Comments on: What Was Your First Computer?

By: andreas lee

andreas lee — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:20:50 +0000

My first computer was IBM 5150, my father bought it for me when i was 6 years old. As you can guess, it is not working anymore but i still keep it in my warehouse.

By: Computer Rental

Computer Rental — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 08:22:05 +0000

Truly, the computer evolution has vastly evolved in such a fast pace. The specs we were so used to in the past was now an impractical choice for computing experience. Now we aren't contented with how fast our computer processes an application.These demands put a rise for the need of computer development and research which is offered by huge computer companies all over the world.

By: Josh Lane

Josh Lane — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 15:22:13 +0000

Brad, thanks for spurring the walk down memory lane! Wow, Choplifter… I had forgotten how much I used to dig that game. Castle Wolfenstein on an Apple II was a favorite, as well.

Being an avid player of computer games, I had been campaigning to convince my Dad to get an Apple. It was a success!

But, I had won the battle and lost the war. Was completely unaware the Apple III had just been introduced. That’s what he got. A “business” Apple seemed easier for him to justify as a first-time buyer. So, the Apple III was my first computer. It played few games.

The next computers to enter our home were Epson QX-10s running Valdocs. They were followed by an early-version Epson laptop that also ran Valdocs.

I don’t remember what came next, but it was some sort of Windows laptop.

Didn’t get to come back and do the MacHead thing right until a few years ago, since for many years it was easier to go with the flow and run Windows. I’m glad Apple survived to become the company they are today. LOVE every one of my Macs!!

By: Charlie

Charlie — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 01:12:20 +0000

I had the same reaction as Marman… must be something in the Bay Ridge water.

IBM PS/2… third grade, which would be 1987. 20MB Hard Drive. Me and my dad were like, “Wow, that’s like…35 disks! Why would you ever need that much space?

By: geoffgo

geoffgo — Sun, 29 Jul 2007 13:38:46 +0000

PIMF, I forgot to mention that my first real intro to personal computers was a “black Apple.” Very early on (1982-3), Bell & Howell got an OEM agreement from Apple to produce Apple IIs in all black cases, and become Apple’s reseller to the Gov’t, with B&H and Apple sharing the logo bar. Apple being pulled-to-market by B&H. Funny. Wish I’d kept a few of those now really-really rare beasts. B^(

By: geoffgo

geoffgo — Sun, 29 Jul 2007 13:29:30 +0000

GE_FPS-7 radar with 2K drum storage unit(ca. 1961)- weighed 280 pounds. Had to replace failed units frequently. Ugh. They were about $78K each.

During school (summers 1965-6) worked second-shift testing IBM CCROS storage units, bout the size of your avgerage desk. 48K. Mylar bags, etched with copper traces. Inflate with argon, and create 48K capacitive read-outs bits. Faster than that “cross-hairs in the donut” stuff.

Next computer time (1972) was on the world’s fastest IBM-compatible mainframe (for about 5-years anyway), which turned out to be everyone’s introduction to “cloning” at the $5 million pricepoint: Amdahl. FCS – August 10, 1975 was the first time in the history of computing that it got cheaper.

Then on to your pictured luggable clones (anyone remember Osborne, the market leader?)at the $5K pricepoint, and here we are at the $500 pricepoint. It appears in retrospect, we’ve been playing with magic all along.

By: Mike Frye

Mike Frye — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 18:57:24 +0000

It seems to me 3k +/- got you the latest/greatest in 82,84,85 & today. Given the trend, I guess in 2027, a computer will cost 3k and have 125000 gigs of memory, 16000 terabytes of disk and perform 96000 million ops/sec and do it with 10000 cores….. Kids will freak and feel sorry for us when they go to the Smithsonian and see a dell XPS with 4 core extreme processor.

I remember my boss yelling at me in 82 because I spent 5k on a used 1meg card for a Burroughs.

By: Steve Zweig

Steve Zweig — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 02:46:49 +0000

I had exactly the same first three computers in almost the same order.

Apple II+
Apple IIe (Apple had a low-cost upgrade promotion)
Original IBM PC

Unfortunately I sold both when I bought my original Compaq.

By: Steve Bergstein

Steve Bergstein — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 18:08:47 +0000

I learned so much from my TRS-80 Model I. I started out with just the cassette drive but eventually added the expansion unit and a couple of floppy drives. I had the solder-on gold edge connectors b/c the tin-plated edge connectors stopped working properly when the tin oxidized.

I also upgraded the character generator ROM so that I had descenders on my p’s, g’s, and q’s.

I still have the keyboard unit but I think that the monitor and expansion unit got left at the fraternity house.

After that, it was a “Standard Brand” XT clone with a whopping 20 meg harddrive.

By: Greg Reinacker

Greg Reinacker — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 14:49:15 +0000

http://www.rassoc.com/gregr/weblog/archive.aspx?post=838

By: Eric

Eric — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 17:28:35 +0000

Apple IIGS – in color! with a wonderful sounding dot matrix printer.

By: trevor ginn

trevor ginn — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 14:15:15 +0000

When I was 4 (in 1977) my father built a Uk101 http://www.gifford.co.uk/~coredump/uk101.htm I used to play this fantastic game called taxi, there I moved a little stick man up and down and he had to wave his arms to stop a taxi. Even at 4 I found it easy

By: Andy Blackstone

Andy Blackstone — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 21:21:34 +0000

My first computer was a Scientific Data Systems Model 92 (4k 24-bit words, paper tape input, multi-level interrupt system for real time data acquisition), where as part of a new-hire sales class in 1966 I learned LDA/STA, etc, in preparation for selling the things. The first computer I was able to actually work on through a terminal was a DEC PDP-10 time-sharing machine at Computer Center Corporation in Seattle in the early 70’s – the same computer Bill Gates learned on when he was at Lakeside School. The two experiences convinced me that I was better suited for sales than for programming, launching me on a 40-year high-tech sales career.

By: Rick Stratton

Rick Stratton — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 14:08:42 +0000

IBM PC Jr!!

By: kip

kip — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 04:44:55 +0000

we started off with a punch card machine in the basement. trs80,commodore 64. been there. viva tape drives.