Tech History Today – May 7

In 1895 – The first demonstration of A A Popov’s electromagnetic wave receiver took place at a meeting of the Russian Physical Chemical Society in St.- Petersburg. It was essential to the development of wireless communications.

Also In 1895 – Otto Steiger received a patent for the Millionaire calculating machine. Switzerland’s Hans Egli made 4,700 of the 120-pound things. The Millionaire’s chief feature was the ability to do direct multiplication with a single rotation of the handle!

In 1952 – British radar engineer Geoffrey Dummer introduced the concept of the integrated circuit at the Symposium on Progress in Quality Electronic Components in Washington, D.C.

Tech News Today 494: The BS In CS Is BS

Hosts: Tom Merritt, Sarah Lane, Iyaz Akhtar and Jason Howell

Yahoo’s CEO is a liar, Microsoft hates DVDs, the FBI wants to tap your everything, and more.

Guest: Darren Kitchen

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Running time: 46:52

Tech History Today – May 6

In 1896 – Samuel Pierpoint Langley’s Aerodrome No. 5 made the first successful flight of an unpiloted, engine-driven, heavier-than-air craft of substantial size.

In 1949 – The EDSAC, the first practical stored program computer, performed its first calculation. It operated ata speed of 714 operations per second.

In 2002 – Apple’s Steve Jobs previewed Mac OS X 10.2 Jaguar during his Worldwide Developers Conference keynote. It featured a handwriting technology dubbed Inkwell, an iChat instant messenger client, QuickTime 6 integration and more.

Tech History Today – May 5

In 1961 – First NASA astronaut Alan Shepard piloted the Freedom 7 Mercury capsule on its 15-minute 28-second suborbital flight.

In 1992 – Id Software released Wolfenstein 3-D. It wasn’t the original first person shooter, but it launched the form into widespread popularity.

In 1999 – Microsoft shipped Windows 98 SE to manufacturers. The new version included Internet Connection Sharing, Internet Explorer 5, Windows NetMeeting 3.

Tech News Today 493: Your Drawings Will Die

Hosts: Tom Merritt, Sarah Lane, Iyaz Akhtar and Jason Howell

Samsung announces 500,000 new things and the Galaxy S III, Facebook cheaps out on stock, judge rules IP address not a person, and more.

Guest: Lindsey Turrentine

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Running time: 46:36

Tech History Today – May 4

In 1995 – German electronics company Escom AG bought the rights to the name, patents and intellectual property of Commodore Electronics Ltd. for $10 million. Commodore had gone bankrupt the year before.

In 2000 – The “I Love You” virus spread to 55 million computers around the world, hijacking hard drives and deleting, renaming, or damaging files. The damage reached billions of dollars.

In 2004 – Apple announced that Steve Jobs would kick off that year’s Worldwide Developers Conference by talking about Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger.

Tech News Today 492: When Keeping It Real Goes Wrong

Hosts: Tom Merritt, Sarah Lane, Iyaz Akhtar and Chad Johnson

New Xbox with 2-year contract costs more! Amazon making sitcoms, Why won’t Facebook take advertisers money, and more.

Guest: Jeff Bakalar

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Running time: 42:37