What was my favourite invention from my childhoold

Damien Mulley posted a great competition from Science Week where entrants can win a Nintendo Wii if you post your answer and you are lucky enough to be drawn at the end of the day.

So, in answer to today’s question, "What was MY favourite invention from my childhood?":

The Acorn Alectron.

The WHAT I hear you say?

From what I remember, it was the poor relation to the BBC Micro and only had 32K of RAM but also had BBC Basic in its ROM meaning I could play the "cooler and better" BBC Micro games on it.

But more than anything, like the Commodore 64 a few months later, it set my imagination alight. Never before did I have a tool which allowed me to both PLAY programs as well as code programs.

At aged just 9, I was buying books about computing and teaching myself how to write something that would allow a computer to "speak to me" and provide answers to questions I ask of it, or allow me to guide a submarine away from depth charges…

For the first time ever, at just 9, I had the capability to not only take control of the future, but to design it too.

Tags: tags, science week, mulley, acorn electron