The Great Geek Manual

1630
Popcorn is introduced to the Pilgrims by an Indian named Quadequina, who delivered it to them in deerskin bags as his contribution to the first Thanksgiving dinner. Indians had been growing popcorn for more than a thousand years before the arrival of European colonists.

1774
The English House of Lords rules that authors do not have perpetual copyright.

1828
German biochemist Friederich Wohler informs Jakob Berzelius that he has synthesized the organic chemical, urea, which was formerly found only in urine. This marks the first time that a chemical produced only by living organisms has been synthesized.

1912
National Cash Registers (NCR) becomes the first company ever prosecuted under US antitrust laws. Antitrust laws will later play a significant role in the computer and telecommunications industries. Among the top executives of NCR is Thomas J. Watson, who will later found of International Business Machines. Visit the official NCR website.

1924
The first presidential radio address, broadcast from the White House, is delivered by Calvin Coolidge. The address is carried on five stations, with an estimated five million listeners.

1965
The Soviet Union launches Kosmos 57 into Earth orbit.

1983
Seventeen American and Japanese companies form a group to support a three inch floppy disk and drive, with a capacity of 500,000 bytes.

1986
The first Swedish satellite, Viking, is launched on an Ariane 1 rocket.

1988
The Star Trek: The Next Generation episode “Home Soil” first airs. (No. 118) In it, the crew encounters a microscopic lifeform that is endangering the inhabitants of a planet undergoing terraforming. Memory Alpha entry

1989
Renowned physicist Stephen Hawking publicly denounces the Star Wars project a “deliberate fraud.”

1993
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is re-designated as the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA), which was its original name before March 23, 1972, in President Clinton’s strategy paper, “Technology for America’s Economic Growth, A New Direction to Build Economic Strength.” Visit the original DARPA website.

The made-for-television movie Babylon 5: The Gathering, directed by Richard Compton and starring Michael O’Hare, Tamlyn Tomita, Jerry Doyle, and Mira Furlan airs as the pilot episode of the science fiction television series Babylon 5. IMDB listing Running time: 1 hr 29 mins

The Star Trek: The Next Generation episode “Birthright (Part 1)” first airs. (No. 616) In it, Worf is told that his father is alive, living as a captive of the Romulans. As he travels to discover the truth, Data experiences his first dream. Memory Alpha entry

1995
Steve Fossett completes the first hot air balloon flight over Pacific Ocean in history, having traveled approximately 9,600 kilometers. Visit Steve Fossett’s website.

1996
Disney launches the Disney.com website to provide a travel guide for its Disneyland and Walt Disney World amusement parks.

The Space Shuttle Columbia is launched on its nineteenth mission. (STS-75) During the mission, it conducts experiments involving the second flight of a tethered satellite. During the course of the experiment, the tether breaks and the satellite is lost.

1997
In Roslin, Scotland, scientists announce that they have successfully cloned an adult sheep named Dolly. It was cloned from an adult somatic cell, through the process of nuclear transfer. Read more about Dolly at the website of the Roslin Institute.

1998
The website of All Wrestling is hacked by “Cyber Christ”. View an archived version of the defaced website.

The website of Hunting Times is hacked. View an archived version of the defaced website.

The website of One Life Drug Free is hacked by “One Life Crew”. View an archived version of the defaced website.

1999
Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) releases the 400MHz K6-III processor, featuring a 64KB Level-1 cache, a 256KB Level-2 cache, 3DNow! graphics instructions, and Direct X 6.0 support. The processor incorporates 21.3 million transistors in a 0.25-micron process. In some tests, it outperforms the soon-to-be released Pentium III processor from Intel, which dominates the processor industry. The processor is based on 100Mhz Super Socket 7 motherboards, an improvement on the 66MHz buses on which previous AMD chips have been based. This helps its performance when compared to Intel’s Pentium II – which also uses a 100MHz bus speed. Code-name: Sharptooth

The First Internet Bank of Indiana opens, becoming the first full-service bank accessible only through the Internet. Visit the official website of the First Internet Bank of Indiana.

Hitachi announces the HPW-600ET tablet-style handheld computer, featuring a Hitachi 128MHz SH-4 processor, a 7.5-inch color display, Windows CE, and a modem. Price: US$1,199

TSR Inc. releases the AD&D Fantasy Roleplaying manual for the Greyhawk setting The Scarlet Brotherhood by Sean Reynolds as a paperback. (ISBN-10: 0786913746) Length: 96 pages

2000
Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) releases the 550MHz K6-2 processor. Price: US$189 in 1000-unit quantities

District Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson compares the Microsoft Corporation to the monopoly once held by Standard Oil. Judge Jackson says that he sees little difference between the Windows operating system and the nineteenth century oil monopoly. “Copyright does not protect the conduct with which your company is charged,” Jackson tells John Warden, Microsoft’s lead attorney.

Palm Computer introduces the Palm IIIc handheld computer, featuring a 20MHz Motorola Dragonball EZ processor, 8MB RAM, and version 3.5 of the Palm OS. Price: US$449

Palm Computer introduces the Palm IIIxe handheld computer, which is nearly identical to the Palm IIIx, but with 8MB RAM. It features a 16MHz Motorola 68328EZ Dragonball processor, 8MB RAM, and version 3.5 of the Palm OS. Price: US$249

Texas Instruments (TI) introduces two new Digital Signal Processor (DSP) microchips designed for wireless high-speed Internet access, the C64x and the C55x.

Via introduces the Cyrix III processor, in 400 and 433MHz speeds with system bus speeds of 100, 124, and 133MHz. Via expects to begin shipping the processor in April. Code-name: Joshua Prices: US$89 and US$99

2001
Apple Computer introduces a new line of iMacs featuring CD-RW drives, FireWire ports, iMovie, iTunes, up to 40GB hard drives, and up to 600MHz PowerPC G3 processors. The new iMac line comes in two new patterns, Blue Dalmatian and Flower Power, as well as the two most popular iMac colors, Graphite and Indigo. Visit the official iMac website.

The Quintus Corporation files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy, and announces a deal in which Avaya will acquire the company. Quintus acquired Mustang Software, the developers of Wildcat! BBS Software, in 2000.

2002
Microsoft releases a Special-Edition Xbox video game system in Japan. It features a distinctly colored, smoke-black translucent case, an HDTV adapter, Dolby 5.1 audio, and includes a key chain embossed with Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates’ signature. Bill Gates hands the first Xbox sold in Japan to Atsushi Ishizaka. ¥39,800 (about US$300)

Microsoft releases the Xbox video game system in Japan. Price: ¥34,800 (about US$263)

2005
Version 3.0.4 of the Scientific Linux Fermi LTS operating system is released. Visit the official Fermi Linux website.

2006
At least six men stage the largest robbery in Britain’s history, stealing fifty-three million pounds (about $92.5 million US dollars or 78 million euros) from a Securitas depot in Tonbridge, Kent. The plot was well planned. On the evening before, two men, dressed as police officers, pulled the depot manager, Colin Dixon, over as he was driving in nearby Stockbury. They convinced him to get out of his car, and forced him into their vehicle. At about the same time, two more men visited Dixon’s home and picked up Dixon’s wife and eight-year-old son; eventually all three Dixons were taken to a farm in West Kent, where the gang threatened their lives if Colin refused to cooperate with the robbery. The Dixons were then forced to go with the gang to the Securitas depot, where Colin helped them evade the building’s security system. The gang proceeded to tie up 14 depot staff members, load the £53 million into a truck and, at about 2:15 a.m. on February 22, drive away. No one was injured in the robbery.

2007
Apple and Cisco announce an agreement under which both companies will use the iPhone name worldwide. Cisco acquired the iPhone trademark in June 2000, with the acquistion of the InfoGear Technology Corporation. In October of 2006, Apple had been granted trademarks in Australia and Singapore.

2008
The hacker group Cult of the Dead Cow releases an automated, open source vulnerability scanner, The Goolag Scanner, that uses Google search techniques to audit the security of web properties the GNU Affero general public license.

Researchers at Princeton University announce that the discovery of a technique by which chilling DRAM with compressed air causes it to retain data long after a computer is shut down. Using this technique, the security keys used in data-encryption can be recovered remain, allowing encrypted systems can be easily compromised. Read more at the New York Times.