My dad was a software engineer in the 80s and 90s.
I was playing DOS games at age 6, and navigating DOS by age 8.
Really, DOS was a trainer for all the tech I would need to learn later. Having to learn the commands to navigate directory structures...how to differentiate file types....suffix commands....all that put me three steps ahead of the average new Windows user. I already knew the foundation Windows was built on. That left me time to explore, while other people were still trying to figure out what a C: drive is and why everything is stored there.
The next step was naturally deciding to learn about hardware. My first build was scary, but I got it done. Luckily I had the Internet and a lot of more knowledgable friends to rely on, to fill in the gaps of what I didn't know. I think I've built 4 complete systems now, and yanked and reinstalled enough hardware to make several more.
The next step I guess would Network Administration.....but I don't know if I want to take the plunge or not. I'm not in a hurry to get into the IT field. But I can't say it's not an appealing offer given how ***** the economy is, and how necessary admins are.
Curiosity, though. That's why I know more than your average computer user. I wanted to know, and I cared enough to find out on my own. When anyone starts getting all emo about learning windows, I tell them I learned everything I know by literally: hovering over a button, waiting for the tool tip, investigating the options available, and comparing that to what I already knew.
Problem is, people in the 90s were trained in computer classes to fear "the crash." I remember computer teachers warning us that crashes could "Destroy systems" and "ruin computers." We learned that wasn't the case when we wrote a APPLE II GS drawing script that overloaded the comp's memory and crashed it. People are afraid of touching computers because they're worried about doing irrevocable damage to it. That's POSSIBLE, but only if you're criminally stupid, or messing with hardware. In this day and age, there's an undo for just about everything.
About the only thing I know I'll never get into is coding. I'm just not wired for it.