekess · « **Reply #5 on:** July 14, 2005, 10:30:22 AM »

a cisco 2600 router during configuration....i've talked to them.

but as for being made a geek, it was when i repaired my own pc and the proud feeling afterwards. Also when i fixed one of the wierdest bugs of my 98 onboard sound drivers...same feeling much more intense

Chris · « **Reply #6 on:** July 14, 2005, 11:21:55 AM »

To be honest, I have only recently made my way into the world of computers. I'd say it started about 5 or 6 years ago, with an emachines piece of crap running Windows 98. From there it pretty much snowballed on me and here I am now.

pbsaurus · « **Reply #7 on:** July 14, 2005, 03:22:45 PM »

Ipod, internet, DVD player, automobile, airplane. No wait, it was the abacus. Yeah, the abacus.

Demosthenes · « **Reply #8 on:** July 14, 2005, 03:48:39 PM »

Quote from: Chris

... with an emachines piece of crap running Windows 98.

GIS result for...

Aw screw it.

Timberwolf · « **Reply #9 on:** July 14, 2005, 04:30:08 PM »

The 'Hello Kitty' vibrator. Hands down

Demosthenes · « **Reply #10 on:** July 14, 2005, 04:32:54 PM »

I'm not GISing for that while at work.

xolik · « **Reply #11 on:** July 14, 2005, 04:41:26 PM »

Quote from: Timberwolf

The 'Hello Kitty' vibrator. Hands down

Stylish, functional and oh-so-cute, the Hello Kitty vibrator comes in a variety of speeds: Slow, Fast, and "Who needs a man?" These babies can be picked up at J-list.com for a resonable price, if you're so inclined.

Graham_UK · « **Reply #12 on:** July 15, 2005, 04:11:15 AM »

Cheers for the link BizB

I built an Acorn atom when I was about 12

http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=80&st=1

It arrived as a bag of resistors, capacitors and Ics. It took a week to build and the keyboard was a disaster, millions of springs.

After a couple of months half a dozen keys stopped working, my solution ?, stick some toggle switches above the number keys and wire them in, genius !!

'H' 'e' <click> 'l' <click> 'l' 'o'

You get the idea

Dark Shade · « **Reply #13 on:** July 17, 2005, 06:10:06 AM »

Cellphones, actually. They seem to have started out huge and are growing smaller by the day. I'm sure we'll have a cellphone 'chip' in the years to come.

johnus · « **Reply #14 on:** July 20, 2005, 03:17:43 AM »

Some sort of old Apple computer in 1st grade. I've had mandatory computer classes from 1st grade to present...then I move here (Tucson, AZ) and I'm just appalled by the fact that the public school system here has no mandatory computer classes whatsoever. Tucson Unified is just a horrible, HORRIBLE district in every way.

sociald1077 · « **Reply #15 on:** August 22, 2005, 09:19:23 AM »

i begged my mom for years to get me an NES after it came out, no luck. then a SNES, no luck agian. then in '95 she brought a computer home from work. a 486/25 with DOS installed. she said learn how to use it, and i was hooked. i taught myself everything i could about that thing, how to upgrade, how it worked, what POST ment. that passion influenced what job i got in the army, and now i fix radars.

Dunxco · « **Reply #16 on:** August 22, 2005, 10:19:42 AM »

A Master System. Shared with my bro for Christmas when I was... Lesse... 1992... I must have been five. Sonic the Hedgehog, Shinobi and Pac-Mania. Bliss. That's where it all began. We did have an Atari previously, but it was hard to get hooked on that.

byteS · « **Reply #17 on:** August 23, 2005, 12:26:02 AM »

Commodore Vic 20 .. then progressed to the big bad C64

Logging onto my local BBS to swap [boot file's] for Epyx Games.
Anyone remember GEOS? or 300-Baud Modem's?

The Commodore manual .. with games written in (CBM BASIC)
Typing all the code was a bitch in those days.

-run
-syntax error on line 2354

I still run a C64/ 2x1541 / 1000+ five and a quarter inch floppy's.

doomtroll · « **Reply #18 on:** August 23, 2005, 02:44:38 AM »

Quote from: byteS

Anyone remember GEOS?

http://www.breadbox.com/geos.asp

Scuzzy · « **Reply #19 on:** August 23, 2005, 05:07:12 PM »

Doom one, either that or the 5" floppy drive

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