I've tinkered with deep settings and user-made software ever since my parents brought home our first computer running Windows 3.1 without Internet connectivity. We didn't get an ISP hookup until Windows 98, first upgrading to a Windows 95 PC purely to get access to Microsoft Office and Encarta. However, that doesn't mean third-party apps weren't available. On the contrary, we had a stack of 3.5-inch floppy disks with gems shared by friends and family, and I still use one of my favorites found back in the Windows XP era.
Yes, I still used floppy discs with Windows XP; they were much cheaper than a CD-RW burner drive. In fact, I didn't buy a 128MB USB flash drive until 2005, and (I think) I still have it in a box somewhere.
