1861
The Pony Express, which has been the fast method of communicating between San Francisco, California and St. Joseph, Missouri officially ceases operations.
1936
The first electric generator at the Hoover Dam goes into full operation.
1960
Saga, a silent shoot-em-up Western play written by the TX-0 computer, the first general purpose transistorized computer, airs on the CBS television network to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The program that wrote Saga is comprised 4,096 words of magnetic core storage. The thirteen thousand lines of code choreographed the movements of each object. A line of direction was written for each action, even if it went wrong. This led to the high point of the show where the sheriff put his gun in the holster of the robber resulting in a never ending loop.
1961
The International Business Machines (IBM) Data Processing Division (DPD) introduces Hypertape for the IBM 7340, a system faster than any commercially-available magnetic tape system.
1971
JVC announces its first U-format video recorders.
1976
The Ekran-1 direct broadcasting satellite is launched by the Soviet Union.
1984
Sig Hartmann formally resigns as President of Software from Commodore. He is among the last remaining executives who had worked under Jack Tramiel. Within weeks, Hartmann, who has earned a reputation as a business negotiator, will go to work for Atari to once again serve under Tramiel.
1987
The Star Trek: The Next Generation episode “Where No One Has Gone Before” first airs. (No. 106) In it, Warp efficiency tests result in the Enterprise traveling far beyond known space, where the crew’s imagination takes on real form. Memory Alpha entry
1992
Monday, October 26 and Tuesday, October 27, an ambulance call routing computer system in London fails and is blamed for twenty deaths.
1994
The NetBSD Foundation releases version 1.0 of the NetBSD operating system. NetBSD is a free, open source version of the Unix-derivative Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD). Visit the official NetBSD website.
1998
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) holds its first meeting in secrecy.
Reuters News Service reports that a paralyzed Georgia man has become the first human to control a computer using only his thoughts with the help of a tiny brain implant. The man, age 53, identified only by the initials J.R., sends a signal to a receiving unit in his scalp, which is then relayed to the computer screen. The technology was developed by Dr. Phillip Kennedy and Dr. Roy Bakay.
Symantec, producer of Norton utilities, acquires Quarterdeck Office Systems for US$65 million. Its software products will be discontinued or integrated into Symantec products. Visit Symantec’s official website.
Version 1.0.1 of phpMyAdmin, an open source tool written in PHP to administer MySQL over the Internet, is released. Visit the application’s official website.
VM Labs, which employs approximately fifty people, relocates to new office facilities in Mountain View, California.
2000
Microsoft releases UltimateTV, a DirecTV receiver with integrated DVR and Internet access capabilities.
Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) introduces the PlayStation 2 in the US. The system features a 294.912MHz processor, a single analog DualShock2 controller, two memory card slots, two USB ports, one i-Link (IEEE 1394) port, and a 128-bit Emotion Engine graphics processor. The system is backwards compatible with PlayStation games and supports CD-ROM, Dolby Digital, DTS, DVD-ROM, and DVD-Video media. Price: US$299 Weight: 5lbs
2001
Newmarket Films releases the science fiction film Donnie Darko, directed by Richard Kelly and starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Jena Malone, Patrick Swayze, and Drew Barrymore, to 58 US theaters. A teen receives a disturbing vision that the world will end in twenty-eight days. With the help of a series of characters, he slowly discovers the mysterious physical and metaphysical laws that govern time travel. The film will garner very poor returns at the box office, but it will go on to become enormously popular after it is released on DVD, with a large cult following. Produced on a budget of US$6 million, it will gross US$110,494 domestically in its opening weekend. IMDB listing (MPAA Rating: R) Running Time: 1 hr 53 mins
The Klez worm is first identified. It effects the Microsoft Windows operating system, exploiting a vulnerability in the Trident layout engine, used by both Internet Explorer, Microsoft Outlook, and Outlook Express.
Congress passes the USA PATRIOT Act. Its name is an acronym for “Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism.” The 342 page long Act drastically broadens law enforcement agencies’ ability to search databases and intercept electronic communications, including: e-mail, financial, library, medical, and telephone records. At the same time, it also expands the definition of terrorism to include domestic crimes, expanding the scope of criminal activities to which the PATRIOT Act’s powers can be applied. On March 2, 2006, Congress will reauthorize the bill, and on March 9, 2006, President George W. Bush will sign the Act into law.
William Zeller releases the first version of his software, myTunes.
2004
Apple Computer releases the iPod photo, a new version of the fourth-generation iPod able to display digital photographs and album art on its built-in color screen. It is nearly physically identical to the fourth-generation iPod, only slightly thicker. Price: US$499 (40GB) or US$599 (60GB)
Apple Computer releases the U2 iPod Special Edition, a 20GB fourth-generation iPod with a sleek black front casing and a red Click Wheel, with a metal back engraved with the signatures of the members of the band U2. Price: US$349
2006
The Fedora Project releases the Fedora Core 6 operating system. This version features Firefox 1.5 as its default web browser, Smolt (Linux), and support for AIGLX and the Compiz compositing window manager. Code-name: Zod (after the Superman villain)
2007
Apple Inc. opens its two hundredth store in Gilbert, Arizona.
Apple Inc. releases the Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard operating system, its sixth release of the Mac OS X. Visit the official Mac OS X website.
Singapore Airlines launches its A380 superjumbo jet. The planes feature a personal Linux PC, running Red Hat, in each seat back, providing passengers with interactive in-flight entertainment and a full copy of Star Office. Read more at Network News.
Version 2.6.27.4 of the Linux operating system is released.
2009
Max Kelly announces on his official Facebook blog that the company will begins allowing deceased users’ Facebook accounts to be memorialized. The move is inspired by the death of Kelly’s friend, who joined the company at the same time as Kelly, only to die shortly thereafter in a bicycling accident. When an account is memorialized, Facebook prevents users from logging into the account and removes its contact information and status updates, while still allowing friends and family to leave posts on the profile Wall in remembrance. The company also alters the account so that only confirmed friends can either see a former user’s profile or locate it with the site’s search function. Read the announcement.
Yahoo! discontinues its GeoCities web hosting service, which was originally founded by David Bohnett and John Rezner in 1994. The next day, the hosted websites will become inaccessible. Visit an archived version of the Geocities websites.
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