I bought my first computer for $100.00. Well, you get what you pay for and I quickly learned how to take the darn thing apart and put it back together. It also had next to no memory. So I would have to delete programs to fit others on. LOL. I think that was about 10 years ago. Now I have a desktop PC and a a laptop, both with plenty of memory and I don't have to take a screwdriver to either one of them. So how long ago did you get your first computer?
[question posted by kbourgerie]
responses and comments:
The very first computer my family owned was a Commodore 64 back in 1981. It had 64kb (yes thats Kilobytes!) of which the operating system took up half - leaving 32Kb for user programs. It came with a cassette drive that loaded software using standard audio Cassettes (disk drives hadn't been invented for it yet). Games took about 5 minutes to load and about that long to play and get bored with them. Later on we added a commodore 1541 5.25 inch floppy drive that connected using a serial interface. No not USB, serial - much like what IBM computers used to connect their Mouse. Oddly enough though, with larger floppy drives came better games. Many of which are still very playable today (under emulation on modern computers). In fact they put many of todays modern games to shame in their ability to be addictive and provide a huge amount of gaming levels using less space than windows does for its device drivers. I remember playing games like Summer Games, Test Drive, Zork, Railroad tycoon and many others. We would have been amazed if we knew then what power the computers of today have. A super computer back than was a 64bit machine that you had to pay a fortune just to get a bit of time on. Today everyone has one on their desks. [deepti15]
You know its funny. I was just in a workshop where they gave us floppy disks to save our resumes on. I looked at it and thought "what era did this originate from". Neither my desktop or laptop have floppy drives. They have become virtually extinct. [kbourgerie]
I still miss my first computer. I bought it in 2000 and used it until 2006. It developed all sorts of strange quirks, probably because when I first got it I knew nothing about security, and I was completely self-taught in using a computer. I now only have a laptop but would prefer to use a desktop. [paid2write]
i learnt to use a computer because my parents are computer illiterate and the first computer i got was an acer with windows 94 on it it was scary [s3lkies]
We used to have a computer with floppy disk drive still in it, not sure how long and old it was since we sold it to a junk shop!LoL My father brought it for us kids then, to me be familiar with the computer and it's functions. Though nobody from us three siblings took a computer-related course in college, we still manage to learn from it's other parts and new functions. Now, we have to computers. One is DELL, while the other one was a computer we assembled with generic parts in it that we could easily customize and upgrade by paying half the price of those branded ones.. [raijin]
I know a few people who have made their own computers from scratch and their tricked out models will outrun some of the store bought anyday. [kbourgerie]
this computer i use now is the first one which i bought 5 years ago when i was in university. i should take good care of it as the whole machine has to be threw away if any part of the computer is worn out. it has been broken many times during my campus time,while still works well now. nowadays,with computers updated so quickly,i won't get a new one to replace my old friend unless it can't work for ever. [sophialin]
You've had yours for quite awhile. They update them as fast as you can walk out of the store with a new computer these days. [kbourgerie]
The first computer I ever bought was bought in either 2000 or 2001. I'm using it right this very moment to respond to your discussion lol. I'm amazed it is still working after all these years. It was made by my cousin and I bought it for $200, (which that same cousin gave me for a graduation present lmao!) [lancingboy]
I don't remember if it hurt me or not, but I did manage to hurt my computer lol! [lancingboy]
So am I... lol In 1994... I had a friend working in an office... and he bought me an old 286 IBM that nobody wanted anymore. I got it for $100... but I had to pay an extra $150 for the printer going with it. My hard drive was 20Mb and my memory 2Mb. lol I had to compress my hard drive to make it 40Mb. But that is what you had to do in those days. All you could run on it was DOS. So for the next 18 months... I learned about computers at DOS level. I loved the challenge and I was hooked. From then on... I progressed to a 486 with Windows 95. I did spend the next six months learning everything about Windows... and it did serve me well. No matter what Windows version I use... what I learned on Windows 95 permits me to quickly find my way around Windows and all its hidden settings. I cannot afford to buy the latest computer... so I still use a screw driver to repair them or upgrade them. lol I am glad that I started at the bottom... because it taught me a heck of a lot about computers... both in software and hardware. I can fix any old computer and get them to work again. [Aussies2007]
I can totally relate to every word you have said. In fact the memory made me laugh. Thanks. [kbourgerie]
No, I don't remember at all. I never have my won computer, always have to share with my brothers. So he was the one actually owning the computer since it was always in his room. [nyumix]
Well maybe soon you'll be able to get your own. That way you can set it to match your personal preferences. [kbourgerie]
yes i remember it very much. it was bought about 8 years back that time i just started using it. it was gifted by my dad. i exchanged that 2 years back for the new one.it was a good one also. [subha12]
It was nice of your Dad to give you such a wonderful gift. I don't know what I'd do without a computer. [kbourgerie]
My first pc was an Olivetti running an Intel 486 processor. It had 600mb of hard disk, and I had to compress it so I can install more programs. It originally had Windows 3.1 but I installed Windows 95 on it. The memory was 8mb which I later upgraded to 16mb (man, it cost a lot then!). I later added a Creative Soundblaster soundcard (ISA slot, no PCI slots!) and an 8x cd-rom drive. It was slow. I'd turn it on and leave to make coffee or do some other chores, by the time I get back, Windows is just about loading. Ah, the gold ol' days. [spoiledbrat802]
These responses make me laugh. I can so identify with them. I have been through the same exact thing. [kbourgerie]
My first computer was an Oric Atmos which was given to me by my parents as a christmas Gift. For those who do not know what the atmos was, it was an computer to challenge the Sinclair spectrum 48k. I remember, I kept having the troube with the joystick module as it kept damaging the ic's in the module and in the computer. [coolbyte]
You are right, thats one I've never heard of. [kbourgerie]
I got my first pc just two years ago and I used my 13th month pay that time. I got my second PC a year later but fortunately, the first one is still working great. [vhayste]
So are you able to use both of them? Or do you just use the newer one? [kbourgerie]
I had my first computer in 1984. My first computer operated on a very expensive Operating System called PICK. I knew the PICK PEOPLE in Australia. They let me have the operating system together with the Software for Spreadsheet and Accounting Package. They asked me to experiment with these software products. I was very fortunate to come across these people. In 1984 I started to develop my own Integrated Accounting Software with all the associated modules to go with it. This was way before Windows 95 and EXCEL. I think after 24 years working on it , I now have a very viable Accounting Software for Accountants not Computer Specialists. [CAMILLERI]
Wow, that is really impressive. I love computers, but I could never come up with something like that. [kbourgerie]
In 1981 I was living in Germany. A colleague was coming back to the UK and had a Sinclair Spectrum computer that he wanted to sell. I paid £20 for it. You had to connect it to the TV and the keyboard was integral and tiny. You could buy very simple programs for it, but writing your own code was also fairly straightforward in Basic. It was of no great use except to play tennis on. If you wanted to type something, you used a typewriter. When I returned to the UK we got some proper computers at work. I remember the installation engineer leaving large box full of 5.25 floppy disks full of programs and games. Now I have a 24" Apple iMac with enough bells and whistles to run a railroad. Amazing how quickly technology has advanced. [p1kef1sh]
I think just in the last 10 years the advances that computer technology has made is phenomenal. Whereas back then you were taking apart your computer for various reasons, now I don't even think about it. Its become completely unnecessary. [kbourgerie]
Of course I remember because this is my first computer the one I'm using now. Can't afford to have one when I'm in my younger days. [lynnchua]
Ya should do, but it take me quite some time to learn how to use it. [lynnchua]
Yes, because I'm still using it. I got it in 2000. She's old, but she's still kickin [Druscilla34]
As long as she is still kicking thats all that matters. [kbourgerie]
My first computer was my first and last PC. My friend had built it from me, he was clever like that and sold it to me very cheaply at the time. It was back in 1998 when I first got a taste of having my own computer (not gaming station) and my first taste of the internet, it was like WOW! I was on a high for months. It was like a big adventure, experimenting and trying new things out, it was all new to me and the games stopped and I started to do different things, I was hooked and I think I had that computer for three years, until I upgraded to a Mac, I haven't had a PC since, I've always stuck to Macs. [wolfie34]
You know, I have never used a Mac, but I have to admit that those that own them are very loyal to them. [kbourgerie]
The first computer our household ever had... that was when I was still in about year 2 I think... so must be around 15 years ago or so. I dont know how much my parents paid for it, but I think it was quite a good and recent model that they got. Well since I was just a kid, all I know about computer is just playing games on it hahaha :) I do remember the games "Kings Bounty" and "Street Fighter" and "Pacman" are the games that I love to play almost everyday :P Nowadays I have a laptop and a PC as well, with a pretty good working system and memory [luckydolphin98]
Which do you prefer your laptop or your PC? [kbourgerie]
My first computer was shared with a cousin and it must have been at least 20 odd years ago! lol I can remember it but it was nothing like the computers we have nowadays! i also used to build computers so I hope you used ESD protection when you took your computer apart! lol xxx [mummymo]
Sorry if I confused you sweety! ESD is electro static discharge and we all have static electricity in our bodies - the danger is when that is discharged and you are touching computer parts you can blow microchips etc in those parts and your computer won't work properly! I f you have ever bought replacement or upgraded parts for your computer it should come in an esd bag, usually a special grey plastic! Any enclosed parts are usually ok - such as your power supply etc but anything with exposed circuitry, boards , cards even drives with some exposed circuitry are vulnerable! xxxx [mummymo]
I bought first computer in 2000,now last year I bought a new one for $700 [jf0948]
$700.00 isn't a bad price, do you mind me asking what brand you bought? [kbourgerie]
Its and old crap.. I was so angry thats why I gave it away and they just use it for national library coding cool. [ayou82]
Well at least it got used for something.LOL. [kbourgerie]
Hah, first computer I ever bought was a Sinclair...hehehehehe. Funny thing is,since the pc thang, every time I've upgraded its cost me less to match my previous setup....(except for the software, that is) [chrismoon]
I've never heard of a Sinclair. If you get the chance maybe you could fill me in. [kbourgerie]
I just got my computer a week ago,and is very old,but I feel good ,beacauce is mine.I will use it to do something Iwant. [lishiwei]
I know exactly how you feel, even though my first computer was about 10 years ago, I wanted one so badly that I remember it like it was just yesterday. [kbourgerie]
Hey we have a lot in common. I think that was about 10 years ago too when I had my first computer, an Amiga 600. It was good for simple videogames but not for complicated things. Now I too have a desktop PC and one laptop (tecnically 2 laptops but one is for my sister) [RowenaTheWitch]
If I put more than 2 games on mine all that time ago, I'd practically have to remove the operating system. LOL. [kbourgerie]
My first one was an Apple computer the screen was about the size of a lunchbox lol and it was black background with white letters no graphics or anything it was all text, then I upgraded to another Apple that looked more like your average computer but it was very very slow. I do remember the first computer I had that got on the internet! OH I was so excited I stayed online for 5 years 24 7 lol I was so addicted to it, now I get on for maybe an hour a day or spend a couple of hours online at night. I mostly use it for looking up recipes going to my favorite sites an stuff. I will never forget my first computer I thought I had it made it must have been almost 20 years ago now when I first got it.........oh the memories...lol. [Amberina]
I can't even imagine having a computer like the one you described. LOL. But I do remembe getting my first one and staying on 24/7 too. I remember my kids saying "Mom, are you going to fix dinner?" [kbourgerie]
My desktop computer is 8 years old, and I use it to this day. So I very much remember it :) I bought a good computer so I haven't felt that I should go for a new one. I assembled my computer on my own by buying different parts at different stores. Till now the only upgrade I've done is changed my RAM to 512 MB from 256 MB, and got a DVD player. My computer cost me about $750. [Screech]
Sometimes the best computers are the ones that were put together by someone, rather than a manufacturer. [kbourgerie]
Haha that's funny :P Well .. WE (not me but my family) purchased our first computer in 1995. I think it was maybe for Christmas? So it was a Windows 95 and back then it was soo good haha (of course now it does/would suck). I don't remember how much it costed I think it might have been around $2000 though so it was good for what we paid for it. Yeah if you bought a $100 computer then no doubt it was a piece of crap haha. We gave it to someone recently because of course we got a new computer and I have my own computer anyways that is nice. We also first got the internet in 1995 or '96. Cool thread :) [grunge_avenged]
I think I remember Windows 95. LOL. I can't even imagine using it now. Yeah for $100 I got a piece of crap, but I learned an awful lot, willing or otherwise. [kbourgerie]
I got mine a good 5 years ago & am still using it!! I've had a new hard drive put in it & more memory, it works just fine for me...Lori [dumblnddzzy]
How big a harddrive did you put in? Thats good that your system was able to take it. Sometimes the older motherboards can't handle a larger harddrive. [kbourgerie]
Yes, I remember my first computer and it was only about 6 years ago or more that I had it, and it was a dinosaur and too slow to even get online with. I just used it for writing and for solitaire and that was it. Now I have a good one with high speed internet. [OreoCookie3]
I can't imagine not having internet. Oh my gosh. [kbourgerie]
my first computer is 8 years ago, know i ahve my own Acer PC desktop & one Hp laptop, it really great. [Ohara_1983]
From what I know both of those are really good brands. My laptop is an HP. [kbourgerie]
My aunt bought me my first computer. It was really slow and you could only hook up dial up connection to it and it was very very slow. There was alot of things you could not do with it. I would have to guess I got that computer about 9 years ago somewhere in that area. [luvstochat]
Dial up is horrible, but actually if you use it enough, you kind of get used to it. [kbourgerie]
I got my first computer last 2 year. Just 1 GB Memory, 160 GB HD, 3.2 GHz CPU. [potharhtoo]
I mean my own computer. :) Before this one, I got one pc and share with my brothers and sister. [potharhtoo]
First computer I had and still do was a old HP Pavillion, runs win 98 and has next to no ram. It was/not anymore tight.. Got it to long ago to remember. Sorry its not as old as your alls but that was my first one. [soup123]
Are you still running Win 98? Can't you upgrade it to XP? [kbourgerie]
My first computer was a teeny tiny little laptop that my mother gave me. I know exactly when I got it. It was July, 1997. I loved it, but it was slow as dirt. I had aol, and I would try to use aol instant messenger on it, and it didn't even have the capacity to do that. I don't remember how long I had that one before getting a regular computer, but it was not long. [dfn12968]
When you realize the capabilities you are missing, it doesn't take long to find something better. [kbourgerie]
I remember my first computer way back in the early 80's. It has no hard drive nor CD Rom, I only use floppy disks. There was no "Windows" then, and the software I used were DOS-based like Word Star/Word Perfect and Dbase. It's funny how we do manage back then. [catbvq]
May be it had one, but I am not familiar with computers then, I'm not aware that we can save our files somewhere else aside from floppy disks. It's my first computer and computers were not common household item in our country at that time. I am just too thrilled to have one. [catbvq]
my first computer was 5 years ago. My brother-in-law made it for me. It couldn't hold any more than 156mb of RAM which caused me to have problems all the time with programs crashing. The video card ended up going bad because they discontinued updates for a lot of the hardware i had on it. Now I have a dell with a lot of ram and cant imagine having to go back to what I started with! [mykaylala]
I think we would all agree that we would never want to go back to what we started with. Heaven forbid. [kbourgerie]
My Brother brought a Sinclair ZX81 home one time,but it didn't stay long...the First Machine I bought was a Commodore C64 (the redesigned one) in the mid 80's.....a couple of Years Later on,I was looking for a Teletext adapter for the 64 which I found in the Small Ads,but the guy was selling his whole C64 system-I got the Adapter I wanted,An "Old" style C64,Disk Drive (5 1/4" Floppy),and a Bunch of Software and Magazines (not expensive,either..)..I still have them,but haven't had the heart to sell them despite having had a PC of varied and increasing Spec Since having a place of My own with an internet hookup available.. [ShepherdSpy]
It amazes me that everyone can remember the exact model and all the specs. I remember more about what the computer didn't have. LOL. [kbourgerie]
When I was five my teacher told my parents my typing skills were behind the rest of the class and that I'd do better if I got some practice at home, so my parents bought me a second-hand computer for Christmas that year -- still fairly expensive in 1988. It was an Amstrad something-or-other, green screen with the keyboard on top of the processor and a built-in tape drive. 20 years later, I'm eternally thankful that they did. I spent most of my evenings studying the programming guide it came with, and by the age of 8 I had a reasonable grasp of programming, which I think is why I learn programming languages so easily as an adult. [Ishtara]
Thats really cool that your parents took such a strong interest in educating you. Look what came from that. [kbourgerie]
My first was a brand new Commodore 64, which cost about $300 back in 1984. I thought I was on top of the world, rockin' with 64K of memory and a tape drive. [gantwick]
We all thought we were on top of the world when we got that first computer. Now we have to laugh at it. [kbourgerie]
yes i remember as well..also because i have it and it works nowadays too!!it is an assemblated computer very old style..so big..!!the os run in it is dos very old version and one of the first windows version ehehe!!i changed it because havnìt the possibility to connect to the different net but even now for basic operation it works!!in reality this i use now it is my second one so even if it is 6 years old but it works good as the first day;) [tonyllenium]
I guess some things are just built to last. LOL. [kbourgerie]
I come from China!computer for us is not cheap!Last year I bought " china lenovo " for almost 700$! [jf0948]
Unless you buy it second hand, I don't think buying a computer anywhere is cheap. [kbourgerie]
My first computer was a 133MHz, when on Turbo. Fantastic for its day, but it stuck around for too long, if you ask me. It's fun to poke around with nowadays. [Haydogsup]
Oh you made me laugh, I forgot all about turbo. How funny. [kbourgerie]
waw that was long time ago .. i think it was 6-7 years ago.. i was in school at that time .. it was expencive .. did you said you bought it for $100 thats very cheaaap .. waw.. we paid about $800 or 900 not sure exactly .. but at that time i wasn't living in u.s i was in jerusalem .. [aconites]
I bought it for $100 only because someone put it together for me and it was as close to just a frame as you can get. LOL. [kbourgerie]
The very first computer I ever purchased was way back in 1982. It was an Atari computer, which cost me about S$5000. My colleague then owned one of these machines and brought it to work. A number of us were so addicted to it that we couldn't tolerate without one, and so we also purchased a set each for our own enjoyment. The Atari was then a forerunner of the IBM PC, and at that time, only the Apple II was around with its green monitor, while the Atari already had a color monitor. While we could program in Basic language, we used the machine for arcade games more than anything else. In the early 80's, the Atari was the superior game machine over all others. I remember parking my Atari in my girlfriend's house (then we were not married yet) and she and I had lots of fun playing games like Pacman, Space Invaders, Galaxian, Missile Command and Donkey Kong. The games came in cartridges, and had to be slotted into the Atari console. This system lasted me four years, and I must say paying $5K for such a system was a hefty sum at that point in time. Since that Atari, I've had an IBM XT, 486, Pentium 2 and now 2 Pentium 4 PCs. And I do much more than buying a computer to play games only. I've come a long way since that first system that I purchased. [lexus54]
Yes a Pentium 4 is a long way from a 486. And I remember those Atari cartridges. Now you can't give them away. [kbourgerie]
I got my first computer five years back, and it was second hand one. It was Celeron 500mhz processor with 128MB Ram and 20 GB Hard disk. I bought it for 140$. [shi_2000_21]
I'm impressed. $140 was a great deal for what you got. Even if it was second hand. [kbourgerie]
I do remember my first computer. I was 15 and just moved out of my dads house due to, well lets say differences. I lived with my boyfriend and his father. His dad bought a brand new computer for me. I was in heaven I never had anything so new before. Well, we basically were renting to own it from Circuit City. Anyways back then I didnt know how to clean it out or anything like that so it got really bad. Then after that the pipes upstairs leaked and got all over it and pretty much fried the thing. I was so sad. But Ive had a few computers since then. Older ones that ive had to mess around with, sometimes for days. It was so aggravating. Now I have a new one again and hope it can last a lot longer now that I know a bit more about them. [steffyhoney]
First of all that was really nice of your boyfriend's dad to buy you a new computer. Too bad you didn't realize its worth at the time and take better care of it. But at least you have a new one now. [kbourgerie]
The computer I am using now is my second computer. My first one gave good service but it was a P2, which couldn't accept xp. I now use a good updated laptop with vista. [positiveminded1977]
I love Vista. Many people don't. I had it on my laptop. I borrowed it from a friend who I was staying with, but I had to reformat and lost the program and am now back to XP. [kbourgerie]
It was an apple, I forget the year probably 1984 or 1985. It was one of those that had like two games on it and you could type letters on it and thats it. Really crappy if you think about it. I would hate not having the internet on my comuputer today. How did we ever survive back in those stone ages? [hholt01]
We survived through sheer determination. LOL. [kbourgerie]
I had a tandy 1000 back in 1987. It had no harddrive only ROM. Everything had to be stored externally using 3.5 disks. But boy, they were small even back then. They're sleek and all. But everytime I tried to install a game, most RPGs then were 10 disks. You had to do it in that order too. Well now even with new pcs, it's no different. There's still a lack of memory, & speed. When will we ever catch up? lol [myworldathome]
Thats true, even the operating system was on disc and you had a million to install in a certain order. God forbid you lost one of the disks. [kbourgerie]
I got my first computer in 1982. I was 7 and my brother was a programmer and he brought this huge thing home. I remember the operating system was something called GW Basic. It had no colour screen or any nice graphics and no securtiy to speak of. I used to hack into his programmes and re-wite them to snap, crackle and pop adverts :-) [a1intnet]
I've never heard of GW Basic. I thought I was computer literate until I wrote this post. LOL. [kbourgerie]
Yes, I remember a little something about my first computer. I had asked my dad for one when I was 16 and to my surprise, he got me one! However the one he gave me had no way to get online and it was so limited it was basically useless, but I used it anyway as I was so happy to have a computer, even if it didn't have any real function. LOL I guess I should have explained it better to my dad when I said I wanted a computer as I had wanted to be able to get online with it, as the Internet was still new and exciting. But I didn't think about it at the time, so I lost out. Then again I would have had to been dreaming as there is no way my dad would have gotten me a computer like that. LOL [sacmom]
No, not really. I could have learned 'the basics' on a typewriter. :P LOL [sacmom]
By 1981 I had already become intrigued by calculators and computers and had lusted after the Amigas and Ataris in Dixons. When Clive Sinclair brought out the first pocket calculator under £100, I had to have one (and did eventually get one when the price came down a little lower). My first computer was also one of Sir Clive's inventions. It was a ZX81 which had 1 kilobyte of working memory, all of which could easily be taken up by one very small and simple Basic program. I remember spending uncounted hours until dawn painstakingly entering little programs that printed long strings of numbers (the point was really not the results but this novel thing of giving a machine instructions and having it carry them out, making choices depending on the data input). I very soon bought the 16kb memory upgrade pack so that I could enter and save larger programs - games, even. Everything had to be saved and loaded from a conventional cassette recorder and that was often VERY flaky! I skipped the ZX Spectrum (which had colour and more memory and was more reliable with a better keyboard) and got my first PC - an Amstrad 1512 - after about a year. On that I learned DOS and produced most of the coursework for my HND Computer Studies course. I graduated in 1990 (when I was 50) and had already been working in Computer Support for a year on the strength of it. Whenever I am tempted to complain at how slow my PC is at startting up, I just think back to those old machines which had no Graphics User Interface and no hard disk. I am amazed still at how quickly such powerful machines came to be within the reach of nearly everybody. [owlwings]
Haha.. yeah the first computer I actually owned was a Amstrad CPC-464 in about 1985 which was great at the time but looking back It was just a heap of junk! The very first computer I actually tried was around 1980 when my Headmaster at my first school purcahsed a Spectrum ZX81 which was amazing at the time I remeber everyone getting really excited about it, the ZX81 was the predesessor to the ZX Spectrum which was much more games orientated.. I miss those crazy sounds the cassette made when loading....NOT!! [ppcdude]
I bought my first computer back in 1997, I think, and it had 2MB of memory! I remember back then there wasn't that much to download from the internet. At least not very big programs anyway. I remember I joined a bunch of mailing lists and talked to people with similar interests. That was the extent of my internet activity back then. Boy, times have sure changed! [spiralbutterfly]
My first computer was a commodore 64 and it things worked pretty much like the first person in this discussion described down to the tapes instead of disks LOL This was in the 80s. Then I came to Canada and was looking for an electric typewriter but ended up with an atari computer instead LOL It used those 5 point something floppys and it had a word processor so I could use it as a typewriter, but we could also play games on it, that come to think of it where incredibly well done for the limitations of the computers of that time. It was easy and fun to program simple stuff using basic. We atill had one more atari computer before we got into this Windows world - I remember windows 3.1 on our first. Then we got interested on how they were put together and from them on we just buy the components and put them together the way we want. No only it can be cheaper but we know exactly what we put in there and choose exactly the things we want. When we upgrade one, we use the things we upgraded on the next computer and so on, that's why we all have our own. I don't think we have bought a computer that already came assembled since that one using the 3.1 windows LOL [arkaf61]
I got my first computer in 1997, and boy was they expensive back then. It was a NEC from Circuit City and it cost me around $1300. I believe. Didn't even know how to turn it on and did I ever mess it up, takes time to get to know what and how to fix it, my second one had System Restore and thank god for that, now I am in need of a new one and hope to get one real soon. I also was talked into buying a mini MAC while is an Apple computer, by my son and I swear I will get him for even suggesting it one day. I hate it, they say you can't get a virus, well I figured out why not, you can't go anywhere to get one, it does not work with windows programs. it is more for someone that does graphic design. Only good thing about it is is a white box about 8 inches square so don't take up hardly any room. I would love to have a lap top. [bdugas]
OMG, yes it was archeic looking and was so slow. I don't know what i'd do if i had to deal with it now. Thank God for technology. Donna [scags2005]
The first time i used computers was in 1989 when i was an estate agent and we could chat to other agents in other offices throughout london, which at the time was so cool until one day i was chatting with my friend in the dulwich office and after sending a barage of abuse about the management and the directors the person i was chatting with was infact a company director, i then found out my friend had been sacked that morning lol and i was to follow shortly after once then found a good enough reason lol Anyway, the first computer i had a home was a 486dx in 1993 which had word processor, database, spreadsheets and of course solitaire, the printer i had was as big as a house and only worked when it decided it was having a good day. Ive been through countless pc's and laptops and bought a new one just before xmas, when thinking about them, you just cant compare this laptop to that old 486 i had R.I.P :) [Alfie1970]
its been about ten years for me as well, but mine was a brand new top of the line 486 back in the day lol. I think my parents said it cost like 3000$ lol. Silly. And then i started taking it apart to put new parts in it and my mom would cringe! hehee. i was like 15 or 16. so over ten years i guess,. [Sissygrl]
I have used a computer for the first time in 1995 at school. After two years I bought a SH Pentium 1 for 100 euros and I used it for 6 years. My old friend died 2 years ago and now rests in peace. I bought an AMD Athlon at 3GHz and a Dell Inspiron after that. I'll never forget the MS-Dos commands and the blue screen of Norton Commander! [pmdcorabia]
My first computer was in 1994, it was a Gateway with a 486/250 chip, and I paid extra to get the largest hard drive available at the time, a HUGE 340mb monster that had room for the oS (Windows 3.1) and so much room I didn't think I would ever fill it. Oh, and it cost me over $2000. [iowafarmboy]
Hi kbourgerie, My first computer was given to me by my son when he decided to buy a new one. I used it for about two two years, before getting the one that I have now. Blessings. [Pose123]
yep! I stunned everybody because I ordered it from an ad in a magazine, and it came in three big boxes. It took an entire weekend to put it all together, load the software, and get it going. The year was 1994, and I was not hooked to the internet. I actually had to buy an external modem. For a good 2 years, all I did with my computer [from CompUSA, by the way] was type my schoolwork [I was finishing my MS in Tourism and Travel Management at NYU], using Claris Works, of all things. Oh, and I played games, and hated that I would lose track of time playing solitaire and minefield! If only I knew how much more time I would spend on the internet two years later! My proudest accomplishment was that now I would not have to spend the whole weekend at the NYU computer lab PAYING for computer time! [fec139]
If you are talking about the one I bought, it was one of those Tandy TRS 80, way back in the eighties. We had those cartridges you inserted that worked for writing letters, etc. and some for game. There was no such thing as hard drives in those days and it took a long time to buy it. I think I was working as a telemarketer back then or either my husband gave me the money or else I had some saved up from the money I got from my dad's will. My boys were young then so I copied the games from the Radio Shack Rainbow Magazine, one was called Eggbert that a knight had to jump each platform and another where the players went into a mysterious haunted house and if you got the answer to the question wrong, something horrible happened to you. [suspenseful]
i still remember my 1st computer. it was Apple-IIE with 1024kB memory. wat a lousy speed. it was monochrome and quite bulky compared to the current one. It didnt have hard disk and i have to boot by using 5 1/2 inch diskette. But my bro. love to play game on that computer such as Karateka, Aztec, Gemstone Warrior, and etc. and FYI i still miss my old day playing those games with that computer. [eidawati]
Yes I remember all those years ago in the seventies when my first computer that I bought was a Commodore vic20 with a 5k memory. It was cheap enough as a starter then I progressed up to a Commodore 64 with 64k. Those were the days. Have a great day from Deeeky. [deeeky]
My first PC was a big, old XT 8088 with 640KB of RAM, a 5.25" Floppy disk drive, 10MB Hard drive, and a monochrome display. That was around 1989. The only Operating System I knew at the time was of course DOS. The hard drive was almost full from storing DOS and WordPerfect 5 alone, so I had other apps and games on those bulky floppy disks. Talk about the dark ages of computer history... :p [quetzalcoatl2435]
Gosh this brings back old memories! We bought our first real home computer over 25 years ago. It was a Radio Shack TRS80 and everything was Black & White with huge blocks for graphics! It was so old it had cassette tapes for memory storage! It gave my 8 yr old son a great advantage when they introduced a computer to schools. It was ONE per school and they had the same computer, I still remember learning basic programming and writing programs for the school. My son knew more about the computer than the teacher did! He's grown up into ........ you guessed it ........ a Computer Nerd! I don't remember if it 'broke down' a lot or not, but my Hubby was an Electronics Technician so he'd have fixed it! I used to like the Adventure 'Text' games though and looking back I guess it was fun drawing a map on paper and 'imagining' what the scene looked like! When I think of how long it took to type in commands and to finish the game though, I shudder LOL. I have lived through the techno age, Computers were the size of small rooms and still would not have had the power of a modern laptop. Sometimes it's fascinating, sometimes scarey to see how much power they can get on a tiny chip! [Annmac]
I got my 1st pc in 97. I think it had a 486 meg hard drive. LOL It had win 3.1 as an operating system. I like you had to do a lot of modifying. It really was a piece of crap. But it taught me a lot. [coolseeds]
hi Kbourgerie my first and only computer cost me nothing really as my son at that time was working for two brothers who manufactured gym equipment they bought new computers and were going to dump the old ones when my son asked if he could have two of them. so through the years my computer nerd son has rebuilt both computers adding different parts and etc so that I have to say my computer pretty well compares to modern ones. of course if it misbehaves which knock on wood has not happened for ages. I wish I could afford a brand new shiny one but hey mine works and that is what counts. I do have a brand new shiny monitor a modern one that is only a few inches thick and has a nice big screen. my son gave it to me for Christmaslast year. [Hatley]
I sure do remember my very first computer. I got my first one back in 1984 and it was a Commodore C64/128/business machine. There was NO such thing as windows back then, and I had to take classes to really understand word processing. You had to use 2 or 3 keys at a time (or in sequence) to get different functions to work. The world of computers sure has come a long way since then! (Thank heavens!!) [JoyfulOne]
My first computer was a gift to me from my "play" brother about 7 years ago, kbourgerie, but I hardly ever touched the thing. I knew next to nothing about computers, and cared even less, lol. I never even bothered to get on the internet. I finally gave it to my daughter when I moved about a year later. The subject didn't come up again until about 2 years ago when my daughter suggested that I needed to find something to get involved with. She appeared at my door one day with a desktop computer and told me that I should sign up for internet service. I told her I would never learn, but I was soon learning quite a bit. Now I can't imagine how I ever got along without a computer! [worldwise1]
My first computer quite expensive compared to computer nowadays. It specs was Intel Celeron 500Mhz, 10Gb Hdisk, 64Mb RAM (-2 or 4Mb share for vga), and 14" lame monitor. Windows 98-Me. But its still working and can be used to play Playstation game using emulator. The pc game I played on that pc were starcraft broodwar, pharaoh, finalfantasy8 pc, and many emu game. [anotherbirthday]
Well, my first computer did not only belong to me. My parents bought a desktop in 1995, which was really expensive. Nowadays, I have my own laptop, which is really cheap and is bought through the internet. That's really good. [mark1988]
of course .. since im still using it...i havent buy new one..since its still working.. [vanities]
I can't exactly remember the specs of my first PC. But I do know that it ran on DOS. Wordstar was our word processor. We used diskettes for storage and backups We have both 5" and 3" disk slots. Oh yeah I also remember we still used Pagemaker back then. I think we have 1gb of hard drive back then. I know that during that time (1993 or so) our computer was top of the line. [thediesel]
The first computer I ever owned was an Acer 286, with 640 KB of RAM, a 5-1/4" floppy drive A:, a 3-1/2" floppy drive B:, and a 40 MB hard drive (C:), running DOS 6.22. My grandpa gave it to me when he replaced it with a homemade 486 33 MHz, with 4 MB of RAM, the two floppy drives, and a 100 MB hard drive, running Windows 3.1. I believe I was in 8th grade, which would make it about 15 years ago. And that sounds about right, because I'm pretty sure Windows came out in '91, and my grandpa usually waited for the new stuff to mature a little before upgrading. There are three computers in this house now, two of them mine. First, I have a Compaq desktop with a 3.46 GHz Celeron D, 1 GB of PC2-4200 RAM, and a 120 GB SATA 300, running XP Pro. It's about a year old. This last December, I bought an Acer laptop with an AMD Athlon 64 X2 (dual core), 1 GB PC2-4200 (I doubled it to 2 GB), a 120 GB SATA (I think it's SATA 150, but I don't know), and a swiveling webcam in the lid. It came with Vista Home Premium; I "upgraded" it to XP Pro. :P I don't use antivirus or antispyware (gotta have a firewall, though), opting instead to lock the kernel for protection against malware. For this reason, and also because I am meticulous about running diagnostics and fixing errors, our machines run like Macs. They're fast, and they don't crash. Even the Compaq P4 in the home office runs reasonably fast, considering that it has PC-2100 (choke, gag) and a slow hard drive. :D [santuccie]
my first computor i got was in 2003 or 2004 [sweetaspie52]
The first computer I ever worked on was in 1977, a Hewlett Packard mainframe that took up half the classroom. We wrote programs to find the area of geometric shapes and figure out various mathematical stuff. The programs were written in BASIC and put on IBM cards with little bubbles that we filled in with #2 pencils. We fed the cards into the reader and it got transferred to paper punch tape which we fed through the machine again to run the actual programs. The printer was like a HUGE typewriter and it made a lot of noise and it was in dot matrix print. No fonts, no colors, no graphics. The first time I owned a computer it was actually my ex husbands Commodore PET, and we could go "online" on "bulletin boards", which was kind of like a forum. Monochrome monitor, dot matrix printer with that annoying tracked paper with those little ripoff sides. The next was a 286, the a 486, then of course a Pentium. Now I am running a core duo processor and have a great 22" flat screen monitor and I am absolutely in love with it... until technology bug strikes again. [kbkbooks]
I am more senior in this respect. Pentium generation was not introduced in those days. It was 1995. 486 was the name of the brand of my computer. It had not good speed. It was very much expensive. I was editor of my magazine in my regional language. I used to compose the material of my magazine on that computer. I had also a laser jet printer. It was also very much expensive. My old computer is not in working order now. But I kept it as a token of start of my computer literacy. Now I got Pentium four. I work on laptop while my staff is working on desk top. [sheenshaukat]
I bought my frist computer 6 years ago.at that time few people had computer,and it is acttractive to all of us.I remember i was at senior hgh school and i had computer class and had to play at home.so my mother bought the computer for me.That was my frist computer.The computer is desktop PC not the laptop.It was big,and not fashion,but i love it so much.Though my frist computer is not good in nowdays and works slowly.But i don't throw it out or sell it.It is my memory.and i think i love it more than any computer i will have or having now. [moondan]
Oh that was a long time ago, Whe I was about 14 years old it was an atari computer by then you have to attached it to a TV set and then type in your basic programming codes and you would create those colorful graphics after running it. I guess it started from there that I loved PC. When I was 15 or 16 my father bought me a real PC with monitor and dot matrix printer. I was so happy by then the memory was just 64 and it runs on DOS and no Windows OS whatsoever. Al programs were just so simple lotus 123 and wordstar and word perfect by then. I have learned those at that age and I was the only person I think in my place who knows how to use it at my age. [rsa101]
my first computer was a p2 with a 20gb hard disk and 256 ram,it was the best i could afford then but it was good enough i used it to learn basic computer and other things i can do on the internet today and that was way back in 1996.i got my first laptop in year 2003,it was an ibm think pad but it didnt last as it was not brand new but it served its purpose [BYOLA2871]
I remember my first computer only to well. My son for years had been trying to talk me into getting a computer and I had fought him tooth and nail. Telling him I didn't need no computer. This went on year after year. Finally he walked into the house and asked me if he could get me a computer for under $500. would I let him bring one in. He had moved out a few years back from then. I told him if he could do that then that would be fine. He brought one in that he built from scratch and hooked it up. I asked him about the internet since I had heard people talk about it. He told me he didn't put the piece that you needed to be able to access the internet in. That he knew me well enough that I would try to access without even knowing well enough how to access it. So after a week of being on the computer and talking to him over the phone when I had problems he came in and put that piece in and ever since than I have been on the internet and loving my computer more and more each day. That was almost six years ago. He keeps the computer maintance up to date on the computer. [sunshinelady]
I can clearly recall our first family PC - its an apple computer with green monitor and the keys stuck with the CPU. It was bulky and we just got rid of it just recently. It was funny though how the computers have evolved from the green screens to colored VGA ones and from bulky to slim laptops. Also the speed nowadays are a main consideration as people tend to be more and more impatient. [gabrielle47]
The first computer I had in 1996, the operating system was Windows 95 that at the time was the best, the computer age and the samsung monitor, had 5 giga of memory and mouse gave many problems because working with the Ball, the computer still works but not use. The computer that I have today I bought about 2 months ago and it works well, it is packard bell has 200 giga bytes of memory and the mouse works fine. [gkat92]
Well I bought my first computer in 1999 brand new... since I have only bought parts for it! LOL then I finally broke down and bought a NEW haha used one for $150... yeah I have done work to it... but I don't have the money to get a new one. I really want a new version... I am still on 98SE and a 1999 computer! LOL someday! [KKKBsmom]
The first computer i owned was a Commodore 64 with a tape recorder. Those days i used it only for games. Now i own an old pentium 3 computer, with win98 on it and i bought a laptop last year. Now use the laptop(win xp) most of the time because its faster and easier to use. [Jody20]
I got my first computer about six years ago...My father's friend sent it to me as a birthday gift.Now I own a laptop,and it costs me a lot. [dementiev]
Well, I think it was just a couple of years when my sister bought the computer set, with table (that we still use to day) for Php 5,000 or around $125. It was simple enough to comprehend as well as to disassemble for tweaking. Yeah, I had to take most of the application cautiously since the whole system would slow down if I just keep on putting stuff that isn't really needed. Now, we bought one set around Php 30,000 or $750. We also have two laptops that I connect wirelessly with a router. I also upgrade some parts for knowing a little on hardwarelol [ratyz5]
I am still using my first computer. I had it given to me only about 2 years ago. The guy who gave it to me got a new one and gave me his old one. He is a friend of mine. There is nothing wrong with it and I have no problems with the memory on it. I just deleted all of his old stuff, and there was a lot of it because he used it for his business in commercial realestate and since I don't download anything, really, I don't have any problems with the memory on it. It is also only about 5 years old so it is pretty updated, not like the really old ones like you must of had, being about 10 years ago you got your first one. I also got speakers and a printer with it, and it is fine for what I am using it for, [chrislotz]
I do remember my first computer... I paid $1 for it. It was my father's and he was upgrading, of course it was worth a lot more than that but he did not want my brother jealous so by selling it to me for the dollar he could tell my brother that I bought it from him. it was a tandy and utilized DOS only, this was back in 1990. [Modestah]
oh yes, definitely. that was about 5 years ago. I was givn to me by the web company I was working for then (it's a Compaq I think), bit outdated but I made use of it efficiently. [hitomikanzaki]
Hello dear kbourgerie. I am right still using my first computer after six years. It is still in good condition though sometimes it gets infected and makes me have to get it reinstalled to get rid of those damned viruses. Just today I took my laptop to the computer guy for help. Now it is working well again. I think that this one will last another three years before I will buy another one. Thanks. [williamjisir]
The first computer I owned was a 3 year old mac that my dad gave me when he bought a new computer. It was old but it was great. I held onto that thing unto I was not able to do anything else on it. sad Wow, I sometimes forget how much simpler things were with a mac. [razcal2267]
My first computer is an AMD processor and my socket A motherboard which is red fox. Memory is 32mb,4gb hard drive, has floppy drive and cd-rom. It is running on windows 98. I had dialup connection at first and it is really slow . My first pc actually lasted for about 8 years and I only remember bringing it to repair shop thrice. I think I had a good deal with that one. Right now it is on the box . I am planning to give it to my cousin though. :) [bluecrystal1982]
My first computer was known as Spectrum. This was less of a computer and could be used more to play games. You could connect it to the T.V. and play games on T.V. by connecting the audio cassette player. It took 5 minutes for the game to load. [sohelkm]
I cna't remember what kind of computer it was, but I remember when I got it. I got my first desktop in 1995, and my first laptop in 2004. That first computer was a lemmon right from the start, and it wasn't too long before I had to replace the stupid thing. [danishcanadian]
My first computer I owned was a ZX81, I needed it for a BASIC programming course I was doing through correspondence. Late I upgraded that bad boy to a Commodore 64, 128 until I got me an Amiga. It would be 15 years later before I bought a PC [Jimeous]
Ah yes, I remember it clearly. I got it at a garage sale for $250. I was foolish, I should have bargained but I was only 13 years old so I got it for what they were asking. It was an old white IBM computer, bought in 1994 or 1995... I didn't use it much, but it was fun. I'd write and play a few games, I loved it! Then a couple years later my mom got a real computer (a Gateway) and that was a huge change from my piece of junk! Suffice to say, mine was donated soon after. [goodnightmoon]
What a long time .... I think I got a 386 Ibm, it was in beige and black. When I think about that today,, so ugly lol I remember that got big black disket:p [julie85]
OHH YES 10187 YEARS AGO.... NO INTERNET I USE FOR WORLG AND èLAY A GAME I LOSE IT....... MYRYAM [miryam]
i paid $200 for my laptop, its been 1year, its still a piece of sh*t to me lol. but you get what you give right. i really dislike the fact that every now and then the mouse on my computer rolls across the screen without me doing it! [questionsnoanswers]
my 1st computer was a hp desktop i still have it i gave it to my brother.blush [busta1]