These questions make me feel some how about myself for not taking advantage of Bitcoin few years back.
Now back to your question, I got to know about Bitcoin from a friend's couple of years ago when the price was still less than $500 for a Bitcoin.
My friend is payment processors and cryptocurrency Merchant. The helps to make payment with PayPal and trade web money like Perfect Money, Ebullion, E-gold, Liberty Reserve etc.
He told that there was a new coin in the market and it is called bitcoin. He said bitcoin might likely to be the next internet wave. He notified us that the price might likely skyrocket and make people rich due to some of the reports he read.
I asked him to count me out of his business talks as I was tired of being scammed. I had to kick myself for not listen to my friend back then as he now on of the richest young guys in my city.