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1st touch on a Computer
- Thread starter oldMohawk
- Start date
sospiri
GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN
My first contact with a computer was even earlier than SheldonTony - that's a great picture by the way. It was in 1959/60 and was the Leo at Lucas Great King Street. In those days my main function was get millions of punched cards paid for. Fast forward to 1980 and I was using the ICL 2903 running Minimac BASIC at what is now Bournemouth Uni. The terminals were still teletypes.
My first contact with what might be termed a modern computer was the Apple ][ with a 144kB floppy disk and later a 10Mb Winchester hard drive and for the next two years I was porting accounting software onto the Commodore Pet, numerous CP/M machines such as the Superbrain, and then the first IBM grey imports. A move to Marconi in 1983 meant a change to the VAX 780 running Fortran, Pascal and C under UNIX and then in 1988 I was programming library management software in C, which is now still running on Sun Solaris under UNIX, though I retired in 2001 and remained a consultant for the next ten years.
I often wonder how I ever found time to go to work!
Maurice
My first contact with what might be termed a modern computer was the Apple ][ with a 144kB floppy disk and later a 10Mb Winchester hard drive and for the next two years I was porting accounting software onto the Commodore Pet, numerous CP/M machines such as the Superbrain, and then the first IBM grey imports. A move to Marconi in 1983 meant a change to the VAX 780 running Fortran, Pascal and C under UNIX and then in 1988 I was programming library management software in C, which is now still running on Sun Solaris under UNIX, though I retired in 2001 and remained a consultant for the next ten years.
I often wonder how I ever found time to go to work!
Maurice
sospiri
GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN
I try to use as few as possible, but also put next to nothing in the way of personal information online or onto the fixed drives on this computer. What I do have to store is on a USB drive and encrypted. Still not 100% secure because data gets left in caches, but life is full of risks!
Maurice
Maurice
sheldontony
master brummie
Just out of interest, and maybe to help users, without giving personal information, how do people record passwords?
I record mine on a Word document, the name of which doesnt mean anything to anyone else, and password protect it.
Not perfect, but better than nothing and certainly better than written down. All i need to remember is one password.
I record mine on a Word document, the name of which doesnt mean anything to anyone else, and password protect it.
Not perfect, but better than nothing and certainly better than written down. All i need to remember is one password.
oldMohawk
gone but not forgotten
I also put my passwords in an OpenOffice Spreadsheet protected by one strong password and stored on a separate flash drive backed up to another flash drive. I never keep any financial stuff in any of my computers and generally use a Linux partition to work on financial docs etc, but always save them to the flashdrive.
I put very little personal information on computer anywhere. Everything at home is offline because I can't justify the cost of personal broadband. Consequently I believe I can use a few non-secure passwords for most things. The easy way to create memorable passwords is to take a memorable name and date, combine them maybe reversing one or both, add an extra non-alphanumeric character or simply hold down shift for the numbers. You could use the name of your family pet when you were a child, add your wedding date (backwards and typed on the top row with the shift key held down) and you've got something you can remember but no-one else will guess unless you've put those details online and shared this technique yourself.
oldMohawk
gone but not forgotten
With Windows 10 a couple of weeks away and much comment about it on the BHF, I started thinking about when I first used a computer way back in 1979 and then much later the Internet. My first contact with the Internet from home was in 1998 using Windows 98. I used a system called 'dial-up' with a program named Freeserve provided completely free on a CD from Dixons. With 'dial-up' I used to hear that strange buzzing and swishing noise from the modem as it connected and no telephone calls could be made while online, and emails with a photo attachments could take 5 minutes to send. I was still on dial-up when I first joined the forum and usually waited until the evenings to come on when telephone calls were cheaper.
So roll on Windows 10 even though I'm using Apple's iOS 8.3 to post this ....
So roll on Windows 10 even though I'm using Apple's iOS 8.3 to post this ....
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With Windows 10 a couple of weeks away and much comment about it on the BHF, I started thinking about when I first used a computer way back in 1979 and then much later the Internet. My first contact with the Internet from home was in 1998 using Windows 98. I used a system called 'dial-up' with a program named Freeserve provided completely free on a CD from Dixons. With 'dial-up' I used to hear that strange buzzing and swishing noise from the modem as it connected and no telephone calls could be made while online, and emails with a photo attachments could take 5 minutes to send. I was still on dial-up when I first joined the forum and usually waited until the evenings to come on when telephone calls were cheaper.
So roll on Windows 10 even though I'm using Apple's iOS 8.3 to post this ....
Freeserve was an ISP rather than a browser. I think they were using Internet Explorer then although an older disc might have had something like Mosaic. Freeserve was set up by Dixons/Currys in 1998. After a change of name (Wannadoo) the ISP was sold to Orange. If you use online email with Orange the site is still fsmail,net which comes from FreeServeMAIL.
norfolk brummie
gone but not forgotten
Just looking through this thread.
I think I can 'top' most of you, unless someone knows better.
I first used a keyboard, and a computer, in 1952.
Nothing like you know today. The computer was as large as a family bathroom, and the keyboard was very much like an old fashioned typewriter, but it was a computer!
That's when I learned to 'touch type' at sixty two w.p.m.
Eddie
I think I can 'top' most of you, unless someone knows better.
I first used a keyboard, and a computer, in 1952.
Nothing like you know today. The computer was as large as a family bathroom, and the keyboard was very much like an old fashioned typewriter, but it was a computer!
That's when I learned to 'touch type' at sixty two w.p.m.
Eddie
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oldMohawk
gone but not forgotten
Hi Eddie, I don't think anyone will beat that date, did you work at Bletchley Park ? ....
I've just had a read through the thread and it's amazing how things have changed.
I notice in post#69 I was wondering about the upgrade to Windows 10 and now I've been using it for 15 months ... keeps our old brains active.
During my early school days I used pens with scratchy nibs which had to be dipped in inkwells and blotting paper was essential. Before the mid 1960s I did all my calculations with slide rules and log tables.
oldmohawk
I've just had a read through the thread and it's amazing how things have changed.
I notice in post#69 I was wondering about the upgrade to Windows 10 and now I've been using it for 15 months ... keeps our old brains active.
During my early school days I used pens with scratchy nibs which had to be dipped in inkwells and blotting paper was essential. Before the mid 1960s I did all my calculations with slide rules and log tables.
oldmohawk
cookie273uk
master brummie
oldMohawk, I was 'grounded' whilst in RAF due to eyesight problems and finished up at Bletchley Park which was the RAF's main signal centre, I was put on teleprinters which were the latest thing in the 50's, it involved both hand typing and feeding paper tape using a 5 digit punched code. Not sure how long the RAF occupied the place but it as got a chequered history. Eric
norfolk brummie
gone but not forgotten
Phil:
I worked in cypher (encoding & decoding messages). It was the follow on to wartime Bletchley work.
Thoroughly enjoyed my Royal Signals career. I was a mere secondary school graduate, working with university type boffins, and playing in the camp band.
My schooling was also a wooden pen, with scratchy nib, and desk inkwell. At least we did learn to write correctly, copperplate style. Ball point pens soon put a stop to all of that!
Eddie
I worked in cypher (encoding & decoding messages). It was the follow on to wartime Bletchley work.
Thoroughly enjoyed my Royal Signals career. I was a mere secondary school graduate, working with university type boffins, and playing in the camp band.
My schooling was also a wooden pen, with scratchy nib, and desk inkwell. At least we did learn to write correctly, copperplate style. Ball point pens soon put a stop to all of that!
Eddie
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norfolk brummie
gone but not forgotten
Eric. I learned to read those tapes without the machine. No doubt your tapes would be in open English, but I had to also read the encoded versions, which I would then either decrypt, or encrypt. Would not be able to remember even one letter these days!
Eddie
sospiri
GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN
When I did my HND in computing in 1980 at what is now Bournemouth Uni, we still used teletypes connected to an ICL 2900 mini - the only CRT terminal was the machine's monitor. The teletypes were almost indestructible, but one guy joined the course who seemed as if he really was trying to destroy one, he was hitting the keys that hard. Despite several reprimands by the computer manager, he seemed unable to mend his ways and was eventually thrown off the course! But when I started work for a firm producing accounting software in 1982, it just seemed as if the whole world was using Apple ][s and teletypes had been consigned to the scrapheap - such a massive change in such a short time. Within no time at all CP/M emerged and that really only had dominance for about 18 months before MS-DOS took over. The IBM PC and all its clones was when computing for the millions took over. I was only with the company for a little over two years and spent most of that time porting the software from one machine & operating system to the next - it really was difficult to keep pace with the rate of change.
Maurice
Maurice
oldMohawk
gone but not forgotten
With all the changes with computers over the years, the keyboard is still present on most of them. I use a keyboard (real or onscreen) almost every day. I've dabbled with Siri and Cortana but don't use them and don't know anyone who does. Voice recognition typing is good but always needs a keyboard edit.
Below is the iPad voice recognition attempt ... no spaces between sentences, no brackets, and two words completely wrong ... I'll stay with keyboards!
With all the changes with computers over the years the keyboard is still present on most of them.Are use a keyboard real or on screen almost every day.I've dabbled with Siri and Cortana but don't use them and don't know anyone who does.Voice recognition typing is good that always needs a keyboard edit.
Below is the iPad voice recognition attempt ... no spaces between sentences, no brackets, and two words completely wrong ... I'll stay with keyboards!
With all the changes with computers over the years the keyboard is still present on most of them.Are use a keyboard real or on screen almost every day.I've dabbled with Siri and Cortana but don't use them and don't know anyone who does.Voice recognition typing is good that always needs a keyboard edit.
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sospiri
GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN
Better than all the OCR (Optical Character Recognition) software that I have used, Phil. I use ABBY occasionally to turn scanned Greek documents into a Word document, and that always needs a lot of keyboard editing - and I am certainly no Greek scholar. I then pass it onto a Greek person for translation to English as all the Babelfish-type translators are hopeless.
Is it any wonder that you quite often fail to find what you want in newspaper archives, etc., when they are using OCR to look for your keywords?
Maurice
Is it any wonder that you quite often fail to find what you want in newspaper archives, etc., when they are using OCR to look for your keywords?
Maurice
cookie273uk
master brummie
I'm quite happy with keyboard and mouse, have set my windows 10 desk top as near to windows 7 as possible, do not use Edge or Cortana, stick to IE11. Do not like change unless it shows a definite improvement, and in my usage of a PC I cannot see any, guess I'm an old stick in the mud ! but everything works to my satisfactionand I have no problems. Eric
oldMohawk
gone but not forgotten
I also tend to mostly use Windows 10 as if it was Windows 7 but my young Grandaughter asked 'why didn't I use Win 10 Start' like she did. So I had a 'play' as I often do, and ended up with the following ... and if I want to whizz to a thread I click a tile .. it is often quicker than the search !
I've moved on a bit since my 1st touch on a computer ...
I've moved on a bit since my 1st touch on a computer ...
sospiri
GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN
Now that would really screw my eyesight, especially as all the icons look the same. Still using Windows 7 here with icons reserved for programs (with browsers, email & windows explorer on the task bar) and websites in regular use on an organised bookmark system. I'm happy with that.
Maurice
Maurice
pjmburns
master brummie
Not a computer but a calculator - when I did my degree in 1971 I borrowed a calculator from the college - it was about the same size as a modern one but I was only allowed it 10 mins before the exam and had to return it immediately as it cost over £100. We also used a computer which was housed in a special room - nearly filled it and typed our instructions on paper tape!!
oldMohawk
gone but not forgotten
Hi Maurice, I suppose the one good thing with Windows computers is you can usually set them up as you want whereas with Apple devices you have to use them like Apple want you to.
I do tend to always run Win 10 with a Win 7 layout, desktop icons and taskbar etc, but if I press the Windows key the Win 10 'Start' appears and is useful as can be seen with the top half of my 'Start' in
https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/index.php?threads/windows-10.45268/page-31#post-580174
Phil
Janice
I went on a course in about 1974 which was supposed to teach me the basics of Algol 68 (I still had the manual up to a few years ago. The instructions had to be punched onto cards and then sent off to the computer centre. Also used a machine that produced all its data electronically , and this had to be sent off to Manchester for analysis (I think the machine there was called Atlas), as the computer at Leeds could not handle anything so complex
I went on a course in about 1974 which was supposed to teach me the basics of Algol 68 (I still had the manual up to a few years ago. The instructions had to be punched onto cards and then sent off to the computer centre. Also used a machine that produced all its data electronically , and this had to be sent off to Manchester for analysis (I think the machine there was called Atlas), as the computer at Leeds could not handle anything so complex
sospiri
GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN
Phil,
My son & his wife in Brussels both have Apple Macs, but I find them hard going, and expensive. I spent some years on Unix and for a time had Linux on this machine. But a couple of my most used programs don't run well under Vine, so I guess I will stick with Windows 7 as long as I can - life's too short to spend it forever doing updates!
Maurice
My son & his wife in Brussels both have Apple Macs, but I find them hard going, and expensive. I spent some years on Unix and for a time had Linux on this machine. But a couple of my most used programs don't run well under Vine, so I guess I will stick with Windows 7 as long as I can - life's too short to spend it forever doing updates!
Maurice
oldMohawk
gone but not forgotten
I watched a TV program last night about the building of the computer which helped to land the Apollo 11 Lunar Module on the moon. It used what they called 'rope memory' all 72 K of it. They explained the '1202' error which the computer kept showing as they decided whether to land. I listened to the landing 'live' and the '1202' certainly worried me at the time.
