Computer

Significant Advancements in Technology and the Internet (21st Century Technology)

By ddogdan
  • USSR Launches Sputnik

    USSR Launches Sputnik
    LinkUSSR launches Sputnik into space and, with it, global communications.
  • Bell Labs Invents Modem

    Bell Labs Invents Modem
    LinkBell Labs researchers invent the modem (modulator - demodulator), which converts digital signals to electrical (analog) signals and back, enabling communication between computers.
  • J.C.R. Licklider Conceives Intergalactic Network

    J.C.R. Licklider Conceives Intergalactic Network
    LinkJ.C.R. Licklider writes memos about his Intergalactic Network concept of networked computers and becomes the first head of the computer research program at ARPA.
  • ASCII Is Developed

    ASCII Is Developed
    LinkThe first universal standard for computers, ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Exchange) is developed by a joint industry-government committee. ASCII permits machines from different manufacturers to exchange data.
  • ARPA Sponsors Networking Study

    ARPA Sponsors Networking Study
    LinkARPA sponsors study on "cooperative network of time-sharing computers."
  • Paul Baran, Donald Davies Develop Message Blocks/Packet-switching

    Paul Baran, Donald Davies Develop Message Blocks/Packet-switching
    LinkThe Rand Corporation's Paul Baran develops message blocks in the U.S., while Donald Watts Davies, at the National Physical Laboratory in Britain, simultaneously creates a similar technology called packet-switching. The technology revolutionizes data communications.
  • Kennedy Congratulates BBN On ARPA Contract

    Kennedy Congratulates BBN On ARPA Contract
    Link
    US Senator Edward Kennedy sends BBN a congratulatory telegram on winning the ARPA contract to build the "Interfaith" Message Processors.
  • Peter Kirstein Starts European ARPAnet

    Peter Kirstein Starts European ARPAnet
    LinkProfessor Peter Kirstein of University College London starts the first European ARPAnet node with transatlantic IP connectivity.
  • Vint Cerf, Robert Kahn Coin 'Internet'

    Vint Cerf, Robert Kahn Coin 'Internet'
    LinkVint Cerf and Robert Kahn publish "A Protocol for Packet Network Interconnection" which specifies in detail the design of a Transmission Control Program (TCP) and coins the term “Internet” for the first time.
  • Lawrence Landweber Creates Computer Science Network

    Lawrence Landweber Creates Computer Science Network
    CSNET Lawrence Landweber creates CSNET (Computer Science Network), a network for all US university and industrial computer research groups. By 1984, over 180 university, industrial, and government computer science departments are participating in CSNET.
  • Kilnam Chon Connects Asia to Internet

    Kilnam Chon Connects Asia to Internet
    LinkKilnam Chon, a Professor at Keio University in Japan, develops the first Internet connection in Asia, called SDN, and his pioneering work inspires others to promote the Internet’s regional growth.
  • First U.S. Research Network Developed

    First U.S. Research Network Developed
    LinkDr. Stephen Wolff leads the development of NSFNET, the first U.S. open computer network supporting research and higher education.
  • Thailand Gets a Domain Name.

    Thailand Gets a Domain Name.
    LinkWhile at the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), Dr. Kanchana Kanchanasut registers the .TH country-code top-level domain for Thailand and remains the .TH administer to this day.
  • IAB Established

    IAB Established
    LinkAs a DARPA manager, Dr. Barry Leiner helps establish the Internet Activities Board (later the Internet Architecture Board), which leads the effort to set early Internet technical standards.
  • Telecom Vendor Ericsson invents Bluetooth

    Telecom Vendor Ericsson invents Bluetooth
    LinkThe invention of Bluetooth
    Ericsson invents the Bluetooth wireless device.
  • Craig Newmark Founds Craigslist

    Craig Newmark Founds Craigslist
    LinkCraig Newmark founds Craigslist, which is to become one of the most widely used websites on the Internet. He changes the way people used classifieds, transforming it into a largely Internet-based industry.
  • Jimmy Wales Launches Wikipedia

    Jimmy Wales Launches Wikipedia
    LinkJimmy Wales launches Wikipedia. There are half a million Internet users on Wikipedia.
  • Muthoni Founds OPENWORLD LTD

    Dorcas Muthoni founds OPENWORLD LTD, a software company which has been involved in the delivery of some of the most widely used Web and cloud applications in Africa.
  • China Dominates Internet Usage

    China Dominates Internet Usage
    LinkBy 2010, there are over 450 million Chinese Internet users.
  • Aaron Swartz Co-Creates RSS

    Aaron Swartz Co-Creates RSS
    LinkAaron Swartz co-creates RSS, a program that collects news from various web pages and puts them in one place for readers, with the goal of making information freely available to everyone.