The Great Geek Manual

1850
The first US patent for a push-key operated adding machine is issued to Dubois D. Parmelee of New Paltz, New York. (US No. 7,074) His “Calculating Machine” diagram shows nine keys. Each key causes a ratchet to raise a graduated indicator rod at the rear of the device by a corresponding number of notches. The calculator will ultimately be unsuccessful. The first successful calculator will be invented forty years later by William Burroughs.

1861
A patent is issued to Coleman Sellers of Philadelphia for the Kinematoscope, which he describes as an “improvement in exhibiting stereoscopic pictures of moving objects.” (US No. 31,357) The Kinematoscope projects a series of still pictures with successive stages of action mounted on paddle blades through slits passed under the lens of a stereoscope.

1870
The first motion picture is presented to a theater audience by Henry R. Heyl using a Phasmatrope. A Phasmatrope is a converted projecting lantern with a rotating disc mounted to its front and sixteen openings near the edge, each of which carries a photographic plate. The plates hold a series of animation cells depicting dancers, who appear to move as the rotating disc spins. The demonstration marks the Ninth Annual Entertainment of the Young Men’s Society of St. Mark’s Evangelical Lutheran Church of Philadelphia, an event held at the Academy of Music, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1897
The Indiana State House legislature passes Bill Number 246 which, in effect, assigns Pi the value of exactly 3.2. The bill states, in part, that “the ratio of the diameter and circumference [pi] is as five-fourths to four.” The bill was introduced by Representative Taylor I. Record, a farmer and lumber merchant, on behalf of a mathematical hobbyist, Dr. Edwin J. Goodwin, M.D. The politicians don’t understand that the bill is mathematically incorrect. Clarence A. Waldo, a mathematics professor at Purdue University, will eventually realize the error and notify the Indiana Senators. The bill will be indefinitely postponed on February 12, 1897.

1899
Thomas Alva Edison is issued a patent for a “Phonograph Recorder and Reproducer”.

1932
CBS affiliate W2XAB broadcasts the first educational television programming in the US.

1936
Charlie Chaplin releases the last movie of the silent film era, Modern Times. IMDB listing

1958
Jack Kilby of Texas Instruments (TI) files a patent application for miniaturized electronic circuits. Kilby’s device connects several transistors by flying wires.

1958
A hydrogen bomb known as the Tybee Bomb is lost by the US Air Force off the coast of Savannah, Georgia, never to be recovered. Read more at the Tybee Bomb website.

1967
The NASA Lunar Orbiter 3 is launched. It will orbit the Moon, in order to photograph its far side for potential Apollo 12 landing sites, before impacted on command.

1971
The NASA manned lunar lander Antares of Apollo 14 lands near the Fra Mauro region of the Moon, where the crew will collect 42.9 kilograms of lunar samples using a hand cart, completing the aborted mission of the Apollo 13. The crew of the lunar lander consists of Commander Alan Shepard and Lunar Module Pilot Edgar Mitchell who walk on the Moon for four hours.

1974
The NASA space probe Mariner 10 returns the first close-up photos of the cloud structure and circulation of Venus. It flies past the planet for a “gravity assist” to the planet Mercury. Mariner 10 is the first probe sent to explore two planets in a single mission, as well as the first spacecraft to have an imaging system.

1985
Namco enters into an agreement with Warner Communications to acquire a controlling interest in the coin-operated game division of Atari Games for about US$10 million.

1990
The Star Trek: The Next Generation episode “Déjà Q” first airs. (No. 313) In it, the Continuum strips Q of his powers and exiles him to the Enterprise. Memory Alpha entry

1993
The board of commissioners of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) takes a vote on whether or not to charge Microsoft with allegedly colluding with International Business Machines (IBM) in unfair trade practices. The vote results in a 2-2 split that results in no action being taken. Visit the official FTC website.

1996
Gilbert Amelio officially assumes his duties as the Chairman of Apple Computer. Visit the official website of Apple Computer.

Netscape Communications releases version 2.0 of the Netscape Navigator web browser, featuring support for 3D graphics, Java applets, JavaScript, and streaming audio. Visit the official website of Netscape Navigator. Price: US$49

Nintendo announces that a a chip shortage will delay the release of it 64-bit video game system to the US market until September 30. Visit the official Nintendo website.

1997
America Online (AOL) suffers another service blackout beginning at 5:10pm Eastern Time and lasting for as long as two hours for many subscribers. The blackout is cause by a new version of the system’s software which was installed earlier in the day. Visit the official AOL website.

Members of the infamous German hacking group Chaos Computer Club group demonstrates an ActiveX utility that allows hackers to remotely access copies of the Intuit accounting software Quicken to transfer money between bank accounts, circumventing the software’s normal password security systems. Visit the official Chaos Computer Club website.

The source code of the Bliss virus, which effects Linux computers, is posted on Usenet by its author. Read more about the Bliss Virus.

The website of Chocolate Chip Cookies is hacked by “Kalony”.

1999
The online Victoria’s Secret fashion show attracts over 1.5 million visitors, becoming the first major webcast in history. Visit the official Victoria Secret’s website.

2000
The website of Altavista Careers is hacked anonymously. View an archived version of the defaced website.

The website of Crime Watch S.A. is hacked by “#Dorknet”. View an archived version of the defaced website.

The website of Sony Entertainment Television India is hacked by “mOs [ Muslim Online Syndicate ]“. View an archived version of the defaced website.

2001
Microsoft announces that its next operating system will be called Windows XP, and Microsoft Office 10 will be branded as Office XP. “XP” name is short for “experience.” Visit the official Windows XP website.

2003
The American video game publisher Midway closes its West Coast office in Milpitas, California. Visit the official Midway website.

Nokia introduces the N-Gage hand held game system in London, England, and Sydney, Australia. It features cell phone functionality, wireless connectivity, a web browser, a music player, and an FM radio. Games are held on 3.4MB capacity MultiMedia Cards. The unit will be on sale by year’s end. Over three million units will be sold by July 30, 2007. Visit the official N-Gage website.

The Star Trek: Enterprise episode “Stigma” first airs. (No. 214) In it, T’Pol discovers that she has contracted pan’aar syndrome. Memory Alpha entry

2004
Version 2 (v1.5.0) of the Java programming language is released.