How old was everyone when they built their first computer, if you have built one already? you can also tell us what it was, or any other stories about computers you tried to build.

I've been into computers since the age of about 5 or 6 but I took a break from the ages of about 16 to 21.

When I was 21, I got back into computers. My life changed the day I got a 486 back then. I upgraded it to a pentium 200. But I did not fit the motherboard myself.

Sometime after that my HDD died, and I had to buy a new one. So I fitted it myself. It took me about 1 hour just to get it inside that small, packed case, and to get the BIOS to recognise it, to format, it, etc. Then was when I installed Windows for the first time as well.

It all began at that moment. Now, I can fix PCs in my sleep. It doesn't matter what is wrong with them. And I work for a multinational investment bank as an operate programmer, I write Perl and Java code and work with UNIX systems. I could only do that because of what happened to me that day when I fit that drive.

Of course, I went on to build whole computers. I even took a job as a computer technician for years after. I worked on an NT LAN. We upgraded the domain to Windows 2000. All of these things I could not have done without what happened on that day.

I was 17 when I built my first PC. I developed an interest for computers at a very young age, but my parents didn't buy one until I was 14. It it was a slow learning process, but once I got a computer I could mess with, my ability to work with PC's took off like a rocket. I've recently graduated with a Computer Science Degree and work as a systems administrator at a small office.

The day i started to learn to use computer was also the around the first timei started to use the internet. This was back in 96 when i was 10 years old. Dad was pissed of at times as no one at home knew how to repair it and had to send it to a tech guy for repair. It wasnt until I got older till I stop crashing Windows OS.

When I was 15, I got an 800MHz Duron rig as present from mom. I was really unsatisfied with the specifications and decided to find ways to upgrade it. Stumbled across Techspot then known as 3DSpotlight. Then I did my first sound card, video card and CD burner upgrade all at one time. Then built my first PC, an AMD XP2000+ when I was 16.

The first computer I built myself was when I was 23 (that was in 98) and it was a Celeron 300A @ 504 MHz and a Whopper Celery Sandwich HSF on an A-Bit BH6 with High Perf Micron RAM and a HUGE 10 gig WD drive I bought my first computer (actually my mom paid for it) in 87. Gone through a lot of machines since then.

I got my first PC when I was 8 (or around that age), what I can correctly recall however is that I built my own when I was 14...

I actually built my own around 12 years old, back in 2000. It was a P3 450 (that I overclocked to 558) on an Abit BH6 with 128MB of SDRAM and a 10GB WD Caviar HD. Draws a few comparisons with Papa's first built machine Some of the components were from my dad's old machine, which he upgraded and gave the old stuff to me (for my 12th birthday I think) and showed me the basics of how to build one.

I was a natural with computers, I immediately understood how to build one, with just looking at the parts. About a year later I discovered TechSpot, and, well, here I am now. I don't love computers as much as I used to (which you can tell by my apparent decline of posting), but they're still a big part of my life.

I actually got my first computer when I was around 8 or 9. It was a 200MHz Mac, and all I did on it was surf the internet and play Escape Velocity (which is still a great game).

My first computer was a Commodore 64(which I still own minus the monitor) The fist machine I built was a 286 that was actually built from the parts of two pre-existing machines. Since then, I would wager that I've built several hundred(both personally and professionally)

I've always been one to tear things apart to see how they work and am always trying to improve the way things work. I've been doing PC and electronics repair since I was about 15. Doing a lot of general electronics repair and installing car stereos when I was in HS. Currently I work in Corporate Tech support for a well known computer company and run my own Electronics repair business on my off time.

I started messing around with the internals of machine from around 9, but the first time I went out and bought more than half the components of a machine in one go, I was 14.

I'm proud to say my desktop is still, in theory a 1997 Dell Dimension H-266. All thats left is the NIC though, and I've actually rebuilt the H-266 by now

ok well it seems most of you built your first PCs at early ages. i am going to look into it, i saw the building a PC thread, i will look over that. but do u guys think i should go with cheaper hardware for my first built comp? if you know of any sites or videos on how to build PCs, help would be appreciated.

I was probably around 18 years old

I bought a barebones from Dell (Dimension p100c) in 1995 I believe, and upgraded that.
You can find the specs for it here but the year in that post is wrong.

Built my first computer from scratch in 1997, Pentium ][ 300Mhz (slot1), Asus P2L97 motherboard (and that is all the specs I remember right now).

So I upgraded my first computer when I was 14 and built my first from scratch when I was 16.

I "played" on a computer for the first time in 1968, an IBM Mainframe Model 1401, with 8KB (!) of memory, which in those days could already do teleprocessing and document reading.
The watercooling took up as much space (or more) as a complete good-size living-room. We "played" music by letting the (chain-)printer print series of different characters, producing proper tones.
The computer was fed with cards and only understood Assembler (today I can still program in Assembler).
Somewhere in the 70's I got a Sinclair, then a Commodore 20, followed by a 64 and in the 80's got my first PC, a Sperry with an 8086 CPU and 640KB and a 20MB Seagate HD. When the 286 processors came out (around 1983 I think), I bought all the bits and built my first PC. I spent a fortune on a 1MB memory extension card, and I can still feel the pain in my fingers from pushing in those tons of IC memory-chips.
I've lost count of all the PC's I have built (not quite as many as Stormbringer) for myself, friends and family.

I can't tell you the years, but I can tell you the what's.....followed much the same path as realblackstuff only with an Atari 400, 800, Apple IIe, Amiga 500 and upward. Owned my first pc about 1994 or so (don't even remember the brand), but only built my first about 1998. Now, at the ripe old age of 50 I've built more (for friends, family and work) than I can count and love every minute of it. It all somes second-nature now but I'm still learning alot thanks to many of you here. Never to old for that, eh?

ive built all 20 of my pc's..cept my 1st IBM k62 500mhz..that got me into pc's..now i cant seem to stop.lol

Got my first at the ripe age of 3, a C64 with 8k expansion cartridge, dual 5.25 floppies, a tape deck, 300 baud modem, and a green phosphor "monitor" that sucked.

I went through several of all of the above.

Then built my first at 14, a pentium 33. Had adult assistance. w00t.

First one I can take ALL of the credit for was a celeron 300 oc'ed to 450 when I was 19.

Dang we've come a long way in a hurry.

I was a PC as a child.

After some therapy & transplants, I've become much more human these days.

*crash*

Nice one rick, you cut me up

As for the PC's Exactly the same as Masque minus the apple plus 4 years on age.

around then i guess. been building them, upgrading, the usual. but, alienware has my eye right now, and i'm focused.

I was 11 or 12.. I think 12.

It was a 1700+ AXP which cost me (er.. my dad) like $170 at the time. He told me how I had to use stand offs when you put the mobo in, but other then that it was all down hill for me.