Apple ][, Imsai 8080, and Creative Computing mag (Score 1)

I started in BASIC on a DEC mini-computer in 5th grade and was quickly smitten. Soon I subscribed to Creative Computing and typed in almost every program in the magazine. Next I was played around with assembly on an Imsai 8080, then I got my own Apple ][+ (I splurged for 48K RAM) and used BASIC, 6502 assembly, and Pascal.

The Imsai 8080 was a great way to learn how computers work under the hood. I remember debugging and patching programs (painfully!) through binary LEDs and toggle switches. Being able to see the address and data buses in binary on the front-panel LEDs was invaluable. The dedicated single step switch was cool too.

The Apple ][+ manuals were helpful too, especially the monitor ROM assembly code and motherboard schematics. I pored over those and gradually understood more and more.

I never worked on cars, but I imagine programming those early computers was like working on an old VW Bug. They were simple enough that you could work on them yourself and learn how the whole thing worked.