My first interaction with computers was in 1989 when I recieved my first IBM x86 PC...I want to say it was an IBM Ambra. DOS prompt and all, I was hooked. Years later, I would scare my parents and alienate friends by taking them apart, upgrading parts and generally spending unhealthy amounts of time disecting the operations of the machine. When a friend of mine setup a T1 line and SGI Irix machine in 1995 (for his business), I was quickly hooked on the power of the Internet. Before joining Microsoft in 2003, I spent the intervening years getting my IT degree from New York University and freelancing in web development during the .com years.