- :: 1990::
- Cray reveals their new supercomputer, the Y-MP2E. The price tag is 2.2 million.
- Symantec releases Norton Anti Virus.
- Development begins on Java at Sun Microsystems.
- id Software is founded.
- The Video Toaster, an early video editing system, is introduced by NewTek.
- The “Wicked Fast” Apple Macintosh IIfx is released.
- :: 1991 ::
- Tim Berners-Lee of CERN blows everyone’s mind with HTML. His concepts of URLs and HTTP allowed the internet to expand into the WWW. He now runs the W3 Consortium.
- AMD releases their own 386 microprocessor, directly competing with industry giant Intel.
- EICAR (European Institute for Computer Virus Research ) is founded.
- Linux is invented by Linus Torvalds.
- PGP is released.
- The first email is sent from space.
- Early web hypertext protocol Gopher is released.
- :: 1992 ::
- Hysteria over the Michelangelo virus is fueled by the media, convincing users that 1/4 of the world’s hard drives would be overwritten.
- Apple vs Microsoft is dismissed.
- Intel announces their new processor will be called Pentium.
- Development of the Mosaic web browser begins.
- The text based web browser Lynx is released.
- id Software releases Wolfenstein 3D, the original first person shooter.
- Sun Microsystems completes the prototype for the Star7, one of the earliest touch screen tablets.
- :: 1993 ::
- InterNIC is created by the National Science Foundation for registration and directory services on the net.
- Windows NT is introduced.
- id Software releases the legendary Doom video game.
- NVIDIA is incorporated.
- The MP3 is invented.
- The Simon Personal Communicator, one of the first cellphones with touchscreen technology, is launched.
- Apple releases the Newton MessagePad 100. It included the Newton OS.
- Sun releases the Solaris operating system.
- :: 1994 ::
- The first online bank is introduced.
- Yahoo and Netscape are launched. This is followed by the release of Netscape Navigator.
- 3dfx Interactive is founded.
- Python 1.0 is released.
- FedEx launches it’s website, the first that provides online package tracking.
- The hacker group known as the Phonemasters breach MCI WorldCom, Sprint, AT&T, and Equifax, causing an estimated 1.8 million in damages.
- The Opera web browser is launched.
- :: 1995 ::
- The Security Administrator Tool for Analyzing Networks (SATAN) is released.
- Windows 95 is introduced.
- Amazon sells it’s first book online.
- Ebay is founded. It would soon soar to become the largest online auction site.
- Toy Story becomes the first full length feature film made completely with CGI.
- Apache Web Server arrives.
- The Sony PlayStation is released in North America.
- The Ruby programming language is publicly released.
- Red Hat Inc. is formed.
- The Opera web browser debuts.
- PHP is introduced, becoming a widely popular web technology.
- Development of Javascript begins at Netscape.
- Search engine AltaVista is launched by DEC.
- Vladimir Levin hacks Citibank computers and transfers 10 million USD to his own account.
- Tadpole Computers unveils the Tadpole ALPHABook 1.
- :: 1996 ::
- CD-RW technology is developed.
- Internet Explorer arrives.
- Lycos is launched.
- Microsoft releases Exchange.
- Quake is released by id Software, continuing a highly successful run of first person shooters. It is the successor to the Doom series.
- The Palm Pilot 1000 and Pilot 5000 are introduced.
- eBay is founded.
- The Opera web browser is released.
- Hotmail is launched.
- :: 1997 ::
- IBM introduces Deep Blue, the fastest computer of it’s day. It beats Gary Kasparov in a game of chess.
- The U.S. Supreme Court rejects the Communications Decency Act, ruling it violates the First Amendment.
- Video streaming giant Netflix is founded and it’s website launched.
- :: 1998 ::
- Google, now the most popular search engine, is created.
- The government creates ICANN ( Internet Corporation for Assigned Numbers and Names) to privatize the registration of domain names.
- The Children’s Online Privacy and Protection Act becomes law.
- Microsoft releases Windows 98.
- Compaq announces acquisition of Digital Equipment Corporation.
- eMachines releases low priced home PCs and becomes the number five retailer in four months.
- MySQL is released.
- Virtualization company VMware is founded.
- Apple introduces the iMac.
- Seminal sci-fi real time strategy game StarCraft is released.
- The Digital Millenium Copyright Act becomes law in the U.S.
- :: 1999 ::
- The Chernobyl virus is discovered. It’s the first to infect the BIOS.
- Fear of the Millennium Bug causes industrialized countries and companies around the world to spend billions in correcting the error before the dawn of the new century.
- Shawn Fanning creates Napster.
- The Melissa virus appears, one of the fastest spreading viruses ever.
- The First Internet Bank of Indiana is online. It is the first internet-only banking service.
