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When researching the 1600 VICmodem, I found an assertion that the 1600 was the first modem to sell a million units. And I’ve repeated that claim myself at least once. But I never felt quite right about that. I am
On October 17, 1985, Intel released its 386 CPU, also known as the 80386, and later, as the 386DX. The 386 changed the direction of the computer industry like no chip before it, and maybe since. The phrase “disruptive product”
On October 16, 1995, Roland Vossen accidentally invented spyware in a Usenet post. Well, not exactly. He didn’t invent spyware so much as he invented the term. His Usenet post contained the first recorded use of the word “spyware.” For
What was a Token Ring network? Token Ring is an obsolete networking technology that competed with Ethernet in the 1980s and 1990s. IBM first announced it October 15, 1985. It is more of a curiosity today, as the networking standard
On October 14, 2009, SCO fired its CEO, Darl McBride. Very nearly 15 years later, McBride died at the age of 64 of complications from ALS. His termination from SCO ended his time as the most hated man in technology.
Microsoft Access didn’t exist in the MS-DOS era. For that matter, Microsoft wasn’t even a player in databases until relatively late in the MS-DOS era. The dominant database during most of the DOS era was a company called Ashton-Tate. They
On October 11, 1999, Nvidia released its GeForce 256, its first product that it described as a GPU. What made the Nvidia GeForce 256 the first GPU? I’m sure 3dfx fans would argue that 3dfx made GPUs, and it seems
Telecommunications pioneer Ward Christensen was born October 23, 1945 in West Bend, Wis. He died aged 78 October 11, 2024 in Rolling Meadows, Ill., a suburb of Chicago. Christensen invented the Xmodem file transfer protocol and co-invented the bulletin board
On October 9, 2008, Infogrames completed its purchase of Atari Inc. The deal, which the two companies agreed to in May, led to speculation that the acquisition would be the end of Atari. Instead, it had the opposite effect, though
When Commodore released its VIC-20 computer in 1981, it also released was a matching joystick and paddles. Cast in white plastic like the VIC-20, the Commodore VIC-1311 looked like a two-tone Atari joystick from the same time period. And the
On October 9, 1991, Apple Records settled one of its many lawsuits with Apple Computer. It wasn’t the first time the two companies tangled. Nor would it be the last. Apple Records was the Beatles’ record label. Apple Computer was,
Commodore went through a revolving door of executives after Jack Tramiel resigned due to conflicts with Irving Gould. On October 6, 1987, it was Max Toy’s turn. On that day, Commodore hired him. And for a while, it seemed like
On October 6, 1983, Lotus Development held its very successful IPO worth $5.5 billion. Founded by Mitch Kapor and Jonathan Sachs in 1982, Lotus was the publisher of a spreadsheet called Lotus 1-2-3. Two months after their IPO, they were
On October 5, 1992, IBM released its first three Thinkpad models. IBM had portable computers before, starting with its luggable Portable PC from 1984 and PC Convertible from 1986. But none of them had the lasting success of the Thinkpad,
About three and a half years ago, I had to make some changes to my format and workflow. It wasn’t the first time I’d done things like that and probably won’t be the last. And usually when I make changes,
The Home Depot near me stopped doing cull lumber. I don’t know if that’s just a local thing or if the whole chain stopped doing it. That sent me looking for alternatives, and I found one at Menards. Menards does
Activision was the first independent third-party publisher of console video games, founded October 1, 1979 by a group of former Atari developers. Activision proved successful, becoming the largest and most enduring publisher of video games for both game consoles and
October 1, 2006 was a good day. It was the day that the last of the patents covering the GIF file format finally expired and GIF became free to use. Today GIF is a staple of social media, but it
The IBM PS/2 line, released April 2, 1987, was IBM’s attempt to reinvigorate its aging personal computer line and fight off cloning. The line sold better than we remember. On September 30, 1988, IBM announced it had sold its 3
It was on September 28, 1998 that Internet Explorer passed Netscape in market share for the first time. It took just under three years for it to go from an afterthought in the Microsoft Plus pack to the dominant browser.
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