-
Johannes Gutenberg's moveable-type printing press is perfected and begins operating. The mass production of literature leads to substantial social changes, not the least of which include the advent of mass media and a sharp increase in literacy rates during the Renaissance. -
Inventor Charles Babbage begins work on the first mechanical computer, called a 'difference engine', designed to calculate polynomial functions. His second model, designed in 1847 but never built at the time, can be seen in action here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=be1EM3gQkAY -
The English mathematician Ada Lovelace first meets Charles Babbage, being the first to recognize the invention had uses beyond calculation. She is largely considered the first computer programmer for her work with Babbage's machine and other such devices. -
Alan Turing publishes the scientific paper On Computable Numbers, proposing the idea of a "Universal Computing machine". His theories and work would form the basis for the creation of modern digital computers. -
J.C.R. Licklider, the first head of computer research at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), writes memos conceiving of "a globally interconnected set of computers". Licklider is credited as an early pioneer in computing technology, helping to create ARPNET as well as the idea of a graphical user interface.
https://www.internetsociety.org/internet/history-internet/brief-history-internet/ -
The first two computers are connected to ARPANET, a precursor to the modern internet for educational and military facilities, run via packet switching technology. -
Ray Tomlinson, in response to a need for users to send messages to one another, creates an application for sending "electronic mail" across computer networks, debuting to the public the same time as ARPANET. (Ray Tomilson is also the inventor of the @ symbol!)
https://www.internethalloffame.org/official-biography-raymond-tomlinson -
The Altair 8800 debuts on the cover of Popular Electronics. While more for hobbyists then the general public, the Altair 8800's commercial success would create a new market for personal microcomputers outside of purely academic settings.
https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/search/object/nmah_334396 -
Gary Thuerk, a marketing manager promoting a new brand of computer, sends out unsolicited bulk emails to ARPANET users. The move would earn his company over $13 million in sales. -
Tom Truscott and Jim Ellis develop the service Usenet, a decentralized network where users would post messages to different categories to share information and discuss topics of interest. Usenet's culture is seen as a precursor to the modern internet, foreshadowing its organization as well as coining jargon that would see common use on the internet. -
While working at CERN, Tim Berners-Lee submits a proposal to create an information managing system that connected computers via hypertext, a network later known as the World Wide Web. His boss considered the proposal "vague, but exciting".
http://info.cern.ch/Proposal.html -
CERN releases the source code for the World Wide Web two years after its successful creation, allowing public access to the internet for the first time. Mosaic and Netscape Navigator release around the same time, popularizing easy-to-use interfaces for home computers. -
New encryption tech is developed by Netscape, making financial transactions through the internet safer. This year would also see the founding of Echo Bay, later known as eBay, and Amazon.com -
Using revolutionary new code that allowed for better web searches, Google launches this year and becomes the quintessential internet search engine. -
The DMCA is signed into law, bringing US Copyright law into the digital age and updating it for the internet era, most notably introducing the rule of exempting indirect liability for internet providers and content hosts. -
Audio file-sharing site Napster goes live, launching the idea of peer-to-peer file sharing in the general public. -
The internet-based encyclopedia Wikipedia launches, allowing for the collective gathering and recording of knowledge on a large scale. -
MySpace launches in 2003, becoming the first social network to reach a global audience and defining the concept of social media. -
Video hosting website Youtube goes live, becoming the quintessential video sharing website. -
The hugely influential social networking site Twitter is launched to the public.
https://twitter.com/Jack/status/20