1799
Étienne Gaspard Robertson is granted a patent for his Phantascope magic lantern. The device incorporates a mechanism to maintain focus while the image is tracked forward and backward to change an image’s size.
1845
Stephen Perry of the rubber manufacturing company Messers Perry and Co. of London, England first patents the rubber band. He conceived of the device after experimentally slicing up rubber bottles that had been manufactured by South and Central America natives and brought to England by sailors.
1898
John Philip Holland demonstrates the first practical submarine off Staten Island, New York. The ship remains submerged for one hundred minutes.
1950
Scientists at the University of California at Berkeley announce the discovery of radioactive element 98, “Californium.” It was produced by bombarding Curium-242 with Helium-ions.
1958
The United States Navy launches the Vanguard I satellite from Cape Canaveral, following the Soviet Union’s success with their satellites Sputnik I and Sputnik II spacecraft. Vanguard is the fourth artificial satellite to be put into space, and the first launches in the United States. The three pound satellite was developed in just two years, six months, and eight days from scratch.
1975
The Television Electronic Disc (TeD), early videodisc system from Telefunken is commercially launched in West Germany.
1980
The United States Supreme Court hears arguments in the case of Diamond v. Chakrabarty concerning whether or not genetically-engineered micro-organisms can be patented. On June 16, the court will rule that the patent office can grant patents on any new and useful composition of matter, irregardless of whether or not the matter is alive. The patent will be issued on March 31, 1981.
1986
Programmer Tim Paterson of Falcon Technology writes to Microsoft“>Microsoft, indicating an intent to sell its royalty-free DOS license. Microsoft replies indicating a willingness to buy back the license.
1987
Apple Computer declares six different Mac Plus systems the one millionth Mac, one of which is presented to Interface designer Jef Raskin.
1988
Apple Computer files an eleven page suit against Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard in San Jose federal court. Specifically, Apple Computer accuses Microsoft of using visual display features of the highly successful Macintosh operating system graphical user interface (GUI) in the Windows 2.0 operating system. Apple claims that Windows violates thirteen separate copyrights in order to duplicate the “look and feel” of the Macintosh. Hewlett-Packard is also named as a defendant, for copyright violations in its New Wave desktop environment. The suit will be lost in 1995.
1992
Russia launches the Soyuz TM-14 space craft on a mission to the space station Mir. It is the first Soyuz mission following the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
1993
Strategic Simulations releases roleplaying game (RPG) Forgotten Realms: Unlimited Adventures for Dos and Macintosh computers.
1994
Konami releases the platform game Castlevania: Bloodlines for the Sega Genesis in the US.
1995
Interplay Productions release first-person shooter (FPS) Descent for personal computers. The game will fail to achieve widespread popularity, as most gamers dismiss it as a Doom clone, while overlooking its many unique features. ESRB: T (Teen)
Sega releases the racing game Sonic Drift 2 for the Game Gear system in the US.
1996
The website of Telia, the major telephone company of Finland and Sweden, is hacked twice. The first time the page is hacked is the first instance of an attack on a Swedish website. The second time the website is hacked, it is defaced, in part, with a message reading, “All rights removed by
The Kevin Mitnick Liberation Front in memory of S.H.A!!!” View an archived version of the website the first time it was defaced and the second time it was defaced.
1997
Microsoft releases Office ‘97 Small Business Edition. Price: US$249
Nintendo of America announces a new Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) for the Nintendo 64 video game system of US$149.95. The move comes in an effort to make the console more competitive with Sony’s system, which has also undergone price reductions. According to Nintendo, the system has an two million established users in the United States. Visit the official Nintendo of America website.
Sony Computer Entertainment of America (SCEA) formally announces the availability of Net Yaroze, a PlayStation development system for hobbyists. Price: US$750
1998
The website of Yunasoft of Japan is hacked “anonymously”. View an archived version of the defaced website.
1999
America Online (AOL) completes the acquisition of Netscape Communications Corporation in a US$10 million arrangement. Visit the official AOL website.
Intel introduces the Pentium III Xeon processor at speeds of 500MHz and 550MHz, with 9.5 million transistors, a 100MHz bus, and a 64-bit bus.
2000
Dell Computer begins shipping personal computers with 1 GHz Pentium III processors. Visit the official Dell website.
An Iowa US District Court dismisses a lawsuit filed by Microware Systems against Apple Computer, which alleges that Apple violated Microware OS 9 operating system trademarks.
Patrick Naughton, a former vice president of the Infoseek Corporation and one of the original authors of Java, pleads guilty in federal court to charges that he crossed state lines Tuesday, September 14, 1999 to seek sex with a thirteen year old girl he had met on the Internet.
Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) reveals that the company’s newly released video game console, the PlayStation 2, is capable of playing movies on discs formatted for other regions of the world. The technology is a breach of a policy among DVD player manufacturers that movies licensed for sale in one region are not readable by players purchased in other regions. Visit the official Sony website.
2002
Sega releases the versus fighting game Virtua Fighter 4 for the Playstation 2 in the US. Visit the game’s official website. ESRB: T (Teen)
2003
Nintendo releases Pokemon Ruby Version and Pokemon Sapphire Version for the Game Boy Advance in the US. ESRB: E (Everyone)
Yahoo! unveils its premium online audio and video service, Yahoo! Platinum. Read the original press release.
2004
Sierra Entertainment releases the real-time strategy (RTS) game Lords of the Realm III for Windows in North America. Visit the game’s official website. ESRB: T (Teen)
Warner Brothers releases the action film V for Vendetta, starring Natalie Portman, Hugo Weaving, Stephen Rea, Stephen Fry, and John Hurt is released to 3,365 US theaters. The film is an adaptation of Alan Moore’s graphic novel V for Vendetta. The film’s release was originally scheduled for release Friday, November 4, 2005, a day before the 400th anniversary of Guy Fawkes Night, but its release was delayed. Produced on a budget of US$54 million, it will gross US$25,642,340 domestically in its opening weekend. Visit the game’s official website. IMDB listing MPAA Rating: R Running Time: 2 hrs 11 mins
2006
Atari releases Driver: Parallel Lines for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in PAL regions. Visit the game’s official website. OFLC: MA15+
Koei releases the Atelier Iris: Eternal Mana for the PlayStation 2 in PAL regions. Visit the game’s official website. PEGI: 12+
Sega releases the racing game OutRun 2006: Coast 2 Coast for the Xbox in the US. It is the eighth game in the Out Run series. Visit the game’s official website. ESRB: E (Everyone)
Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) releases 24: The Game for the PlayStation 2 in Europe. The game is based on the FOX television drama, 24. Visit the game’s official website. PEGI: 16+
Taito releases Raiden III for personal computers in the US. Visit the game’s official website.
Ubisoft releases the tactical shooter Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter for the Xbox in Europe. It is the third game in the Ghost Recon series. Visit the game’s official website. PEGI: 16+ USK: 16
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