A couple (perhaps more?) days ago, my friend Simone tagged me with the brand new meme How did you got started in software development? Uhm... ok... here we go ;-)

How old were you when you started programming?

I can't tell it for sure, it must have been when I was 6 or 7 with my father's Pc IBM (who was actually doing it professionally). Anyway... I'm talking about early 80s here.

How did you get started in programming?

My father wanted me to learn how to do it, although I was very young and all that I could do was summing two numbers or playing some notes on the internal beeper. After that very early period, I focused more on videogames for some years, until Visual Basic 1.0 came out. I was so excited that I decided this would have been my life's profession.

What was your first language?

Basic

What was the first real program you wrote?

It was a car taxes calculator I made for a company that hired me during summertime (I was still a student). I made it in Visual Basic for MS-DOS (can anyone remember it?)

What languages have you used since you started programming?

So many... C, C++, Assembler, Basic, Visual Basic, C#, HTML, Javascript, Java... Oh... and VHDL too, as I've been working on digital controlled power supply too.

What was your first professional programming gig?

As I said before, I joined a company to do some work during summer time while I was still a student. Then I re-joined the same company many years later, after my degree in engineering.

If you knew then what you know now, would you have started programming?

Uhm... I think so... I'm actually so happy on what I do every day. However, if I could, I would take some different path on my professional career.

If there is one thing you learned along the way that you would tell new developers, what would it be? 

Try to work with the best, and someday you'll become one of them too.

What's the most fun you've ever had ... programming?

Too easy... having diner with my friends at UGIdotNet after a meeting!!

Who do I tag?

Uhm... what about my friend Alkampfer? :D