Tech Time Warp: The first published reference to “vaporware”
We all know people who are long on ideas and short on execution. In the software world, one might say these people create “vaporware.” Let’s get into this week’s Tech Time Warp. This term was first used in a Feb....
Tech Time Warp: Blackworm Offers Rare Chance to Analyze Spread of a Virus
In late January 2006, stopping the worm known as Blackworm (aka Nyxem, MyWife, Blackmal and, interestingly, Kama Sutra) was at the top of most network administrators’ to-do lists.
Tech Time Warp: Apple introduces the Lisa, its first personal computer
“Do you know, I put together that entire project—including the presentation slides—just this morning?” One might think the man at the start of this 1984 Apple demo video is starting to “mansplain” something to his female colleague. But then he...
Pioneers in Tech: Guido van Rossum, creator of the Python Programming Language
Happy early birthday to this month’s ‘Pioneers in Tech’ spotlight, Guido van Rossum, born Jan. 31, 1956, in the Netherlands, and creator of the Python programming language. Until 2018, he was known as Python’s “Benevolent Dictator for Life (BDFL),” a...
Tech Time Warp: You’ve seen the world’s most famous photograph
If you don’t know the story of this week’s Tech Time Warp, this will be one of the coolest bits of trivia you’ll learn all year. Remember the out-of-the-box Windows XP wallpaper? The grassy green hills and the brilliant blue...
Tech Time Warp: Ringing in the new year and waiting for Y2K chaos
Do you remember holding your breath on New Year’s Eve 1999, wondering if technological balls would start to drop after the ball dropped in Times Square? After governments and corporations spent an estimated $300 billion to $600 billion worldwide to...
Tech Time Warp: The first text message sent 30 years ago carried a timeless sentiment
Most of us send dozens of meaningless texts every day: ETAs, LOLs, emojis and snarky screenshots. With unlimited data plans, it’s easy to be fast and loose with SMS messaging. But the first text message—sent just over 30 years ago,...
Tech Time Warp: The Kriz virus was no Kris Kringle
Even cybercriminals get into the holiday spirit. Over the years, network administrators have dealt with the likes of the CHRISTMA EXEC, the Father Christmas worm, and the Santy worm when they would have rather been drinking eggnog. In December 2000,...
Pioneers in Tech: John Backus makes programming accessible with FORTRAN
If you ever feel like the chips are down, consider the story of A.M. Turing Award recipient John Backus, who overcame academic difficulties, expulsion due to poor attendance, and a cranial bone tumor to develop the ground-breaking FORTRAN programming language....
Tech Time Warp: Apple, Quicktime, and the long-forgotten San Francisco Canyon Company
Apple’s business strategy includes software and hardware innovations, intuitive user experiences, and attractive product design that is catnip to the creative set. But another arrow in Apple’s quiver is the hard-fought intellectual property lawsuit. Let’s get into this week’s Tech...
