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Discussion on: Who or what inspired you to do programming?

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alex_takitani profile image
Alex Takitani

I was 10 or 11 ( so around 1988, 1989 ), can't remember correctly and my parents bought an Atari 2600 clone for my birthday.

My father tested it before giving it to me and left this on the tv:

Atari switch box

And, he forgot to changed it from Game/Computer to TV, so when I turned the TV on, it didn't worked.

It was quite common for the antenna cable to get off, so I checked behind the TV if it was there, and I found this thing there.

I asked my father what it was and he told me that was something that my aunt tested on our TV ( she was a Cobol programmer ) it seemed possible so I believed it.

Then my birthday came and I got the console, and it was connected to that box... I asked my father why it was there, and he told me that the videogames were computers. From that moment on I knew what I would do as work.

I've made only simple games on my life, but I got my first programming job at 17 and being doing it ever since.

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somedood profile image
Basti Ortiz

This is some really ancient technology. I realize now how the newer generation of programmers, myself included, tend to draw inspiration from being exposed to video games rather than being exposed to hardware (like how you did). I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not, but the generation gap is real.

One thing is for sure, though; we all love to code.

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Alex Takitani

Oh, it will vary a lot from where the inspiration came, but I think we are all attracted by something like: "I can build something like that? Lets do it!"

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somedood profile image
Basti Ortiz • Edited

Hmm... This makes me wonder why. I find it pretty cool that we all have a passion for creating. Yes, it's part of our job description to create, but isn't it a pleasant surprise that this urge to create surrounds us all?