From: "Jim Saklad" <jimdoc@me.com>
Sent: Wednesday, January 26, 2011 6:16 PM
To: <iPad@yahoogroups.com>
Subject: Re: [iPad] OT: long Time Computer user
>> when you tell someone you are a long time computer user (if you do say
>> that), what does long time represent to you? Does this refer to starting
>> in the 70s, 80s, or 90s?
>
> My first programming course was Fortran IV in 1967.
>
> In the summer of 1969 I ran some simple programs on a Varian at NASA.
>
I started programming on a Univac III in COBOL in 1966; a year or two later
did some sort of assembler language pgmg on the U1040, involving input from
(anyone else remember this existed) *paper tape* (which was produced on a
production floor as jobs were done).
(in the late 90s I considered brushing up my COBOL skills, as companies were
offering fantastic sums to oldsters, even by-then-beach-bum-retirees they'd
previously kicked out as "passe", to come back and *please come Y2k-fix our
antique programs!!!")
I did learn how to do punch-cards (& *everyone* in my office knew how to
"read" our paychecks!) but only had to do a few here & there for code
corrections -- the bulk of the code-sheet-to-card-deck (anyone else remember
code-sheets? not to mention the miles of printouts for proofreading!) was
done by the keypunch section (you've probably seen them in old movies) --
and even then using the kp machines involved "sneaking in" to the kp room
during their lunch (something done only to avoid a 2-day turnaround delay in
getting a few cards done.)
There was no internet then, and though I remember hearing something about
DARPA & 'net' it certainly wasn't in more ordinary (i.e. "working") offices
even in the gummint.
I was "out" of computers for a few years. Then in the late 70's I got my
first very own "personal" computer -- TRS-80 -- & started learning Basic.
Cassette tape! I learned Pascal on a PC in the late 80's when I was once
again a retread-student, doing comp-sci in grad school. Everything by then
was on desktops -- no more punch-card submissions as there had been back in
the 60's & even during my earlier grad-school foray in the 70's (when my kp
skills were very useful!)
I too went through the TRS-80 Model I, III, 4p progression, before switching
to DOS machines. Never did have any Apple computers other than a short term
original Macintosh rental for a particular math course (s/w only came in
Mac, at least until after I was through with it).
I had seen a demo of the original Mac early on, but since most of what I did
involved keyboard, not graphic type stuff, and the Mac *didn't have cursor
keys*, I was like typists all over in giving it the thumbs-down; bosses were
being told quite firmly by their secretaries that they wanted a PC not a
Mac -- and since it was the secs who did the typing in those days they got
their way. :-) I didn't have a boss but I knew what I didn't want.
> In the mid-70's my wife was hired as an experimental subject (intelligent
> person trained in the sciences who knew nothing about computers) at the
> Logo Lab at MIT (a branch of the Artificial Intelligence lab).
>
> First home computer was a TRS-80 Model III inn 1980.
> Then TRS-80 Model 4P ("portable") a couple of years later.
> Amiga 1000 in 1986, the Amiga 2000, Amiga 4000, Macintosh emulator on the
> Amiga 4000, then G3 Powerbook in 1998.
>
> --
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> Jim Saklad mailto:jimdoc@me.com
>
