Share the experience of getting your own computer

[Chandal]

Hello I am a newbie here. This is my first thread.

Everybody is happy when they first get their computers. It is an experience which they cannot forget in their life. I was given my computer on my birthday when I was in Class VII in 2003. It was really a wonderful experience. Please share your own experience of getting your own PC here .

[alexanderthegreat]

^^Welcome to the ThinkDigit Forums!

Hmmm. Long ago, in 2003 (What a coincidence!), my dad decided to buy me a PC. Well, it was a complete nightmare! I had to teach the so called 'assembler' dad had unearthed a lot of things! He was able to assemble the hardware but I figured out that he was a noob in most matters. Nevertheless, after I got my PC. At that time, it was like: Intel P4 processor, Intel 845G chipset el-cheapo motherboard, 128MB DDR-RAM (Come to think of it! ), 2600W intex 4.1 speaker system (I loved saying that), accompanied by the rest of the cheap stuff. A few days later, AMD pwned Intel. Loads of better processors were launched. I did not even have a graphics card and both of the graphics card giants were moving over thousands of numbers. My speaker system turned out to be a tweeter or a fweeper as I call it. In a matter of months, I concluded that it had not been a ripe time. Anyhow, in 2007, my Northbridge melted and I had to upgrade! No choice! That was the story of my first PC.

[RMN]

I got mine when i was in the 3rd grade or something.
Windows version 4 or something!??
loved playing CISCO and Prince of Persia!!!!

[Ecstasy]

After begging and whining from 2000 to 2002 i got my PC lol. I don't remember the config but i do remember that i used to play Superbike 2000 on it and my 2 best pals coming over to my place and playing it turn by turn. Ahhhh.. good old days..

[rhitwick]

I bought my computer when I was in First year of engg.
Its back in 14th Feb, 2003

Config, I can still remember clearly,
Intel 845GLAD
P4 1.7GHz
256MB 333MHz Hynix (or Kinngston) (People were like, what would u do wid such huge RAM??)
40GB Seagate HDD
LG CD Rom
LG Monitor (15")
Creative Inspire 2400 2.1 (This was my favorite part of all the mentioned)
Ek bakwas UPS

My frnd, who was also supposed to buy PC took me to a shop, I bought but he never bought from dat shop...(kamina)

But, this is due to d crappy-buggy PC of me (and Digit), I learned PC troubleshooting.

[red_devil]

ah I got mine in 2004...the assembler guy who'd come to ask for the specifications suggested a 128MB RAM and 20 GB hard disk...i clearly remember him saying "you wont have any use for a 40 GB hard disk...its way too much"

come to think of it, today I have 280 GB worth of disk space and yet dont seem to have enough !! those days !!

EDIT : (my complete config)

p4 2.4 GHz {i guess}
Intel 845GVSR
256 MB RAM
40GB hard disk
52x CD writer {...it was such a thing to own back then !! a 52x CD Writer !!}
14" CRT monitor
no graphics card {...dont have one even now ..}

[himadri_sm]

i bought mine in may 2004...i was a total noob then..there was no computer education in our school, very few internet cafes, & i was the 3rd or 4th kid in my class to buy a PC(i am from a small township in assam which is still very much backward in computer education) ..i got it because i had done relatively well in my 10th board exams..so it was like a gift from a father to his son..an elder cousin of mine who'd completed his MCA got me the config-
A P4 2.4Ghz,
256mb DDR1 RAM,
an LG 52X combo drive,
an asrock 845GL m/b,
40gb seagate hdd,
an LG 17" CRT monitor,
a creative 2400 2.1 speaker,
an APC UPS,
a samsung multimedia keyboard & samsung optical mouse.

my brother actually told me to buy an intel original m/b..but the vendor cheated me saying that the P4 Proccy wouldn't work with that m/b..& sold me the asrock m/b.
The vendor installed the games IGI-1 & Soldier of Fortune-2 on it..i was so thrilled..i would sit for hours playing..the 1st time i learnt to burn a disc using nero..i felt i'd climbed the everest...& i could actually brag about my PC as it was the best among all my friends.

Also, i bought my 1st copy of digit during this time.

@Rhitwick & Red_Devil :seems like we had similar configs.

[rhitwick]

Originally Posted by sekhar_xxx

@Rhitwick & Red_Devil :seems like we had similar configs.

Oh, u gys had much superior config...u had CD Writer...which I bought after 1 yr...saving my pocket money

[infra_red_dude]

You guys will all laugh at me if I tell you when I got my first PC and what was its config

[gopi_vbboy]

I got around 6 or 7 years ago ma first pc
with win98 n PIII

lol...i loved the blue/cyan screen those days

[himadri_sm]

Originally Posted by infra_red_dude

You guys will all laugh at me if I tell you when I got my first PC and what was its config

now i am curious..tell us...please

[amit_at_stg]

Mine was a 486 in 1995. B/w monitor without cd drive.

[gforce23]

Got mine in '86 or '87, It was a Samsung branded PC with a 386 running on Windows 2.x. The cabinet was a horizontal box and the 14" color monitor sat atop. I would spend hours on my dad's lap while he tried to explain, rather unsuccessfully, the different functions and possible outcomes.
The cabinet had a 5.25" FDD along with a physical lock to disable access to the PC. I remember losing the key on the first day itself.
The monitor still works like a charm, albeit at a max resolution of VGA.

[Nuxer]

I bought my first PC in March 2005.

Configuration: AMD Athlon 64 2800+, Asus K8SMX mobo, 256 MB DDR memory (Simtronic), 15" Samsung CRT Monitor, 40 GB Samsung IDE HDD, 52x32x52 LG CD Writer, 1.44 MB Sony FDD, Intex ATX fancy cabinet, Intex Multimedia keyboard, Creative SBS 240 speaker, Microsoft scroll mouse, Intex 600 V UPS and 56 KBPS internal modem.

That year AMD rules over Intel.

At that time (2005), my PC configuration was top in my area

[infra_red_dude]

Originally Posted by sekhar_xxx

now i am curious..tell us...please

Sometime in 1990. If I remember correctly it was a PC-XT with either a 4 or 8Mhz CPU, 20MB HDD and 1MB RAM or something. It had a tape drive for backup and the video was not even VGA.. It was CGA I guess.. a huge motherboard with the CPU soldered to it. It had cost a bomb then! I had kept the whole thing as a remembrance. I guess it had to leave my home sometime back since I'm not home now. I loved it! I learnt so much on that computer. DOS, batch programming, windows (1.0?), games (budokan, tdcga and so many ancient ones!). Fond memories

Originally Posted by gforce23

Got mine in '86 or '87, It was a Samsung branded PC with a 386 running on Windows 2.x. The cabinet was a horizontal box and the 14" color monitor sat atop. I would spend hours on my dad's lap while he tried to explain, rather unsuccessfully, the different functions and possible outcomes.
The cabinet had a 5.25" FDD along with a physical lock to disable access to the PC. I remember losing the key on the first day itself.
The monitor still works like a charm, albeit at a max resolution of VGA.

Whoa! you must then be one of the first in the world to get your hands on the 80386 since it was released in late 1986!

[jhn2001]

I do not remember the date/year but i was very excited when i first bought it in my house .

[gforce23]

Originally Posted by infra_red_dude

Whoa! you must then be one of the first in the world to get your hands on the 80386 since it was released in late 1986!

The date of manufacture on my monitor reads March 1987, so my dad definitely bought the system after that.
We upgraded the system to a 486 and Win 3.1 in '92/'93 and then switched to a new PC with a Cyrix processor and Win 95 sometime in '97.

[amol48]

I got my first PC when I was in VII (2002) as a birthday gift on 27th Feb. (My birthday is on 18th feb however )

Config were:

Pentium 4 1.5GHz processor
128MB SDRAM (which I later upgraded to 256MB SDRAM)
Intel 845
40GB Samsung HDD
nVidia TNT2 RIVA 32 MB Graphics card (I loved it. Only I had it in my whole school )
APC UPS (amazing UPS man!)

Cost me Rs.42k in those days!! Now I got a Studio 15 lappy for that price with the following specs:

Core 2 Duo T6400
3GB RAM DDR2 800MHz RAM
320GB HDD
ATI Raedon 256MB Card
8-in-1 card reader
18x DVD Writer
Wireless Bluetooth Mouse (it's really great)
Creative EP-630 earphones
Ruby Red color

All the above for the same price!! lol

EDIT: Just noticed I have that config in my siggy as well ! Anyways it took me lot of pain to write that so I will not delete the above configs now

[Rahim]

I got my "rig" after securing 94% in ISC Exam and all i wanted was a computer and i had no knowledge of anything about its parts,etc.
P 3
128 MB RAM
Intel 845GVSR
20 GB Seagate HD
200 mp3s ()
2.1 Intex Speakers

[thewisecrab]

Originally Posted by a_rahim

I got my "rig" after securing 94% in ISC Exam and all i wanted was a computer and i had no knowledge of anything about its parts,etc.
P 3
128 MB RAM
Intel 845GVSR
20 GB Seagate HD
200 mp3s ()
2.1 Intex Speakers

94% in ISC?!?! Great man Whats your raaz?
Nice config BTW

My dad brought home the first PC back in 1996 from his office (mainly to work from home)
But I did get to use it once in a while. I dont remember the config, but I do remember it first had Win 3.0 and then upgraded to Win 95.
It had a CD Drive, Floppy Drive, 2 stereo speakers, Horizontal cabinet with a 14 inch colour monitor sitting on top of it with 32 MB of RAM (upgraded to 64MB later)
In 1999, some local guy introduced dial-up Intenet, to which my dad subscribed to along with 32 kbps modem. I still remember those loud beep patterns the modem would make even now (they could be heard across the house )
Our neighbours, relatives would flock to our house to see this thing, while I play Dangerous Dave, Alladin, Allan Border Cricket and Balloonz

[Rahim]

^hehe I am a brilliant student
The funny thing was that i was more excited about those 200 mp3s than the actual PC itself That was the 1st time i was introduced to Angrezi songs

[Chandal]

Let me tell you my experience.

I bought it when I was in Class VII in 2003. Our computer teacher told that a computer is a must to do programming(Quick Basic) but actually I wanted to play games. I wanted a multimedia computer with icons(At that time I thought that the computers with colour and icons are called multimedia computers and black screen computers were not multimedia computers.I didn;t know that the computers depended on the OS installed on them. Therefore I requested and begged my parents but he wouldn't listen. I told him that our computer teacher told to buy but he would think I will only play games and told me to do the programming in tution classes.I started hunger strike and didn't talk with them and kept my face as a dumb person. My parents took pity and told me that they would buy me a computer just for programming and just a economy PC. I didn't like it but something is better than nothing. He bought a catalog where 3 branded computers were there and 1 assembled one. The assembled was of Rs. 19,900. It has the following config:

Cyrix Processor
Forgot the name of the motherboard (i think some SYS)but it didn't have USB slots
128MB RAM
40GB HDD
LG 15inch Monitor
CD-ROM Drive
125 MP3's
Two frontech speakers
FRONTECH Keyboard and mouse

We went to the shop to order three days before my birthday. They told that they would keep it ready under 2 days. It was really a very very restless period for me those 48 hours. On 2nd Oct(after two days i.e. my birthday) me and my father went to the shop and asked for it. The vendor told that the assembler took it to his home. We went there and saw my own PC. It had Windows 98(SE) installed and was looking very beautiful. The assembler gave it to us and requsted the shopkeeper to come an d install it my home and also told us to pay in the shop in the evening. We took it home and didn't know how how to install. We were waiting for the shopkeeper to arrive. He arrived after 3 hours. He installed it and told me just to run QBasic, listen Songs and play the only game they had installed in it that is ROADRASH and not to fiddle with the motherboard CD. He left and I enjoyed ROADRASH. It was a day I cannot forget. After somedays I accidently formatted the system and didn't know what to do after that. My father called the shopkeeper and he told that he would come but he came after 4 days and just installed the OS again and everything was well again. I came to know about that and bought it and now I could manage my own computer problems.

Two years after I got curious and installed all the drivers in the motherboard CD, shut it down and left for school. In the afternoon when I came and saw that the system wasn't booting. It asked for some System Disk. I inserted the Win98 CD and the motherboard CD one after another but it didn't work. We called the shopkeepers and they told that the warranty period has become void and we have to bring the CPU there. We took it there. The shopkeeper saw that and told that the motherboard has been burned(I still don't know till today how can a motherboard be burned just by installing drivers). We were tensed and my father scolded me like anything. They took two weeks to repair that and charged Rs.2000. We paid and brought it back. My father locked the motherboard CD in his drawer for good. I was a lot careful after that in running PC.

But one thing I forgot to say to you that after getting my PC, I scored more than 80 everytime in the three years(CLASS VIII,IX,X) and in the final boards I scored 94% in the CS(in 2007) in ICSE Board. My father became very happy and granted my reqeust of upgradation it to a gaming rig. (I was a noob at that time and thought that the processor was the main thing for gaming and not the graphics card. And for this reason I am suffering now).It was a different shop from where I upgraded next which gave better servicing. It had these specifications and I am running till today.

Pentium D(2.8 GHz)
Asus 865G Motherboard with onboard Graphics
256MB RAM
DVD Combo
2.1 Woofer system
IBALL cabinet
FRONTECH multimedia keyboard,mouse and microphone.
and the monitor was same as before.
The older CPU was sold for Rs. 4000.
The whole new CPU costed Rs. 15,500

* (The vendor installed it and delivered it my home but the sound wasn't playing. He tried all the steps to make it play but failed. He told that the drivers weren't correct in the Mainboard CD. He took it back did something and brought it back again but with sound. He told that he had installed the drivers from Internet. He kept and went back. I was getting curious to know that he installed it from Internet or not, for which after somedays I fomatted Windows and intalled the OS back. I installed the sound drivers but it ran very good and it ran from that Motherboard CD only.) I didn't how could it happen.I was happy that I could play ViceCity and AOE II with very good frame rates. I am using the same computer till now and may upgrade sometime or the other. But I am having some doubts in my mind till today!!!

1. Can the installation of motherboard drivers burn the motherboard.
2. Once installed the sound drivers from internet, can it run the sound device even after formatting. For details see the point with * mark above within brackets.
Thankyou for reading my experience .

[gforce23]

Originally Posted by Chandal

Cyrix Processor
Forgot the name of the motherboard (i think some SYS)but it didn't have USB slots
128MB RAM
40GB HDD
LG 15inch Monitor
CD-ROM Drive
125 MP3's
Two frontech speakers(I was noob at that time and didn't know that Cyrix was the worst processor).
FRONTECH Keyboard and mouse

I DEMAND that you retract that statement!! I really hope you aren't another n00b brainwashed into thinking that Pentium (or any Intel)=awesome while the rest=crap.
Cyrix processors were great VFM and actually outclassed comparable Pentium chips at the time while being priced lower: http://www.fortytwo.org/rich/info/co...rix/cyrix.html
You'd be hard pressed to find someone who didn't talk about Cyrix, MIIs and 6x86s back in the day.

[rhitwick]

Originally Posted by Chandal

1. Can the installation of motherboard drivers burn the motherboard.

No

2. Once installed the sound drivers from Internet, can it run the sound device even after formatting.

It doesn't matter where from the drivers come it can't run after a format.
In ur case the OS was not installed properly. And let me guess d guy first installed d driver and then he found its not working and uninstalled it. Then tried to install again.'
If this was the process then it won't work ever (I had experienced it and in my it didn't, I had to reinstall the OS)

[Chandal]

^^^^^ Ya I think you are right. But at that time was really not much fond of computers and beleived that whatever the first point says was true(I didn't even thought that if the Mainboard is burnt how can even the PC start) Those pesky shopkeepers. BTW what was the system disk that the PC was asking???

Originally Posted by gforce23

I DEMAND that you retract that statement!! I really hope you aren't another n00b brainwashed into thinking that Pentium (or any Intel)=awesome while the rest=crap.
Cyrix processors were great VFM and actually outclassed comparable Pentium chips at the time while being priced lower: http://www.fortytwo.org/rich/info/co...rix/cyrix.html
You'd be hard pressed to find someone who didn't talk about Cyrix, MIIs and 6x86s back in the day.

Ya you are right as well. I have checked the website and it really clearly defines it. My cyrix processor of nearly 800Mhz. I have edited the post. Thankyou for the info.

[a_k_s_h_a_y]

Way Back in 2000 I got my First PC. I was 12 years old Then.

It my first time with computers. I changed the screen saver in Windows 98 to That space screen saver, Changed the wallpaper. That was enough to put me on Top of Mount Everest on 1st day !! Was big time on cloud nine.
Win 98 SE ruled those days.

It was PIII, 64 MB SD RAM, Intel 810 Chipset, 15GB Quantum FileBall HDD, 15inch Samsung CRT V55, Intel 810 Chipset Motherboard.

Then i started to subscribe to Computers@Home Magazine, Then started my Geek Life !
Every month on the 5th I used to wake up early and wait at my house door open wide for the Magazine,
First thing i would check out was the Games That were in the in DISK provided with the magazine.

hmmm Those were the days !! And now............. huh !!

Originally Posted by Ecstasy

used to play Superbike 2000 on it and my 2 best pals coming over to my place and playing it turn by turn. Ahhhh.. good old days..

Man I still miss those Super Bike 2000 days, What a hell of a game. I too used to play with pals ! The Game reply was the thing to check out !!

[rhitwick]

Originally Posted by Chandal

BTW what was the system disk that the PC was asking???

In that case (Iguess) its ur HDD, somehow ur HDD connection was loose and the system was not able to find it.

[infra_red_dude]

Originally Posted by gforce23

I DEMAND that you retract that statement!! I really hope you aren't another n00b brainwashed into thinking that Pentium (or any Intel)=awesome while the rest=crap.
Cyrix processors were great VFM and actually outclassed comparable Pentium chips at the time while being priced lower: http://www.fortytwo.org/rich/info/co...rix/cyrix.html
You'd be hard pressed to find someone who didn't talk about Cyrix, MIIs and 6x86s back in the day.

True, even tho the FP performance of Cyrix was a tad lower than Intel the cost difference was huge and it certainly was VFM. K6-2 was probably in the same category. But K7 kicked Intel's @$$. That was one bad phase for Intel!

Originally Posted by a_k_s_h_a_y

Man I still miss those Super Bike 2000 days, What a hell of a game. I too used to play with pals ! The Game reply was the thing to check out !!

lol.. you all are newer generation kids I started my gaming with TDCGA (Test Drive on CGA - graphics )

[Coool]

Got my first PC in 2007 march 18 when I was 14.....
at that time I was a noob...
P4 processor,160Gb hard drive,a GB of RAM, No dedicated graphic card,17" HP LCD moniter and a worst UPS which gives a 3-4mins back up now....
Still using the same configuration ......
all these cost me 44k...

[rhitwick]

Originally Posted by Coool

Got my first PC in 2007 march 18 when I was 14.....
at that time I was a noob...
160Gb hard drive,a GB of RAM, No dedicated graphic card,17" HP moniter and a worst UPS which gives a 3-4mins back up now....
Still using the same configuration ......
all these cost me 44k...

Nice config though, think about people who started with 64mb RAM and 20GB HDD