As a child of the 90’s I have been surrounded by technology and technological evolutions since day one. By watching some of my family’s old home movies I notice that my parents are either holding me while watching television or listening to classic rock on our home stereo system. Looking back I can now see just how vital technology, in all its various forms, has been in my life.
I used technology on my own for the first time around the age of two. I remember sitting in front of our television at home, frustrated that neither of my parents was in the room to change out the video cassette, and awkwardly learned how to operate our VCR. I remember how easy I thought it all seemed, I just hit the arrow button on the VCR and the tape popped out. I struggled for a minute, attempting to work out how to put the second video in, before my dad came into the room and gave me a helping hand. He showed me how to put the tape in and cautioned me never to touch the plastic ribbon inside. After that I became the unofficial video tape operator in our house.
My technological experience continued as I learned how to operate the television and hook/unhook various wires and components. I remember going behind the entertainment center one afternoon, around age five or so, to reset the television antenna after a storm. The television was warm as I leaned around it to unplug the set and there was a brief flash of electricity around the outlet as I plugged it back in. I adjusted the antenna and leaned back around the television. My hard work had paid off, my favorite tv show (Kratts’ Creatures) flashed to life on the screen.
Computers were introduced to me in kindergarten. As part of our learning initiative students in my elementary school from kindergarten through forth grade had to participate in the accelerated reader program. The A.R. program required kids to read books appropriate to their reading level and then take a computerized quiz to determine their reading comprehension. I remember my teacher guiding us through the system and how excited we were to use the big white machines.
In first grade I took my first typing class using the program called Mavis Beacon. The program used different types of games to encouraged typing accuracy and speed, including one really fun game that simulated car racing. The computer I used had a huge screen and the keyboard was covered with a thick but pliant plastic that often made my fingers slide off.
For my eighth birthday I received my first Giga- pet, a small digital pet that you carried around on a keychain, and carried it with me religiously. Unfortunately for my giga pet it’s constant beeps at night made it hard to get to sleep and it was replaced with a Tomagachi. Something about the Tomagachi experience was far less exciting than the Giga-pet and when my dad got an internet capable computer at his job I began playing neopets.
Around age nine my family acquired our first home computer, a handsome Compaq Presario, that was given to us when my grandfather upgraded to HP. My grandfather included a suite of educational software with the computer and I eagerly played the interactive games such as The Oregon Trail and Clue Finders. During this time I was almost constantly on the computer, online playing neopets and offline playing computer games.
Despite being so connected I was a bit of a technology snob in middle school. When my friends all got their first CD players I begged my parents for a cassette player, staunchly refusing to assimilate to the CD culture. I held onto my cassette collection through my freshman year of high school until the band Evanescence released their album as CD-only.
Also in high school, while being an active band member, I was introduced to computerized music programs that both allowed users to improve their skills and compose original music. I learned how to calibrate metronomes and use tuners, both digital and manual, and gradually improved my musical talents.
In high school I learned my way around the Microsoft Office Suite and my family upgraded to a new HP computer complete with office and an internet connection. I began reading online fanfiction and interacting with some of my favorite authors, my favorites being Harry Potter stories. My friends began using instant messenger services and meeting new people around the world but I refused to put my information out to the world in such a manner, I was an e-mail correspondent all the way.
It wasn’t until my senior year of high school that I finally joined the technological culture of my peers. I bought my first cell phone, mp3 player, and PS2 Slim in one fell swoop. Thereafter I was constantly connected and loving every minute of it. I became an active gamer, both on my console and online, and used gaming to interact with my friends from previous cities and schools. For graduation my parents bought me a laptop, a silver and white Dell Inspiron 1501, which I am using this very moment to write my technology autobiography.
This year has marked yet another technological evolution in my family. We installed a wireless router and a wireless printer for my dad’s job and bought mom a new desktop computer. We also purchased a new HD television and Blu-Ray player last Christmas and for my birthday I received my first iPod. I now consider myself to be completely assimilated to the digital age and look forward to reacting to and interacting with the next wave of technological advances.
rebeccaayers 