1889
Thomas Edison is issued a patent for an “Electrical Distribution System.” (U.S. No. 404,902)
1892
Limelight Department, one of the first film studios, is established in Melbourne, Australia.
1895
The first US patent for a gasoline-driven automobile by a US inventor is issued to Charles E. Duryea. (US No. 540,648)
1901
Thomas Edison is granted a patent for a “Phonographic Recording Apparatus.” (US No. 676,225)
1928
A rocket is attached to an aircraft for the first time. The aircraft is a glider, and the experiment is directed by German aircraft designer Alexander Lippisch. The glider launches under the power of one rocket and an elastic launching rope that acts as a slingshot. Once it is in flight a second rocket is fired. The glider manages to fly a mile before falling apart in the air and crashing. Although the pilot survives, the experiment marks an inauspicious start to the era of rocket-powered flight.
1929
Walt Disney files a trademark application for the image of Mickey Mouse with the United States Patent Office.
1935
Inventor Edwin Armstrong gives the first public demonstration of FM broadcasting in the United States, in Alpine, New Jersey.
1963
A patent for the Mercury space capsule is granted to Blanchard, Chilton, Faget, Hammack, Johnson, Kehlet, and Meyer and and assigned to NASA. (US No. 3,093,346) The invention is described as a “manned capsule configuration capable of being launched into orbital flight and returned to the earth’s surface.” The invention is intended to provide “protection for its occupant from the deleterious effects of large pressure differentials, high temperatures, micrometerorite collisions, high level acoustical noise, and severe inertial and impact loads.” The patent application was filed on October 6, 1959. Mercury 1 was already flown, on 5 May 1961, in a fifteen sub-orbital flight carrying Alan B. Shepard before the patent was issued.
1975
Harvard professor Michael McElroy and other scientists concerned about atmospheric ozone depletion proclaim their support for banning chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) as a propellant in spray cans. The US government will implement a prohibition on chlorofluorocarbons three years later.
1978
Texas Instruments Inc. introduces the Speak & Spell, an educational device for elementary children, at the summer Consumer Electronics Show (CES). The US$50 Speak & Spell helped children learn to spell more than two hundred common words and featured a popular hangman game. The device features the first synthesis of the human vocal tract performed by a single chip of silicon. The Speak & Spell utilized linear predictive coding to formulate a mathematical model of the human vocal tract and predict a speech sample based on previous input. It transformed digital information processed through a filter into synthetic speech, and it could store over one hundred seconds of linguistic sound. The first model will feature individual plastic buttons, while later models will have a depressible plastic matte. The toy will later be featured in the blockbuster film E.T. Browse a visual history of the Speak & Spell at 99ner.net.
1980
Steve Ballmer joins Microsoft as the company’s twenty-fourth employee and first business manager after dropping out of Stanford University. He is initially offered a salary of US$50,000 as well as a percentage of the company. When Microsoft is incorporated in 1981, Ballmer will own eight percent of the company.
1982
Universal Pictures releases the science fiction film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Henry Thomas, Dee Wallace, Robert MacNaughton, Drew Barrymore, and Peter Coyote, to 1,103 US theaters. Produced on a budget of US$10.5 million, the film will gross US$11,835,389 domestically in the opening weekend. The film will remain the top grossing film for six weeks and fluctuate between the number one and number two positions until January, grossing US$352 million domestically by the end of its theatrical run on June 3, 1983. During the theatrical run, the Hershey Company saw their profits rise sixty-five percent, due to the positive publicity generated for Reese’s Pieces by the film. The film will be re-released on July 19, 1985 and March 22, 2002. IMDB listing (MPAA Rating: PG) Running Time: 1 hr 57 mins
1986
Paramount Pictures releases the comedy film Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, directed by John Hughes and starring Matthew Broderick, Alan Ruck, and Mia Sara, to 1,330 US theaters. In the film, the main character is seen hacking into his high school’s computer system in order to alter his attendance record to omit his numerous absences. Produced on a budget of US$250,000, the film will gross US$6,275,647 domestically in its opening weekend. IMDB listing (MPAA Rating: PG-13) Running Time: 1 hr 42 mins
1988
The term General Public License (GPL) is used for the first time.
1990
A US District Court judge in San Francisco rejects Nintendo’s request to issue a temporary restraining order against Lewis Galoob Toys to prevent the sale of the Game Genie.
1991
Aboard the cruise yacht New Yorker, dubbed the “DOS Boat,” Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer unveil MS-DOS 5.0 in New York City harbor. The new version of the operating system features a full-screen editor, undelete and unformat utilities, and task swapping functionality. GW-BASIC is replaced by Qbasic, which is based on Microsoft’s QuickBASIC.
1993
Universal Pictures releases the science fiction film Jurassic Park, directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum, Richard Attenborough, and Samuel L. Jackson, to 2,404 US theaters. Based on the novel of the same name by Michael Crichton, the film is set on the island of Isla Nublar, where scientists have created an amusement park of genetically engineered dinosaurs. When sabotage sets the dinosaurs loose to stalk the island, technicians and visitors desperately attempt to escape the island. Produced on a budget of US$63 million, the film will gross $47,026,828 domestically in its opening weekend. Visit the official movie website. IMDB listing (MPAA Rating: PG-13) Running Time: 2 hrs 7 mins
1997
Version 3.3 of the Slackware Linux distribution is released by creator Patrick Volkerding. Slackware is most notable for its policy of incorporating only stable releases of applications. It’s philosophy is to maintain its stability and simplicity, in an effort to be the most UNIX-like Linux distribution. Visit the official Slackware website or the official Slackware blog.
Version 4.0 of the Netscape Communicator internet suite is released in several different editions, including “Professional” and “Complete”. The suite includes the Netscape Navigator web browser, the Netscape Messenger e-mail client, the Netscape Address Book, the Netscape Composer HTML editor, Netscape Netcaster push technology client, Netscape Conference communication client, and the Netscape Calendar enterprise calendar client.
1998
Digital Equipment Corporation stockholders approve the company’s acquisition by Compaq Computer for US$9 billion in what will become the single largest technology sector acquisition in history. Visit the official Compaq website.
Scientists decipher the last of the genetic code material of bacterium that causes Tuberculosis.
2000
The Brazilian website of Intervista Comunicago S/C LTDA is hacked by “ANALISTA/FENIX”. View an archived version of the defaced website.
The Brazilian website of Compahnia Energetica De Minas Gerais is hacked by “Crime Boys”. View an archived version of the defaced website.
The Brazilian website of Fundacao Instituto De Tecnologia Do Estado de Pern is hacked by “Crime Boys”. View an archived version of the defaced website.
The website of Eurocash Ltd is hacked by “Esfinger Team”. View an archived version of the defaced website.
The website of MSI Security Systems, Inc. is hacked by “Digital Insanity”. View an archived version of the defaced website.
2001
Nintendo launches the Game Boy Advance (GBA) portable game system in the US, featuring a 32-bit 16.8MHz ARM, a Z80 processor for backward compatibility to Game Boy and Game Boy Color games, and a larger, higher resolution screen than its predecessor, the Game Boy Color. Nintendo first released the system in Japan on March 21. Visit the official Game Boy Advance website..
2002
The United States Congress acknowledges Antonio Meucci as the first inventor of the telephone in Resolution No. 269. Read the resolution online.
The first stable release of BioPerl, version 1.0.0, becomes available. BioPerl is an open source collection of Perl modules for bioinformatics applications. The package is notable for the integral role it will play in the historic Human Genome Project. Visit the official BioPerl website.
2003
Intel releases 2.2, 2.3, and 2.4GHz mobile Celeron processor. Prices: US$74 to US$84 in 1000-unit quantities
Intel releases the 2.4GHz low power mobile Celeron processor. Price:US$149 in 1000-unit quantities
Intel releases 2.4, 2.66, 2.8, and 3.06GHz mobile Pentium 4 processors, featuring SpeedStep battery-saving technology and a 533MHz system bus. Prices: US$186 to US$417 in 1000-unit quantities
Intel releases the 2.6GHz Pentium 4-M processor. Price: US$562 in 1000-unit quantities
2004
Cassini-Huygens performs a fly-by of Saturn’s moon Phoebe, passing within 2,068KM of its cloud tops at 19:33UT. Scientists plan to use the data collected to create global maps of the cratered moon, as well as to determine Phoebe’s composition, mass, and density. It will take scientists several days to analyze the data and draw conclusions.
Paramount Pictures releases the science fiction film The Stepford Wives, directed by Frank Oz and starring Nicole Kidman, Matthew Broderick, Bette Midler, and Christopher Walken, to 3,057 US theaters. The film is a remake of the 1975 film of the same name. While the original film was widely hailed by as a classic that made an immense cultural impact, this remake will be largely dismissed due to its lighter subject matter. Produced on a budget of US$90 million, it will gross US$21,406,781 domestically in its opening weekend. IMDB listing (MPAA Rating: PG-13) Running Time: 1 hr 33 mins
Universal Pictures releases the science fiction film The Chronicles of Riddick, directed by David Twohy and starring Vin Diesel, Judi Dench, Thandie Newton, Karl Urban, Nick Chinlund, and Colm Feore, to 2,757 US theaters. Produced on a budget of US$105 million, it will gross US$24,289,165 domestically in its opening weekend. IMDB listing (MPAA Rating: PG-13) Running Time: 1 hr 59 mins
2005
Apple officially relinquishes the last trademark on the name OpenDoc. Visit Apple’s official OpenDoc website.
2006
Google adds geocoding capabilities to Google Maps. Geocoding is the ability to assign specific identifiers, in this case addresses, to points on a map. Google Map’s API allows developers to access their geocode servers via HTTP requests or javascript. Read more about geocoding at Google’s Developer Blog.
Nintendo releases the successor to the Nintendo DS, the Nintendo DS Lite handheld video game system in the US. Color: Polar White Price: US$129.99
Version 2.1.3 of the peer-to-peer file sharing application aMule is released. The application connects to the eDonkey2000 network and the Kad Network, but offers more features than the standard eDonkey client. Visit the official aMule website.
2007
Apple releases a version of its Safari web browser for Windows computers in an attempt to slacken Microsoft’s domination of the web browser market. Visit the official Safari website.
2008
NASA launches the Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST) from Cape Canaveral, Florida.
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