Digg v4 and lessons not learned

Digg v4 and lessons not learned

Digg was a high flying news aggregation site from the early web 2.0 era that still exists today, but really in name only. It serves as a cautionary too for why high profile websites tend not to make major changes overnight. A major update, Digg v4, introduced August 25, 2010, caused the site to implode over the course of about 6 weeks during the late summer of 2010. Contemporary tech CEOs would do well to read up on it lest they repeat history.

Digg went from concept to being worth $200 million in about three years and was more popular than Reddit, which is now a $15 billion company. One ill fated change wiped out 90% of its value and its user base in a matter of six weeks.

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Intel Celeron 300A introduced August 24, 1998

Intel Celeron 300A introduced August 24, 1998

On August 24, 1998, Intel introduced its Celeron 300A processor. It wasn’t the first Celeron, but depending on who you ask, it was the first one worth having. The Celeron was a cut-down Pentium II, designed in response to pricing pressures from AMD. But it turned out not just to be a budget CPU. It drew a surprising response from enthusiasts.

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Windows 95 released August 24, 1995

It was on August 24, 1995 that Windows 95 was released, amidst much anticipation. It was the most widely anticipated Windows release of all time, and the runner up really isn’t close. The idea of people lining up for blocks for a Microsoft product sounds like a bit of a joke today, and the more time goes on, the bigger of a joke it becomes. But I’m serious that in 1995 it happened.

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Legend of Zelda released August 22, 1987

Legend of Zelda released August 22, 1987

38 years ago this week, The Legend of Zelda was released in the United States. Today, people are divided on what kind of game it was, but in 1987, no one cared. It was the first time anyone had seen anything like it on a game console. And it was a sensation.

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Microsoft QuickBasic remembered

Microsoft QuickBasic remembered

Microsoft QuickBasic was a commercially available programming language for MS-DOS, initially released August 18, 1985. Qbasic, the Basic interpreter included with MS-DOS versions 5 and 6, was a cut-down version of QuickBasic. Most notably, the bundled version lacked the ability to compile programs into standalone executable files. But otherwise, the two were compatible.

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Why Intel acquired McAfee, then un-bought it

Why Intel acquired McAfee, then un-bought it

On August 19, 2010, CPU manufacturer Intel purchased antivirus maker McAfee. At the time, few people knew why. And let’s just say fewer people were surprised when Intel unacquired McAfee in April 2017 than they were when they made the acquisition.

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What happened to Egghead Software

What happened to Egghead Software

Egghead Software was a US retail store that sold computer software from 1984 to 2001. It declared bankruptcy 24 years ago this week, on August 18, 2001, after an attempted transition to selling online failed.

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When the Internet reached half of US households

When the Internet reached half of US households

August 17, 2000 was a major milestone for the Internet. You could argue it’s the day the Internet went mainstream, completing the transition from something computer science students used in college to something their parents would use to buy books and offbeat collectibles. It was the day Nielson announced that the Internet had reached half of US households.

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Internet Explorer first released August 16, 1995

Internet Explorer first released August 16, 1995

It was 29 years ago this week that Microsoft introduced Internet Explorer. It was almost an afterthought, just one of the components in the Windows 95 Plus pack, along with additional themes and a 3D pinball game. But things change, to say the least.

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Red Hat’s successful 1999 IPO

Red Hat’s successful 1999 IPO

It was 26 years ago this week, on Aug 11, 1999, that Red Hat, the Linux vendor, conducted its IPO. It was not the biggest IPO of 1999, and it wasn’t even the biggest Linux-related IPO of 1999. But Red Hat was one of the survivors of the dotcom era, exiting as a result of an acquisition more than 20 years later. Investors may have initially been divided on the company but in the end the naysayers were wrong.

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