August 31, 1994:Adobe finalizes the merger with Aldus to try and create a new powerful desktop manager. Aldus brought to the table a desktop publishing program in “PageMaker”. The program was first created in 1985 and used the emerging Graphical User Interface in both Mac and PC environments. This also allowed Adobe to control the TIFF file format.
August 30, 1995: Just a few days after the launch of Windows95, Microsoft puts out the newest version of the Office software. Technically, it’s called “Office 7.0”, but Microsoft wanted to brand it as a companion to the newest operating system. Therefore, it became “Office 95”.The newest version included Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Mail software. This new version ran in 32 bit, so Windows 95 could utilize it to the best of it’s ability.
August 28, 2008 – Psystar came on the scene earlier in the year with a machine that would contain Windows, Linux or Mac software. Of course, this has not been without controversy. Apple finally put together a lawsuit, but instead of Psystar accepting, they decided to countersue. The reason why: Anticompetitive Nature.
August 24, 2011 – Steve Jobs, unable to continue due to failing health, officially puts his resignation in to Apple. He asks for his successor to be Tim Cook, then COO of Apple. The Board of Directors agree and announce the changing of CEO. The official resignation letter read:
To the Apple Board of Directors and the Apple Community:
I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple’s CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come. The official resignation letter read:
I hereby resign as CEO of Apple. I would like to serve, if the Board sees fit, as Chairman of the Board, director and Apple employee.
As far as my successor goes, I strongly recommend that we execute our succession plan and name Tim Cook as CEO of Apple.
I believe Apple’s brightest and most innovative days are ahead of it. And I look forward to watching and contributing to its success in a new role.
I have made some of the best friends of my life at Apple, and I thank you all for the many years of being able to work alongside you.
Steve
1995 – Microsoft releases Windows 95. It was a stellar event with it’s newest operating system. The first MS OS in 32 bit mode, it also debut TCP/IP, dial up networking and Long Filename support. The event brought along many different celebrations, including places like New York, which lit up the Empire State Building with the Windows colors.
IBM wasn’t sure if they were getting Windows 95 until 15 minutes before release. Companies like HP and Compaq (at that time they were separate) were able to let consumers know that they will get upgrades, but IBM could not make that promise.
August 20, 2008: When the 3G iPhonereleased, some people started complaining about the connection. Apple wasn’t saying anything. An independant company stated that the “Infineon” chip that helped control 3G was to blame for the issue. It was suspected that a software update would fix the problem.However the 2.0.2 software update didn’t really help with the connection problems. Add to it the fact that a woman was suing Apple over the 3G network being slower than advertised.
Steve Jobs finally put out a letter stating that by 2.1 the issues will be resolved.
Datallegro – a warehouse application – had been sued by XPrime, where Cary Jardin (CEO of Datallegro) used to work. Datallegro was in mid acquisition by Microsoft at the time. The acquisition completed on Sept 16, 2008. The suit was analyzed by critics as “not relevant”. No word on how that suit ended.
Red Hat is a Linux distribution and a vendor. They are on the S&P 500 company list for it. Founded in 1993, this company has provided a more professional type of open source software – giving pay support and Enterprise editions for IT pros. CEO Bob Young brought the company to this point. They filed for IPO in 1999. It turned out to be one of the largest Wall Street Gains in history. They put up 900,000 shares of common stock. Red Hat spiked at $136 a share, but is currently at $57
Also, Palm released the Palm VIIx and Vx handheld computers. VIIx was $449 and the Vx was $399.
On this day in 2009, the Day in Tech History started. I was running the show as “Week in Tech History”, then went to a daily format to increase listeners. The show has been running for over 1000 episodes, never missing a day. It is now entering into it’s 9th year.
It’s a great day for Apple in 2004 as they hit th one millionth song. They started back in 2001, so to hit 1 million songs in 3 1/2 years was a big milestone. Of course, since then and since the introduction of the iPhone, that number has increased exponentially.