I don't remember my age precisely. Over the period of my 20 years, my parents shifted over 6 homes in my hometown. It's the time when we were in our first house. A small house and a table with a PC on it. My dad used to build a software using Oracle forms reading some physical books. I didn't really gave a second thought, I went near only to observe. The approximate age of mine would be myself with some friction I can sit on the chair and reach the mouse.
I exactly remember my first impression.
I exactly remember my first impression.
- It was written "Compaq" on it.
- I saw the 'Windows XP" loading screen. 3 green rectangular boxes floating by.
- Mouse was amazing part. The fact that a small ball that scrolls haves the pointer move on the screen just amazed me.
- I found 'games' on Nokia phones back then. I extensively used to play space impact.
- Too things I found on my own when dad wasn't around.
- Start > Programs > .. > PinBall
- Start > Programs > .. > MS Paint
In fact that is not most memorable moment at all. It kind of felt obvious to me. No so special, until my 5th standard had a subject on computers. My school used to have one computer and entire class had like 30 students. Each one of them had 5 min along side teacher to show something that teacher taught about Microsoft Paint. The memorable part was when every one else in my class struggled to draw a 'van' using toolbox in paint, I drew seamlessly. That moment gave me spark of curiosity about them.
Internet
My dad has two PCs. One at Home and other one at his Footwear shop. I discovered a difference from my home PC to the one that's at shop. The Internet Explorer works.
What ever I typed in the address bar and append .com a webpage would render. It wasn't event a search engine first. For me internet was typing something and appending .com to it. I discovered Yahoo! search first and Google search later. Every single time I had access to internet at my dad's office, it's simply games.com that I would look up and try to play something that's better than Minesweeper.
Very soon, I discovered a lot of files in the computer and tried understanding the file system. I was too young to understand any of it. But I knew what certain files are for. I sort of understood, how some programs used certain files. The Disk Storage was scarce that time. My beginning for learning computers started with me making terrible mistakes and trying to cover them up.
Very soon, I discovered a lot of files in the computer and tried understanding the file system. I was too young to understand any of it. But I knew what certain files are for. I sort of understood, how some programs used certain files. The Disk Storage was scarce that time. My beginning for learning computers started with me making terrible mistakes and trying to cover them up.
- Files those I don't understand, I'd delete them to buy some space. Once they were .dll files in Programfiles/ folder.
- I would very soon experience Trojan files, malware on my computer. A first hand experience of them destroying my computer. Those times, it was Avast! Antivirus that was wide spread and Kaspersky Antivirus was premium that my dad would literally buy.
- I used to put in unnecessary CDs and DVDs into my PC. I ruined them 3 times. My dad used to physically install it.
PC Games
I didn't know there's something like Internet Cafes existed until one of my cousin used to take me to one. Entire time, she used to sit in front of a computer and opened Yahoo! messenger and used to chat with some of her friends. I am supposedly just a puppy playing a companion role to her. With couple of minutes, I saw something amazing. A PC Game - GTA Vice City
There was an entire virtual city. The guy in that cafe was simply typing some cheat codes and shooting people around and jumping on the cars and driving away! Wow moment. I couldn't get that thing off my head. It is just amazing.
I was one of those kids who is very inattentive and very rigid to my imagination.
- I began taking Rs. 10 and go to internet cafe and playing it.
- I discovered 1 GB Pen Drives and by that time I knew CD's and DVD's. I bought CDs for Rs 10 and sneaked out to copy games to my CD from cafe. Turns out that's simply game icon or stupid files I copied.
- I went around and asked owners of the cafe to copy game to my CD disk so that I can go back and play on my own Home PC. It was a very very very weird ask for them. No one does ask for it. Neither they sell it. Once CDs those were available in the market were Movie disks for DVD players.
- Few months along the way, I found new games which weren't as exciting to me as Vice City was. Road Rash and MK4.
After few months, when I got my summer holidays, I would still crave for the game to existed on my home computer. When I visited my Grand Ma's place for spending holidays, I went to Internet Cafe in that small semi town. He finally charged my Rs. 50 and copied the game in a DVD disk and gave it to me. I simply wouldn't wait to come over my 8 months of daily dream of it.
Understanding Hardware
Even after I got my DVD of the game, it took me 3-5 months until I was able to play the game. Why you ask? Keep reading.
Understanding Hardware
Even after I got my DVD of the game, it took me 3-5 months until I was able to play the game. Why you ask? Keep reading.
- After trying to install from a DVD, my Disk reader would mess up and used to read only CD disks. So I used dad's shop computer to burn (using Nero) the same to a DVD to try again.
- I saw issues with disk size. So I started removing a lot of valuable data just like that for a game. Suddenly when I found I messed up, I used to search on internet to understand and fix it myself. I failed a lot of times.
- Once after all the attempts, it took one entire night for the game to be installed. I slept alongside computer for it. But in the morning, I'd find that 256 MB RAM is not enough.
- I manually tried to solve by looking at motherboard and learning from my dad to install a newer RAM Chip to my home PC's motherboard. With one extra at home, I did 'something' and computer didn't start. I successfully seriously messed up.
- My dad, finally bought a new PC with 1 GB RAM and Intel pentium processor.
- I had my first hand experience of installing operating system on new computer. I remember there used by CDs with Windows Keys written on them.
Finally, when all of these unsuccessful attempts and thoughts of times crying for it. I finally had the game up and running. It was most happiest moment that my efforts over 10 months came to life.
Years after that, I saw Games becoming available on the Internet and game CDs became a thing. I used to save my pocket money until Rs 60 and purchase game disks based on images on the cover. I found nicer games and older games. I spent rest of two years as hardcore player. I developed muscle memory for them with doing cracks.
Two dreams
Real - Virtual World
With time, I developed huge curiosity to build games. There weren't any courses or classes those existed around. I had an imagination of how a game should be. I wanted a game version of that simulated real world. There could be virtual version of US, India and 150 other countries. You can take any profession and do anything that you couldn't in real world. This remained as is.
There wasn't anyone who would hear me out. Almost no one talks about computers. I was in a world with other kids, whose life was school, exams, and physical games at that time. Those things on mattered. Also, what I imagined was very huge if I think about it, which I couldn't even built at 22 years old as the time of this writing.
A Mobile Phone
I had a design concept for a mobile phone when Nokia phones were popular. I wasn't a visionary. But I used to draw rough sketches on my notes about it. By this time, I would cross my schooling and reach +12 where success means getting a seat at IIT.
A high intensive program started 8 months before the actually IIT exam. The institution began to kickstart it by arranging a meet motivating (rather brainwashing) students to get a seat in the IITs. For me IITs meant a way to achieve creating a mobile phone design I dreamt of. I rose among those 200 students, when asked what was their dream, I told the same to those 200 students. It was pretty lame move. I felt so much ashamed at that time. Because that didn't have anything to do with IITs for 100% of audience there or the institution.
Both of them ended as they are and faded with time.
Programming
Finally, I'd find time to join courses. In my town there were scope of two computer related courses.
Years after that, I saw Games becoming available on the Internet and game CDs became a thing. I used to save my pocket money until Rs 60 and purchase game disks based on images on the cover. I found nicer games and older games. I spent rest of two years as hardcore player. I developed muscle memory for them with doing cracks.
Two dreams
Real - Virtual World
With time, I developed huge curiosity to build games. There weren't any courses or classes those existed around. I had an imagination of how a game should be. I wanted a game version of that simulated real world. There could be virtual version of US, India and 150 other countries. You can take any profession and do anything that you couldn't in real world. This remained as is.
There wasn't anyone who would hear me out. Almost no one talks about computers. I was in a world with other kids, whose life was school, exams, and physical games at that time. Those things on mattered. Also, what I imagined was very huge if I think about it, which I couldn't even built at 22 years old as the time of this writing.
A Mobile Phone
I had a design concept for a mobile phone when Nokia phones were popular. I wasn't a visionary. But I used to draw rough sketches on my notes about it. By this time, I would cross my schooling and reach +12 where success means getting a seat at IIT.
A high intensive program started 8 months before the actually IIT exam. The institution began to kickstart it by arranging a meet motivating (rather brainwashing) students to get a seat in the IITs. For me IITs meant a way to achieve creating a mobile phone design I dreamt of. I rose among those 200 students, when asked what was their dream, I told the same to those 200 students. It was pretty lame move. I felt so much ashamed at that time. Because that didn't have anything to do with IITs for 100% of audience there or the institution.
Both of them ended as they are and faded with time.
Programming
Finally, I'd find time to join courses. In my town there were scope of two computer related courses.
- One was 'typing' institute where they taught typing using Typewriters.
- The other was a institute asking us to learn MS Office.
I joined them. I discovered people writing something on black screen and some words. It's C programming language. I learnt that is how programs are built. I'd would learn things those are not even close to building a game. I write a palindrome program but I can't translate that to a Game.
I would leave those classes with knowing something about C that's using Turbo C compiler. Then I would hope I will learn them in higher education. At my University.
But even University didn't say anything close that I can translate what I learn into a window on my PC. It's always some code, some syllabus and writing an exam.
Amazingly, I discovered the rest in random university level student workshops. The concept is amazing, it was 2 days and they used to give a gist of a topic just like that. Follow some steps, I would see a Arduino board blinking LEDs. Something was translatable to real world real quick. I began jumping into more and more of those workshops. Until I forgot the dream (that's OK.) and found amazing computer science concepts and possibilities.
Later on, this equipped me knowledge to do amazing things at student level and attain experience beyond classroom.