Yesterday I opened up the first segment of the classes by Martha Stewart on Masterclass (online) and had a good, fruitful hour. Look forward to the rest of her instructions.
People either hate Martha or they love her. I am not sure where I fall in that category... maybe in-between. I do know that she works hard, is extremely motivated and successful. Boy, do I give her credit for that.
I called Susan (she's the one who gave me Masterclass to begin with) and told her she needed to watch Martha's part. And, we got to talking about computers. Martha had said she was always very excited to try out new things and she had a computer by 1982. Computers weren't in general use at that time.
So, I told Susan that by 1989 I had walked into Radio Shack at the mall and walked out with a computer in my arms. I had heard about them but I had never even seen one. But, the clerk said it was what I needed to keep my genealogy straight so I was all in.
I took it home, plugged it into the socket. It came on and I stared at it. I had no idea how to make it do anything!! I called my son, Michael, for tips for making that thing to perform for me. And, I haven't stopped since.
Computers in those days were run by DOS, long before Windows came along. And, my printer was dot matrix (the paper ran through the machine by being fed on holes at the edges of the paper). Do you know... I still have some of that paper.
The computer has been a constant companion for me. I wrote my first book, showed my great-grands how to play games, kept my genealogy up to date. I used to write emails to family, started my hugemongous file of photographs I've taken. That machine provided me something to do while I kept watch on my husband who had Alzheimers. It kept me sane during the Covid epidemic. And, it has given me friends that I never would have even known about, much less learned to love.
A lot of the people that live here in the apartment complex have never had computers. Now that they are older, they are missing out on having a connection to loved ones, friends, the world beyond. I think it is so sad.
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Do you remember the first computer you got and how old you were or what year it was? I was 55 years old when I entered the world wide web and discovered how much I could learn and grow through it's opportunities. It's been a joy for sure.
The computer is a blessing to me too. I started using a computer when they first introduced them in the hospital I was a nurse at in the early 80's. It was a whole different thing than the computers now, but I learned a lot. We got one for our family in the later 80's. Now at work we don't even have charts anymore - it's all on the computer.
ReplyDeleteI love the way we can stay in touch with each other and all the people I've gotten to know that I would have never met, like you!
Computers helped me stay in contact with family and friends when we lived overseas. I love all the information and fun things I can find via my computer and the internet. And I did my French degree as a mature student on line with my computer. So versatile. Loved seeing the photos of you.
ReplyDeletethis is a great post, one i really enjoyed. you have been a pioneer in so many ways, not afraid to try new things, that is wonderful. my boys were 9 & 10 when we got our first computer, that would mean i was 35, it used dial up. i remember i could make the bed in the time it would take to load the page i was looking for!! i have not thought about that in years!! very nice pictures of you!!
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you Latane, its a window on the world that works two ways, I love mine. I got my own in 2000 age 58. My sons had them 1994/95. but I hardly touched them only to write letters. Now I use it for everything..
ReplyDeleteWe got our first computer in the early 90's, 1994 I think. And yes, it had DOS and that same paper! In fact I just recently threw out the very first thing we ever printed on it, a picture of a cross. I have a love/hate relationship with computers. I've come to rely on it so much that when it crashes or does some other crazy thing I'm left helpless. I know my way around a computer but I also know enough to know I don't know that much! I do love the way we can keep in touch with friends and family. Computers have certainly changed the world, haven't they?
ReplyDeleteOur first computer had the same paper too. We could only write papers for school, and play a few games. I took computer science class too, and learned to write programs. Crazy how things have changed up to today.
ReplyDeleteI entered the internet world in 1988. Haven't looked back.
ReplyDeletehugs
Donna
My son left home to study and left a computer behind so I decided to learn how to use it. That must be over 20 years ago now. It keeps me in touch with friends and family.
ReplyDeleteI can remember that my first computer was made by Zeos (no longer around) and it used floppy disks for external storage. I can remember waiting for its delivery too and suspect that I was in my late 30s at the time. Since then I have moved on and now have a couple of Apple MacBooks after recycling an older iMac desktop. Kudos to you, Latane, for never being afraid to embrace a new technology.
ReplyDeleteOur first computer was an Atari! I believe it was sometime in the '80s. It's a great tool for so many adventures. I must admit to sometimes getting frustrated at issues that will arise now and then, but overall don't know what we'd do without our computer!
ReplyDeleteOh my! I remember DOS. C prompts, A prompts… before I learned to use a computer, I used a word processor at work. It seemed so advanced!
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