Category Archives: This day in information

The World Wide Web, 1851

Posted on May 1, 2011 by GilPress

One hundred sixty years ago today, the Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of all Nations or The Great Exhibition, opened in London.  It was the first in a series of World’s Fair exhibitions continuing to the present day. 

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Son of The Souls of a New Machine Introduced

Posted on April 29, 2011 by GilPress

Today in 1980, Data General (DG) introduced the Eclipse MV/8000 at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York City. Known internally as Project Eagle, the 2-year development of the 32-bit “super-minicomputer,” the engineers working on it, and the parallel (and eventually, … Continue reading →

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WYSIWYG, Mouse Commercialized

Posted on April 27, 2011 by GilPress

Today in 1981, Xerox introduced the Xerox 8010 Star Information System, featuring a bitmapped screen, Ethernet, a computer mouse, a laser printer, the Smalltalk language, a WYSIWYG word processor, and software for combining text and graphics in the same document. It failed in … Continue reading →

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The Integrated Circuit Patented

Posted on April 25, 2011 by GilPress

50 years ago today, Robert Noyce was granted a patent for a “Semiconductor Device-and-Lead Structure,” a type of integrated circuit made of Silicon. Integrated circuits are used in virtually all electronic equipment today and have revolutionized the world of electronics. The integration … Continue reading →

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First U.S. Newspaper

Posted on April 24, 2011 by GilPress

Today in 1704, the first continuously-published newspaper in the United States, the Boston News-Letter, was published for the first time. 

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The King’s Speech

Posted on April 23, 2011 by GilPress

Today in 1924, the first broadcast made by King George V was transmitted from the opening ceremony of the British Empire Exhibition. An estimated 10 million people heard the transmission and many events around the country were suspended so that … Continue reading →

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First Showing of Vitascope

Posted on April 23, 2011 by GilPress

Today in 1896, the Vitascope was introduced to the public for the first time at Koster and Bial’s Music Hall in New York City.

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Whirlwind, the First Real-Time Computer

Posted on April 20, 2011 by GilPress

Today in 1951, MIT’s Whirlwind computer first came online. 

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The Day The News Died

Posted on April 18, 2011 by GilPress

Today in 1930, according to the BBC, listeners who tuned in to hear the news bulletin on Good Friday were informed: “There is no news.” Piano music followed.

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Betamax Launched

Posted on April 16, 2011 by GilPress

Today in 1975, Sony announced the launch of the Betamax videocassette format in Japan. Sony’s corproate history explains the origins of the name: “‘Beta’ is the Japanese word used to describe the way signals were recorded onto the tape. From this … Continue reading →

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