We all played around with some form of computers during those early days. Pong came out in 1972. I remember my High School had some type of punch card reader, and we had to write some type of algorithm to feed through it for a Math class. That was around 1975 or so. Those were my first experience with computers, and I was less then enthusiastic.
Then came the Star Wars movies in 1977, and everyone (and oh yes me) was on board the digital revolution. That was the year I graduated High School and entered the 'force of the damned' armed with 'The Force'.
Programming got into my blood early in the 80's. I think I was working at Scottsdale Library and they had an Atari personal computer down in the basement. I picked up the 'Basic' Manual and built a program that caused a little digital dude to dance across the screen. To be truthful, I was not all that skilled at programming from scratch, but I was good at looking at other people's code and modifying it to do what I wanted it to do. But by then, I knew I liked computers and programming. I knew what I wanted to do.
A few years went by, and I was married, one daughter and one on the way. I needed a job really bad. One with benefits and steady income. Within a week I had two offers. One was working at an Insurance company doing work with microfilm. The other was working at ASU, driving a Cushman Cart around campus delivering computer printouts. I took the ASU job because it seemed to have the most potential of getting me into the computer field.
Boy Howdy, I was on my way.
From Cushman driver, I became a Remote Site worker. Remote site workers helped Students operate the DECWRITERS and other UI available back then. They also separated out the Greenbar coming off the line printers and stacked it in little boxes for all the CS and MIS majors working out in the remote site. At that time they had standalone IBM PC's at the remote site. While working there I was able to see the first PCs networked together. So Cool! I remember writing a program that used a SUPERCALC macro to allow us remote site workers on varying shifts to leave messages for each other on the network. A crude early wanky version of 'E-Mail'. That is where my claim begins and ends. In my own little corner of the world, I had just invented 'E-Mail'. Well, sure, I'm sure it was done elsewhere and better. But isn't that what the WEB was all about....survival of the fittest? How many people out there developed versions of e-mail, or BASIC, or Spreadsheets....and which version survived?
From Remote Site Operator, I then became a Computer Tape Librarian, then a MVS Operator. Next I worked in Production Support, which was the pinnacle of my technical progression at ASU. I had to leave ASU and go to another company to be actually allowed to develop code, and my career profession to a developer was finalized.
So, like millions of my baby-boomer comrades I became a part of the digital revolution. My career in the software development industry has spanned 30 years right out of the heart of the rise of the nerds. You could plot my life's timeline right next to Steve and Bill and the gang. I can actually show you code I now support that dates right back to 1978. What goes around comes around.
Funny thing though. I think I have kind of reached the saturation point with the digital age. With another 20 years to go before I can seriously contemplate retirement, I find myself kind of beat up with technology. Acronyms and version numbers and release numbers, 2G to 3G to 4G...I'm not sure I give a FIG anymore. It all sort of blends together, and not in a good way.
Strapped to my waist I have the Blackberry. I have the high speed Internet connection and a router in my house for wireless access. I write clean good code and I have automated manual processes that no-one thought could be automated. I have built relational databases and have built graphical interfaces, and I've written code that looks pretty as a poem.
But, I think I could be done. I may be just looking for a graceful exit. I may have written my last GO TO.
Cheers, NCA
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