It all started with me failing a Geometry class in High School, and later finding out that the Computer Science courses they offered would make up that math credit. Plus, my buddy Bob had an Atari 500ST that his dad bought to help him learn about computers - although we goofed around playing games more than anything (never did get that simulated 747 off the ground...). After learning Apple Basic and Apple Pascal on the school's Franklin Ace 1000's, I moved on to the CAD program in my drafting class. I was hooked at that point.

I joined the Air Force in October 1986 with the hopes of becoming a CAD operator/Civil Engineering architect, but failed a color vision test and was placed into the 491x1 (later 3C0X1) career field - Communications/Computer Operator. I learned how to operate mainframe computers and their peripherals. Yeah, I know...that was pretty close to drafting (rolling my eyes as I type this...).  I learned the ins and outs of the "old iron" mainframes - Sperry 1100/60, VAX 750, 785 & 8650, PDP 11/70, and some Honeywell system I never saw again after tech school.

After leaving the Air Force in '96, I became a maintenance technician on a mainframe computer system - which is pretty challenging, but still not drafting. I'd worked with mostly Digital equipment back when you actually had to repair things rather than jus swap components and toss out the bad ones.  I had bought an Amiga 500 several years before, loved using it, and even increased my collection to 4 A500s, as friends would move away and ask if I would be interested in their A500s. But as most people will say, the Amiga was just not recognized by the world as a substantial computer - stupid world. So, I got my first Windows-based PC a few weeks after becoming a civilian.

I got the hottest machine I could afford at the time ($3000 for a Cyrix 166+ loaded with 32MB RAM, 2.1GB hard drive, 33.6 US Robotics modem, and an awesome ATI Radeon video card with some Altec Lansing ACS-500 surround speakers) in October 1996, and rapidly watched the market take off while my machine was quickly left in the dust both in horsepower and affordability. I was learning why I loved my Amiga so much all those years...it didn't require an annual budget of $1000 to keep the beast up with current technology standards.

Over the past several years (err... decades - damn), these machines have taught me a lot about computers, gotten my menial tasks done, helped me become a better illustrator, kept me from getting bored when there's not much to do or on TV, kept me from getting my chores done, and helped keep the bank account from getting too full... but I love playing with them and as long I can, I'll have at least one computer taking over a corner somewhere in my house.

Over the past few years, I've earned several Industry recognized IT Certifications, including: A+, MCP & MCSA.  and CISSP - which fall more in line my current job requirements as an IT Systems Security Professional.

Check out the blog for the latest PC Tweakin' fun (or 'not so much fun,' in some cases)

Most of my machines listed below... I built all of them (except for the laptops, of course), and they've been my work-horses over the years: