I have been involved with computers since as long as I can remember. I recall when my dad brought home an NEC PC-6001A as an evaluation, and we had it for a month or so. It had a tape drive and played a couple cool songs "the Odd Couple" and "Star Trek" (it showed 'NEC Trek' on the screen when played). These were the days when buying a computer meant that you probably had one of perhaps 10 or less different types/models. You either had a Commodore, Tandy, IBM or Apple (those were the big players that I remember).
I very fondly remember when my dad took me to a computer seminar at his workplace, Deere & Company in Moline IL. They had a series of tables set up back to back and had a huge assortment of different computers on display. It changed my life, even at that age. This had to be around 1981 or so, and it definitely is an understatement to say it was a really cool bonding experience that I will never forget. Secretly, every year after, I wished for more events like these, but sadly they never hosted another one.
A few years later - many, many hours were spent playing computer games, messing about with 'DeskMate' on our Tandy 1000 HD, "surfing" BBSs, and writing BASIC programs from those cheesy "Micro Adventure" books (you had to write a program to solve the mystery, it was awesome!). Even then, I had always looked for public domain software and games to share with my friends - what could we find at the computer store bargain bins?
What you could do with a floppy disk drive back then...
Fast forward to 1994, where I got my first computer-related job. Until this point, I hadn't a clear picture of what I wanted to do with the rest of my life career-wise. I was going to school for commercial art, but realized that I was mediocre at best in a field filled with phenomenal talent. My friend gave me a computer that he "messed up" on purpose to see if I could fix it...I don't recall fixing it right away, but I did enjoy the heck out of trying.
I eventually worked at a local computer manufacturer, DerbyTech computers (which now makes CIPA filters(?) ), and then at "The Future Now" (the name changes with this company is a story in of itself - this eventually become a Xerox Connect branch, now defunct), a consulting group working at, of all places, the point of my genesis, Deere & Company. I had come full circle.
So, there is my history. My love for computers has been long and grounded in wonder and awe. Wonder of what I could create, and a sense of awe of the things that others have created with (now) such a ubiquitous tool. This infatuation is the impetus for creating CFJ blog back in 2006. At the time, it was a way to keep track of all the crazy software that I liked and recommended to my friends. Since that, it has become a bit more than that, but with the same goal, to share things that I like with you, at no charge.
Not much different than trading floppy discs of public domain software with my friends back in '86.
So, sit back, enjoy the articles and comment if you like (or if you don't like!). Please recommend it to your friends and colleagues, maybe I can help instill a sense of wonder in someone out there.
