>>nanoch+(OP)
The author mentions his father's "$2000 computer", a figure has no impact in 2025, when $2,000 doesn't seem like a particularly large amount of money to have spent on a state of the art PC.
I'm of the opinion that writers should make it a habit in pieces like these to always include prices that have been adjusted for inflation. In this case, $2,000 corresponds to $6,731.61, which provides better context for the story.
>>xattt+DRc
Well, some people needed it for work, or for university. Some people got it from work to be able to work at home. Others may have had experience with 8 bit machines and had money when the PC hit the stores.