Computers and My Dad

I know I said I was going to write a fanfic today, but I actually have something much better to write about, so I'm going to do it while it's still fresh in my mind.

I went out with my dad today to pick up his new computer. His old computer has inexplicably broken down, so he had the kid at our local computer shack hook him up with a brand new one. As he and I were driving on our way back home, we started talking about the computer and how he'd have to learn how to use OpenOffice. It was then that this exchange ensued:

Me: Of course, if your files aren't in the right format we can just find a file converting software online to make it the right format so that you can use them.
Dad: *Chuckles*
Me: Ah, you were thinking of that too, eh?
Dad: No, I was thinking of the little boy who used to sit on my lap and play Virtual Yahtzee who knows more about co...mputers than me now.
Me: ...*smile*

That really did make me smile, because it reminded me of exactly where I came from, and why I love computers so much. The first memory I have of computers is, in fact, sitting on my dad's lap and playing Virtual Yahtzee with him, not even fully understanding the rules of the game, but being mesmerized by how various numbers on the screen would appear by simply tapping against that magic board in front of the screen.

We also talked about later events in my "computer education", including the first computer they had before me (required a disc just to operate), the game menu that we had later (which had the epic Virtual Chess and some silly knight-buying land-owning game), and the fact that I actually begged my cousin to install Civilization onto our computer (which he did through an act of piracy which, by today's standards, would be considered a capital offense). We also talked about the Encyclopedia Britannica we had installed on the computer, and how I was fascinated at a young age how information could just be brought up on the screen as if from a real encyclopedia.

So that I could win at Carmen Sandiego.

Education was awesome when I was a kid.
Source: http://lukehimself.net/?p=65

So in a way, this blog is a product of all of those things - sitting there on his lap to play Yahtzee, buying knights to fend off barbarians, looking up the country that a bird comes from to catch Dick the Slick, all of that lead up to me writing this blog on the internet.

His computer is set up now, and is running just fine. It'll take him a little time to figure out OpenOffice and a few other Windows 7 things, but hey, this is the guy who taught me how to play Virtual Yahtzee, so I'm sure he'll be fine.