I started a YouTube channel, and my first video is a personal one.
It’s about my first computer, and how it changed my life. It was 1978, and my Dad brought home an Ohio Scientific Instruments Challenger 2P. He hooked it up to a Sanyo CCTV monitor and a cassette tape player.
The computer came with a book called “BASIC and the Personal Computer” that asked a question nobody really knew how to answer yet:
“Exactly what is a personal computer?”
That question is where this video begins.
I share what it was like encountering a computer at a time when there wasn’t much software, but there were books full of programs you could type in, change, and extend. Games like Planet-X Lander not only entertained me, they taught me how computers worked, and more importantly, invited me to make something of my own.
The video traces how that early experience with BASIC and simple personal computers shaped my path: writing games, creating art and music, running a BBS, studying computer science, and eventually building a career around programming. Along the way, I touch on some lesser-known bits of history, including early personal computer pioneers, the origins of BASIC, and the community that formed around sharing knowledge before the internet.
If you enjoy stories about early personal computers, learning by doing, and how small moments can shape a lifetime with technology, I think you’ll enjoy this one.
Watch the video here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHMOFA4FWjU
I’m glad you’re here, and I’m excited to share this journey with you.
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