A friend had an Apple ][+ and an acoustically coupled modem in the early 80s. He had to dial the phone and put the receiver into the cups of the modem. One ev

A friend had an Apple ][+ and an acoustically coupled modem in the early 80s. He had to dial the phone and put the receiver into the cups of the modem. One evening of calling a list of modem numbers for Bulletin Boards and companies (there was no specific law against hacking in 1980), I was hooked. I saved $2,500 for an Apple //e, printer, and Zoom modem the next summer and it changed my life. Though I had an MA in clinical psychology and was an intern psychologist, through some some roundabout choices I ended up a few years later as one of the first Forensic Computer Examiners at a small federal law enforcement agency. It was the wild west in the late 1990s as I was working as a Special Agent and they offered the job to me as a sworn agent with no official credentials other than the ones I earned within the agency. Wouldn't have changed a thing. I retired at 51 and am living as an expat.