Oct. 1--I remember getting my first computer which was an Apple II back in the late '70s.

You may be surprised when I tell you what mostly stands out about those times.

It wasn't the fun I had playing with it nor the sense of discovery and accomplishment I achieved as I learned how to program it and figured out ways to use it in school. Unfortunately the main thing I remember was how I constantly had to justify owning it.

"Why do you need one?", "How much did you spend on it?", "What's it good for?", "Can you make any money with it?" were some of my favorite questions people would ask whenever I told them I owned a computer. My personal favorite wisenheimer remark was "Well, can it wash the dishes?" to which I'd say something like "No, that would be a robot, not a desktop computer."

I really can't put my finger on the exact date those annoying questions finally ended but thank goodness the personal computer has earned its rightful place in our society. Of course there are those who stubbornly remain technologically challenged but at least they don't ask me those same kind of questions anymore. Or so I thought.

At first I thought I was experiencing a major case of deja vu but I've since come to identify the source of it all and it has a name.

It's my iPhone.

When Apple finally released its version 2.0 operating system for this device and allowed third party developers to create applications for it, the iPhone was no longer just a cell phone. No, the iPhone is actually a hand-held personal computer that just happens to be able to make phone calls.

Yet whenever I talk about the iPhone on my radio show or write about it in my newspaper column, I get inundated with irate callers and emails that ask me the same questions I used to get from those who didn't understand why I would want to own a computer!

Actually the questions have been upgraded to reflect the times but their meaning is basically the same. People question me as to why I need one. My personal favorite is now "Why do I need a cell phone that does all of those things? All I need is a simple cell phone to make and receive calls!"

You wouldn't think so but amazingly, I get this question a lot from people who own a computer. I usually begin by asking them if they only want to communicate when they're sitting in front of their computers.

After a few blinks, I push on with some examples.

Email is a good place to begin. Getting and replying to emails on my iPhone saves me countless hours of delayed response time if I could only read and reply when I was back at my computer. And there are so many more examples.