Tag: Tech Time Warp

Tech Time Warp is a weekly feature that looks back at interesting moments and milestones in tech history.

Tech Time Warp: The ANIMAL instinct to do good

Tech Time Warp: The ANIMAL instinct to do good

If you have ever dabbled in Dungeons & Dragons, you are familiar with the “alignment system,” which is a way to chart characters’ tendency toward good vs. evil as well as their inclination to follow rules (“lawful” vs. “chaotic”). With...

/ April 28, 2023
Tech Time Warp: The USB drive that changed military cybersecurity

Tech Time Warp: The USB drive that changed military cybersecurity

Persistent BadUSB-style attacks are nothing new. The spread of malware via USB once caught the U.S. military by surprise, leading to a temporary Army ban on the use of external drives and ultimately the creation of Cyber Command to protect...

/ April 21, 2023
Tech Time Warp: Smelling a RAT in Graybird

Tech Time Warp: Smelling a RAT in Graybird

This week’s Tech Time Warp is one of the most insidious forms of malware: the remote access Trojan, or RAT. While other viruses brick your machine or spam your email contacts, a RAT lurks in the background, quietly stealing passwords...

/ April 7, 2023
Tech Time Warp: Remembering the Z80 SoftCard, Microsoft’s first hardware product

Tech Time Warp: Remembering the Z80 SoftCard, Microsoft’s first hardware product

Microsoft’s success with the Surface doesn’t change the fact the tech giant is primarily known for software. After all, Windows and Microsoft Office are ubiquitous in corporate life. But don’t let these juggernauts erase memories of the Z80 SoftCard, Microsoft’s...

/ March 31, 2023
Tech Time Warp: Once upon a time, autofill was a novelty

Tech Time Warp: Once upon a time, autofill was a novelty

At this point, autofill/autocomplete/autocorrect technology is such a part of our everyday lives that we laugh at autocorrect fails and avoid typing in our address while online shopping whenever possible. But, like everything in the technology world, this convenience was...

/ March 24, 2023
A crucial chapter in gaming history is receiving a fresh look
Tech Time Warp: How Street Fighter II revolutionized gaming

Tech Time Warp: How Street Fighter II revolutionized gaming

A crucial chapter in gaming history is receiving a fresh look in the new book Like a Hurricane: An Unofficial Oral History of Street Fighter II by Matt Leone.

/ March 17, 2023
Tech Time Warp: LA Times story raises awareness of assistive technology

Tech Time Warp: LA Times story raises awareness of assistive technology

Efforts to make technology accessible to all through assistive devices and international standards for HTML and CSS are still relatively new. The Computer History Museum cites a March 5, 1993, Los Angeles Times story as an early example of the...

/ March 3, 2023
Tech Time Warp: First computer storage warrant issued

Tech Time Warp: First computer storage warrant issued

Nowadays, everyone knows the first things sought with a search warrant will be laptops and smartphones. The digital trails we all leave are revealing whether one is involved in something illegal or simply has a potentially embarrassing health condition. But...

/ February 24, 2023
Tech Time Warp: Mocmex sneaks in via digital photo frame

Tech Time Warp: Mocmex sneaks in via digital photo frame

“Beware of Greeks bearing gifts” is the old saying associated with the story of the Trojan horse—the same story that gives Trojan viruses their name. In 2008, however, a more appropriate saying would have been “Beware of relatives bearing digital...

/ February 17, 2023