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E-mail
Shiva Ayyadurai, a 14 year old Indian-Ameican boy, began his work on an email system for the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. Though Ray Tomlinson was formally known as the creator, Ayyaduari's system is more relevant to how email is used currently. Menon, R. (2016, March 15). Retrieved from https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/ray-tomlinsons-story-about-inventing-email-is-the-biggest-propaganda-lie-of-modern-tech-history-shiva-ayyadurai/articleshow/51337493 -
Internet Relay Chat
Internet Relay Chat devised by Jarkko Oikarinen in Finland in 1988 allowed users to log into the same server and 'chat'. One of the first chat services, this software technology became popular among Finnish university students. IRC History. (2005). Retrieved from http://www.irc.org/history_docs/jarkko.html -
First Search Engine
In 1989, Alan Emtage created Archie, the world’s first Internet search engine. Archie was founded for and dedicated to providing Internet information services. It led the way for new technology and gave a guideline for how search engines should function. Internet Society. (2017). Internet Hall of Fame - Alan Emtage. Retrieved from https://www.internethalloffame.org/inductees/alan-emtage -
Blogging
In 1994, Justin Hall created what is commonly referred to as the first blog. Though it was not referred to a blog at the time, Links.net was his 'homepage' he created as a college student. Then, original blogs began to pop up on the internet. A few years later the term “Weblog” was coined, then shortened to “blog” in 1999 by programmer Peter Merholz.
Chapman, C. (2018, February 07). A Brief History of Blogging. Retrieved from https://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2011/03/a-brief-history-of-blogging/ -
Wikipedia
Jimmy Wales and Larry Sanger wanted to create a forum open to the public with articles within articles relating to one another. The site allowed anyone to edit, going off the idea that if enough minds can come together to create, revise, and edit, the truth will filter through. Unlike a printed encyclopedia, it is constantly being changed in real time as time passes. Wikipedia: About. (2019, February 02). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:About -
Friendster
Jonathan Abrams and Peter Chin created Friendster in March of 2002. The site was built on the premise that people were separated by six degrees. A feature that showed how you were connected to strangers made meeting people less intimidating and was used as a dating site as well as an event and hobby page.
CBS News. (2014, February 04). Then and now: A history of social networking sites. Retrieved from https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/then-and-now-a-history-of-social-networking-sites/4/ -
LinkedIn
LinkedIn started as a place to post resumes online, but it quickly evolved into a business networking site which continued to grow, adding new features like hiring solutions for companies. It is one of the earliest networking sites that now remains relevant and continues to change it's features to fit the businesses it attracts. Kishundat, A. (2018, January). A Brief Overview and History of LinkedIn. Retrieved from https://candybitsocial.com/news/history-of-linkedin -
Wordpress
WordPress started out because the development of an existing blogging software was discontinued by their main developers. Two users of the old software, Matt Mullenweg and Mike Little, decided to build a new platform. It's now used by more than 60 million websites and is the most popular website management system in use. Balkhi, S. (2019, January 01). The History of WordPress from 2003 - 2019. Retrieved from https://www.wpbeginner.com/news/the-history-of-wordpress/ -
MySpace
MySpace was founded by several employees from the Internet marketing firm eUniverse in August 2003. MySpace was completely innovative; known for band pages, customizable profiles and being the center of culture targeted towards young adults. MySpace was the top website in 2006 and was valued at $12 billion in 2007.
CBS News. (2014, February 04). Then and now: A history of social networking sites. Retrieved from https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/then-and-now-a-history-of-social-networking-sites/7/ -
Facebook
Young Harvard programmer, Mark Zuckerberg, started Facebook as a way for students to connect and spanned many Ivy league universities before being used by the public. Expanding from your standard social network, Facebook users can give gifts to friends, post free classified ads and even develop their own applications. Phillips, S. (2007, July 25). A Brief History of Facebook. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2007/jul/25/media.newmedia -
YouTube
Started by Jawed Karim, Steve Chen, and Chad Hurley, YouTube was made by people who knew there was a need for an emerging platform for video. The ex-PayPal employees received money as a capital startup and posted their first video in December of 2005. The site is now a multi-billion dollar company and remains the hub for video based content.
X, A. (2016, November 10). Public Access - The History of Youtube. Retrieved from https://www.engadget.com/2016/11/10/the-history-of-youtube/ -
Facebook Lawsuit
In 2014, Facebook allowed a political group to illegally access personal information from millions of users. The US fought back with a lawsuit filed by the attorney general of D.C., sparking nation discussions of privacy. Zuckerberg appeared for a hearing in front of the US Senate, “This is the most intense tech hearing since Microsoft”, said Orrin Hatch, Utah Republican.
https://qz.com/1248979/senate-testimony-on-cambridge-analytica-mark-zuckerberg-is-standing-trial-for-the-entire-tech-industry
