https://history.purple-magic.com/en/ IT History Journal en Sun, 02 Aug 2026 00:32:42 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/20/james-david-foley-was-born/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/20/james-david-foley-was-born/ On July 20, 1942, James David Foley was born — an American computer scientist who helped shape the fields of computer graphics and human-computer interaction (HCI), and co-authored the landmark textbook Computer Graphics: Principles and Practice. Mon, 20 Jul 1942 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/19/first-gps-signal-received/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/19/first-gps-signal-received/ On July 19, 1977, engineers at Rockwell Collins received and decoded the first GPS signal from the experimental NTS-2 satellite, a key milestone in the development of the NAVSTAR GPS program. Tue, 19 Jul 1977 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/18/intel-founded/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/18/intel-founded/ On July 18, 1968, Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore founded Intel — originally named N.M. Electronics — which grew from a three-paragraph business plan into one of the world's most influential semiconductor and microprocessor companies. Thu, 18 Jul 1968 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/17/nec-founded/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/17/nec-founded/ On July 17, 1899, Nippon Electric Company (NEC) was founded in Tokyo, becoming Japan's first international technology company and a pioneer in Japanese computing and supercomputing. Mon, 17 Jul 1899 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/16/amazon-com-launched/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/16/amazon-com-launched/ Amazon.com launched on July 16, 1995, as an online bookstore with one million titles, marking the start of its journey to becoming a tech giant. Sun, 16 Jul 1995 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/15/netscape-shutdown-mozilla-foundation-created/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/15/netscape-shutdown-mozilla-foundation-created/ On July 15, 2003, AOL closed Netscape's team and established the Mozilla Foundation, shaping the future of open web standards and browser development. Tue, 15 Jul 2003 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/14/ibm-650-was-announced/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/14/ibm-650-was-announced/ On July 14, 1953, IBM announced the Model 650, a machine expected to sell only 50 units that became the world's first mass-produced, profitable computer. Tue, 14 Jul 1953 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/13/metal-gear-was-released/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/13/metal-gear-was-released/ Released on July 13, 1987, Metal Gear revolutionized action games by introducing stealth gameplay and complex storytelling, shaping future game design. Mon, 13 Jul 1987 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/12/checkers-program-defeated-robert-nealey/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/12/checkers-program-defeated-robert-nealey/ On July 12, 1962, Arthur Samuel's checkers program defeated a strong human player, marking a milestone in AI and machine learning history. Thu, 12 Jul 1962 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/11/csharp-dotnet-introduced/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/11/csharp-dotnet-introduced/ On July 11, 2000, Microsoft announced the .NET platform, C#, Visual Studio .NET, and the CLR at PDC, shaping future software development. Tue, 11 Jul 2000 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/10/app-store-was-launched/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/10/app-store-was-launched/ Learn how the 2008 launch of Apple's App Store introduced a new mobile app economy, offering a unified platform for discovery, purchase, and security. Thu, 10 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/9/donkey-kong-was-released/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/9/donkey-kong-was-released/ Discover how Donkey Kong's 1981 release in Japan marked a milestone for Nintendo and introduced Mario to the world. Thu, 09 Jul 1981 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/8/postgresql-birthday/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/8/postgresql-birthday/ Learn about PostgreSQL's launch on July 8, 1996, from its university roots to becoming a leading open-source database system. Mon, 08 Jul 1996 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/7/first-program-on-electrostatic-memory/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/7/first-program-on-electrostatic-memory/ How the Whirlwind computer proved that electrostatic memory could work reliably — the same principle behind modern RAM. Thu, 07 Jul 1949 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/6/pokemon-go-is-released/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/6/pokemon-go-is-released/ Discover how Pokémon Go's 2016 release influenced social interaction, mapping, privacy, and augmented reality technology worldwide. Wed, 06 Jul 2016 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/5/amazon-founded/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/5/amazon-founded/ Jeff Bezos founded Amazon in 1994 as an online bookstore, initially named Cadabra, before launching the site in July 1995. Tue, 05 Jul 1994 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/4/mit-whirlwind-keyboard-input/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/4/mit-whirlwind-keyboard-input/ On July 4, 1956, MIT demonstrated the first use of a keyboard to input data into the Whirlwind computer, marking a key milestone in computing history. Wed, 04 Jul 1956 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/3/ucla-introduced-arpanet-concept/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/3/ucla-introduced-arpanet-concept/ Discover how UCLA's 1969 press release announced the first public computer network, laying the groundwork for today's Internet. Thu, 03 Jul 1969 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/2/bittorrent-protocol-was-introduced/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/2/bittorrent-protocol-was-introduced/ In 2001, Bram Cohen announced the BitTorrent protocol, enabling decentralized file sharing through swarms and transforming large file distribution on the Internet. Mon, 02 Jul 2001 00:00:00 +0000 https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/1/altair-basic-2-was-released/ https://history.purple-magic.com/en/jul/1/altair-basic-2-was-released/ Discover how Altair BASIC 2.0, released on July 1, 1975, was Microsoft's first commercial software and a milestone in microcomputer history. Tue, 01 Jul 1975 00:00:00 +0000