My First Computer - What Was Yours?

During the set up of my new Mac, my thoughts turned to how far technology has come since I purchased my first computer. Sadly my own skills have lagged far behind but I perservere.

Apart from an Amstrad which I had throughout the 80s, my first experience of a computer was the Apple Mac, similar to the one above. A 9" monochrome screen and a cumbersome, although strangely smooth, keyboard was responsible for my delight. It cost a fortune in 1991, but it was worth every penny to be able to type reports instead of spending days writing them only to have them typed later by a secretary.

It was really a glorified word processor because there were few websites then and it took around 3 or 4 minutes for a page to load.  Nobody I knew in the UK had an email address so my emailing was confined to family abroad and various businesses associated with work.

My modem was similar to this one and came free from my first service provider which drifted into the ether long ago.

Can you remember your first tentative steps into the world of IT?

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New Technology

Stupidly I upgraded my OS X system yesterday and now find my Mac is terribly slow.  Fortunately there is someone visiting who is expert in all things Apple and the result of an examination of my 6-year-old computer is that the memory is unable to cope with the complexities of the new system.

I say fortunately because my family has decided I ought to have a new iMac and I've been sternly informed the gift will be my birthday and Christmas presents for the next 5 years.

New memory could have been purchased for my current computer but is it worth spending £150 on an old machine?  Hopefully I'll be able to sell this one once I've reinstalled the original OS X system and cleared it of all the debris which gathers on a regular basis.

Disappointingly, due to the holiday, Apple can't deliver the new machine for a couple of weeks and because I've no desire to go to Aberdeen or Glasgow to collect one, patience is the name of the game. I will try to use Blogger on my iPad but it's not great, so please bear with me until I'm back to having a computer which responds, once again, to my every whim.

Of course, I now have the perfect excuse to post some of my favourite videos!

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Free Wifi

Why would anyone lug a 27" iMac to a coffee shop? With the best will in the world it couldn't be described as portable.

Mine is only 21" and it's heavy enough without the keyboard and other accessories. There could be all sorts of reasons why this chap decided to use the free wifi facilities in a coffee shop in the south of England.

My suggestion is that his home wifi had crashed and he doesn't have a GP3 dongle. What's yours?

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Steve Jobs 1955 - 2011

R.I.P.

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When A Poll Backfires

MyType, an American research company, has carried out a survey which has revealed the typical iPad owner is wealthy, sophisticated and smart but doesn't care about anyone else.

According to Kim Koelkebeck of MyType, iPad owners are six times more likely to be 'wealthy, well-educated, power-hungry, over-achieving, sophisticated, unkind and non-altruistic 30-50-year-olds'. They are self-centred workaholics with an overwhelming interest in business and finance who cherish 'power and achievement' and will not cross the street to help others, he added. He also stated that the high price was one reason why the iPad attracted such a specific clientele.

Such a pity Mr Koelkebeck wasn't present in my home last night. Four retired, very laid back individuals enjoyed a fun game of bridge on one iPad - all from the comfort of settees and accompanied by a few glasses of fairly decent wine. We had no difficulty handing the iPad round and were able to discuss reasons for our play amongst ourselves but easily flipping it over to show the others your input. All terribly civilised and so much more pleasant than sitting round a desktop or juggling a notebook or laptop. We were all over 60 and I know the other three are anything but unkind. In fact one of the company has already planned what she's having for a combined birthday and Christmas present from her family. No guesses.

Will iPad owners be concerned with these findings? Not a bit. Shame MyType didn't consider the free advertising he's given to Apple's latest gadget with his poll because Apple will be the winners.

source

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iPad - My Verdict

Several people have asked me my opinion of the iPad. Maybe it's because they know I'm not in the least techy-minded - html still baffles and scares me - that they think if I can use it anyone can.

As with all Apple products a great deal of effort has gone into the design. The weight and size of it is perfect. Any bigger and it wouldn't fit in a decent sized handbag. Any smaller and it would just be a larger version of the iPhone - without the phone or camera.

The first thing that struck me is it feels delicate, frighteningly so. The casing is very smooth and I can understand why some people have accidently dropped it or it has slipped off a lap. Prior to purchase I investigated iPad cases and quite fancied a 'leather' one, only to be talked out of the idea by another iPad owner; so upon recommendation I ordered the Apple case and I've no regrets. It's made of a microfibre material which, rather like a silicon cover for a touch phone, has good grip and is reasonably sturdy. I'd say the Apple case is an essential even though, as with all Apple products, it is an extra at £30. Mine was free and that's why it didn't arrive along with the iPad. When I ordered the tablet by telephone I mentioned the length of time I'd had to wait to speak to a salesperson and I was immediately offered a free cover. Now, I'm not suggesting that happens to everyone who orders by telephone but ...

There are no instructions in the box, just a USB cable, a fancy 3 pin plug, the tablet and a note saying connect to your computer. When I did automatically iTunes opened and I followed the instructions from there but the setting up wasn't complex at all. I opted to play with it first rather than spend time watching instruction videos on Youtube. Don't ask me why! It was a time-consuming mistake. One drawback is I'm not an iPhone user, although my computer is a Mac, and since receiving the tablet last Thursday I've spent too much time working out the basics.

One of my reasons for buying an iPad was to use it for reading books. The iBooks feature is good but I was disappointed that the books are the same price as a bookshop and Apple's only free book is Winnie the Pooh. With iBooks you can download the first chapter of any book for free prior to purchase. Having done some research I downloaded the Amazon Kindle app for the iPad and although the interface is much more basic than iBooks, there are plenty free books available. It's not the same as physically holding a book but it is the next best thing and the fact that I can read anytime, anywhere and even in total darkness, is a joy.

The graphics are exceptionally clear - Mac users expect that from Apple - and the keyboard is nearly netbook size if used in landscape mode. It can be linked to any wireless keyboard for those who prefer this option. A friend said it should have a camera as he finds one essential for when he's using Skype. Fair comment, but I don't think the lack of a camera is too serious.

I know I'll have good use from this latest piece of technology and the basic tablet will be fine for my needs. One thing is certain, the iPad heralds the end of notebooks and balancing a hot laptop on your knees could well become a thing of the past. Now all I have to do is visit a good friend and give him a demonstration. For those of you interested he's the lovely person who did the banner for this blog (that isn't me in it) and is a most patient adviser on IT.

Oh, that's something else I should mention. For some weeks I've been trying to 'modernise' my blog, not radically, but with one of Blogger's new wider templates. The thought that I could lose everything has prevented me from making the final change, even though I've had advice on how to save the blog content. On the iPad my present 'old-fashioned' blog design allows me to enlarge the text without losing any of the page. So there will be no changes in the near future!

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