I was a console gamer (and still am) before since having a computer at the time was very expensive. When I first got my Pentium 2 system (Pentium 3 processor was released not long before), I was over the moon. At that time I started discovering games for the PC. When I finally had Internet, 56k modem connection, I only used IRC and ICQ and perhaps check one site (hotmail). No infections at the time. The AV solution that was included by the Shop where I got the PC was Norton.
I then got drawn to shell replacements (Litestep and Darkstep). Unfortunately it was not a walk in the park. So I started downloading tutorials only to learn the mechanics etc. Whilst downloading some Litestep tutorials I got interested by some terms so I used yahoo search and came across some rather techie informative sites explaining dll's and other terms. That is when I started studying more and more via the Internet and expanded my limited knowledge wide open, going from gaming to mechanics behind anti-hacking security solutions within games (due to some unpatched versions, some users had to use some rather complicated troubleshooting steps) to security of your own system etc. It was then I got a summer job at a pc repair shop, where I learned how to use Norton Ghost, fix software based issues and assemble new systems or parts (hardware).
With that background, I unfortunately did not specialize in one field but decided to be what you call a jack of all trades, master of none. It is not to say I will not choose to improve my knowledge. I have further improved my knowledge further in this forum (in terms of specific infections removal) along with other guides and tutorials about securities across the internet so far. I also been keen on trying to make my own reviews and video reviews to simply further understand the mechanic behind the products and functions, whilst at the same time, show the user the tests/reviews to have them draw their own conclusion.
