1850
The first U.S. patent for magic lantern slides made of glass plate is issued to their inventor Frederick Langenheim of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania as an “improvement in photographic pictures on glass.” (US No. 7,784)
1872
The first U.S. patent for an adding machine capable of printing totals and subtotals, called a “calculating machine,” is issued to E.D. Barbour of Boston, Massachusetts. (US No. 133,188)
1969
Apollo 12 astronauts Alan Bean and Charles Conrad land at the Oceanus Procellarum (“Ocean of Storms”) and become the third and fourth humans to walk on the Moon.
1970
The IBM 1620 scientific computer is withdrawn from the market. It was released on October 21, 1959.
1971
UNIVAC announces an agreement to acquire RCA’s computer customer base of five hundred companies and government bureaus (more than 1,000 computers) for US$70.5 million plus fifteen percent of revenues generated by existing business. One third of RCA’s 7,500 computer work force are retained by UNIVAC after the acquisition.
1981
Radio Corporation of America (RCA) launches the Satcom IIIR satellite, the first satellite dedicated entirely to relaying cable television programming.
President Ferdinand Marcos of the Philippines bans video games in the country due to the concerns regarding their impact on the morality of children. Citizens are given a choice between surrendering or destroying their video game consoles.
1990
The Star Trek: The Next Generation episode “Final Mission” first airs. (No. 409) In it, Wesley sets off on his final mission with the Enterprise accompanied by Picard, but they become stranded on a desert planet. Memory Alpha entry
1993
Michael Elansky, known by the web handle “The Ionizer”, is sentenced to twenty-eight months in prison for posting bomb-making instructions on his BBS. Elansky has been held for nearly four months in prison, unable to make a US$500,000 bail.
Sega releases the platform game Sonic CD for the Sega CD game system in the U.S.
Toshiba releases Battle Master for the Super Famicom in Japan.
1995
Version 2.1 of the FreeBSD operating system is released. Visit the official FreeBSD website.
1996
International Business Machines (IBM) demonstrates a new way to transmit data through the human body at the COMDEX show in Las Vegas, Nevada.
NASA launches the Space Shuttle Columbia on the longest shuttle mission to date, lasting 17 days, 15 hours, 53 minutes, and 18 seconds.
1997
Bell Laboratories in New Jersey announces that it has developed a 60-nanometre MOS transistor that is one quarter the size of current transistors, five times faster, and uses sixty to one hundred sixty times less power.
Micropolis, a hard drive manufacturer, files for bankruptcy protection and indicates its intent to liquidate its assets.
The San Jose Mercury News reports that Stanford University has “acquired thousands of pieces of memorabilia and artifacts that chronicle the unique 21-year history of Apple Computer, Inc.” The gift to Stanford, presented by Apple, filled nearly thousand boxes and includes rare items such an Apple I computer, prototypes, documents, and software produced during the history of the company. The items were originally intended for an Apple museum that was never built.
1998
Next Generation Online reports that Blood 2: The Chosen bashes a number of people and companies in the credits of the software. Namely, Geoff Keighley, a Canadian freelance reporter and analyst, is criticized. Ron Chaimowitz, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of GT Interactive Software responds with a public apology.
The Wildcat BBS Software product line is sold to Santronics Software., including: the Off-Line Xpress BBS Mail Reader, Wildcat! Interactive Net Server, and Wildcat! BBS. Read the original announcement
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