1999
The International Business Machines (IBM) unveils a new generation of mainframe computers touting them as the world’s highest-capacity business machines available. The G6 machines are IBM’s sixth distinct generation of mainframes since 1994. Officially called the S/390 Parallel Enterprise Server – Sixth Generation, these new systems can process 1,600 Million Instructions Per Second (MIPS). The benchmark clocks in at fifty percent additional data-handling capacity over IBM’s previous G5 line. Shipments are set to begin Friday, May 28, a full month ahead of original plans.
2000
In the case of United States v. Microsoft, Microsoft is ruled to have violated United States antitrust laws by keeping “an oppressive thumb” on its competitors.
Datapoint, the company that originally commissioned the Intel 8008 microprocessor, declares Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
The Love Letter computer virus (sometimes refered to as the “ILOVEYOU” bug) infects personal computers around the world in just six hours. The virus spreads through e-mail, enticing victims to open the message with the subject line, “I love you.” A total of fifty-five million computers encounter the virus, and about 2.5 to 3 million will become infected. The final estimated cost of system downtime is a later estimated at US$8.7 billion. It is thought to be the fastest-moving and most widespread virus ever seen. Read more at the BBC.
Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich and the band’s attorney produce a list of more than 335,000 Internet users who have allegedly shared the band’s songs on Napster. Visit the official Metallica website.
A new company, SuperLetter.com Inc. announces that, beginning in May, internet users will be able to send mail to any physical address in the world from a PC – for less than the cost of express mail service. The company’s motto is “You Send E-Mail – We Deliver Real-Mail – Around the Globe!” Visit the official SuperLetter.com website.
The sport of Geocaching is founded when the GPS coordinates of the first geocache are posted to Usenet newsgroup sci.geo.satellite-nav by Dave Ulmer of Beavercreek, Oregon. (45°17.460′N 122°24.800′W) Geocaching is an outdoor treasure-hunting game in which the participants use a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver or other navigational techniques to find containers referred to as “geocaches” or simply “caches” before other participants. The original cache contains books, food, money, software, videos, and a slingshot hidden in a partially-buried black plastic bucket. Initially, the activity is referred to as “GPS stash hunt” or “gpsstashing.” However, in a May 30th discussion in the gpsstash group hosted on eGroups (which will later be acquired by Yahoo! and become Yahoo! Groups), Matt Stum will suggest that the term “stash” has negative connotations and suggest the sport be dubbed “geocaching” instead. Read more about the history of Geocaching at GPS Games.
The Star Trek: Voyager episode “Fury” first airs. (No. 241) In the episode, a much older and more powerful Kes returns to Voyager in an attempt to change the course of her own history. Memory Alpha entry
2002
Barry Erickson, of the piracy group DrinkOrDie, pleads guilty to one felony count of conspiracy to commit criminal copyright infringement as a result of Operation Buccaneer. DrinkOrDie has long been one of the best known sources for pirated software on the internet, particularly in IRC channels. Erickson, known online by the web handle “radsl”, will be sentenced to thirty-three months in prison followed by two years of supervised release and a US$5,000 fine. Read more at the Department of Justice website.
Columbia Pictures releases the film Spider-Man, directed by Sam Raimi and starring Tobey Maguire, Willem Dafoe, and Kirsten Dunst is released to 3,615 theaters in the U.S. Produced with a budget of US$139 million, the film will gross a box office record of US$114,844,116 domestically in its opening weekend and go on to gross a total of US$821,708,551 in the course of its theatrical run. It will also set a record for reaching the US$100 million mark faster than any previous film. IMDB listing (MPAA Rating: PG-13) Running Time: 2 hrs 1 min
The final episode of the cyberpunk sci-fi series Dark Angel, “Freak Nation“, first airs on Fox. (No. 43) In it, the gang at Jam Pony find out Max and Alec are transgenics after a young X6 and a pregnant X5 take cover inside the building and an angry mob gathers outside. The series ran for two seasons and forty-three episodes. It’s cancellation doesn’t come as a surprise, as Fox has long history of canceling it’s science fiction series, irregardless of their followings, after a few seasons. TV.com entry
Hewlett-Packard and Compaq complete their merger.
Nintendo launches the GameCube in Europe. Visit the official GameCube website.
2003
The second annual Free Comic Book Day is held.
2004
The New York Times publishes an article entitled “U.S. Is Losing Its Dominance in the Sciences” by William J. Broad on its front page. The article reveals that both the number of prizes awarded to Americans and the number of scientific papers published in major professional journals written by Americans is on the decline despite federal research budgets reaching record highs. A National Science Foundation report is cited in the article as revealing that scientific papers by Americans peaked in 1992 and then fell roughly ten percent, largely due to foreign competition. Read the New York Times article.
2005
Paramount Home Video releases the first season of the science fiction series Enterprise on DVD, ten days before the television broadcast of the final episode. The release is the first Star Trek release to ever include a blooper reel or deleted scenes.
2006
In a press release, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) labels the cities of Atlanta, Austin, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Providence, San Diego, and San Francisco, “Piracy Cities.” It declares the cities “hot spots” of copyright infringement, with large numbers of individuals engaged in piracy, from the manufacturer level all the way down to the point of retail sale. Read the press release. Visit the official RIAA website.
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is re-rated from T for Teen to M for Mature by the ESRB. The ESRB chose to re-rate the game after the discovery of nude textures included deep within the game’s files, accessible only through a third-party modification for the Windows version, and due to the presence of more blood and gore than was initially revealed to the ESRB. The new rating causes some stores to require a valid government ID to prove that the consumer is seventeen or older. Even after the game’s developer Bethesda later removes the nude textures from the game, both versions of the game will remain rated M. Visit the game’s official website.
Microsoft launches Microsoft AdCenter. Though the service is launched with an to an extremely limited user base, the company intends to increase its marketshare by incorporating an internet search engine into version 7 of its internet browser, Internet Explorer.
Skype launches its Skypecast Beta service. Skypecasts are live teleconferences that allowing groups of up to one hundred users to converse, moderated by a “host” who is able to mute, eject, or pass the virtual microphone to participants in turn. Skypecasts do not, however, support chat windows to share text information (such as URLs) with participants. Skypecasts will be discontinued September 1, 2008. Visit the official Skype website.
2007
Sony Pictures, through Columbia Pictures, releases the film Spider-Man 3 in China a day before its domestic release in the US in an attempt to circumvent market growth of pirated copies of the film. This is the first time a film has been preemptively released in a foreign market for the express purpose of curbing piracy. Visit the official Spider-Man 3 website. IMDB listing
2008
Microsoft announces that it will withdraw its unsolicited bid for search giant Yahoo! after negotiations over the price of the acquisition fail. Microsoft’s final bid was US$33 a share (about US$47.5 billion), but Jerry Yang, co-founder of Yahoo! told Microsoft president Steven Ballmer the day prior that it would not accept less than US$37 a share. Read more at The New York Times.
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