1996

• Advanced Micro Devices and NexGen complete their merger, with AMD paying US$623 million for NexGen.
• Intel announces the immediate availability of the 60/150-MHz Pentium processor. Pricing is US$547 each in quantities of 1000. The processor operates on 3.3-volts of power, and utilizes Intel's 0.35 micron BiCMOS manufacturing technology.
• Intel announces the immediate availability of the 66/166-MHz Pentium P55C processor. Pricing is US$749 each in quantities of 1000. The processor operates on 3.3-volts of power, and utilizes Intel's 0.35 micron manufacturing technology.
• NeXT ends development of the NextStep operating system.
• IBM releases OS/2 for the PowerPC.
• Umax Data Systems buys Radius' Macintosh operating system license.
• Philippe Kahn resigns as chairman of Borland International.
• Compaq announces the Scanner Keyboard, for US$350. It incorporates a color page scanner into an otherwise normal keyboard.
• Silicon Graphics introduces InfiniteReality, an Indigo2 workstation based on the MIPS Technologies R10000 microprocessor.
• Corel purchases WordPerfect, Quattro Pro, and the PerfectOffice application suite from Novell for US$180 million in cash, stock, and future licensing royalties.
• Digital Equipment announces it is exiting from the consumer desktop PC market, and discontinuing the Starion line of multimedia PCs.
• The US Supreme Court upholds a ruling that Borland International's Quattro Pro did not violate Lotus Development's Lotus 1-2-3 copyrights. The original suit was filed in July, 1990.
• Intel renames the P7 processor Merced.
• Apple Computer's board of directors fire CEO Michael Spindler, and demote co-founder Mike Markkula from chairman to vice chairman.
• Compaq Computer and IBM announce that future PCs will support the CEBus (Consumer Electronics Bus) standard.
• Advanced Micro Devices and Intel sign a five-year patent cross-license agreement.
• The US Supreme Court votes 4-4 on the Lotus/Borland "look-and-feel" issue, upholding the decision of appeal in March 1995.
• Apple Computer publicly shows the Macintosh operating system running on an IBM system (PowerPC-based) for the first time.

• MIPS Technologies ships the 200-MHz R5000 RISC microprocessor.
• Micron Electronics closes subsidiary company Zeos Computer.
• Santa Cruz Operations releases SCO UnixWare 2.1.
• Microsoft releases the Windows 95 Service Pack 1 operating system update.
• Motorola ships samples of the 64-bit PowerPC 620 processor.
• Seagate Technologies and Conner Peripherals complete their merger.
• Apple Computer's board of directors names Gilbert Amelio as new CEO, president, and chairman of the company.
• IBM announces it is abandoning plans to develop its Power Personal Series line of PowerPC-based desktop PCs.
• Cyrix announces volume availability of the 110-MHz P133+ CX6x86 microprocessor, for US$326.
• Cyrix announces volume availability of the 60/120-MHz P150+ CX6x86 microprocessor, for US$451.
• Cyrix announces limited availability of the 66/130-MHz P166+ CX6x86 microprocessor, for US$621.
• IBM ships OS/2 Warp Server.
• Apple Computer licenses the MacOS to Motorola.

• Microsoft ships the 30 millionth copy of Windows 95.
• Packard Bell Electronics receives Zenith Data Systems, as part of a US$650 million deal with NEC and Groupe Bull.
• Computer-maker CompuAdd shuts down operations.
• Silicon Graphics and Cray Research agree to merge, at a cost of about US$764 million to Silicon Graphics.
• Compaq Computer introduces the 180-MHz Pentium Pro-based Prolinea.
• Intel releases the 120-MHz Pentium OverDrive processor for 60-MHz systems, with the 133-MHz version for 66-MHz systems, and the 125-MHz version for 75-MHz systems. Price for any of the chips is US$400.
• Intel releases the 133-MHz Pentium processor for notebook computers. The processor uses 0.35 micron technology, and operates on 3.3 volts of power externally, while its internal core only requires 2.9 volts. Price is US$371 in quantities of 1000.
• MIPS Technologies ships the 200-MHz R10000 RISC microprocessor.
• Advanced Micro Devices begins shipping the AMD5K86 microprocessor. Prices are US$75 each for the 133-MHz AMD5K86-P75, and US$99 each for the AMD5K86-P90, in quantities of 1000.
• Digital Equipment introduces the HiNote Ultra II, subnotebook. It features a 100/120/133-MHz Pentium, weighs 4 pounds, 10.4-inch color SVGA active matrix screen, removable memory/hard drive pack, removable CD-ROM/speaker pack, and removable external ports pack. Prices range from US$3000-6000.
• Iomega sells its 1-millionth Zip drive.
• Digital Equipment unveils 366-MHz and 400-MHz versions of its Alpha microprocessor.

• Hewlett-Packard begins shipping the HP LaserJet 5 line of laser printers.
• IBM ships the 166-MHz PowerPC 604 processor.
• IBM ships the 180-MHz PowerPC 604 processor.
• Silicon Graphics completes its purchase of Cray Research, for US$764 million.
• Corel releases Corel WordPerfect Suite 7, and Corel Office Professional Suite.
• Apple Computer introduces the Power Macintosh 9500/150, with a 150-MHz PowerPC 604 processor.

• Netscape Communications releases Netscape Navigator 2.02.
• IBM and Motorola ship the 200-MHz PowerPC 603e processor.

• Sony Information Technologies of America introduces Sony's new line of comsumer-based PC systems, priced at US$2000-3000.

• Microsoft releases Microsoft Internet Explorer 2.0.

• Intel introduces the 200-MHz Pentium processor, shipping it initially in small quantities. Price is US$599 in quantities of 1000.
• IBM begins shipping small quantities of its version of Cyrix' 150-MHz 6x86 processor.
• Digital Equipment ships 366-MHz and 400-MHz versions of its Alpha 21164 microprocessor.
• Microsoft ships Direct3D to developers, eight months behind schedule. Direct3D is a framework for hardware-based acceleration of 3-D games for Windows. Previous name for Direct3D was Win/G.
• Cyrix introduces the 6x86-P200+ processor.
• SunSoft releases Wabi 2.2.
• Nintendo announces the Nintendo 64, a 64-bit game system.
• Advanced Micro Devices begins shipping the K5-PR100 microprocessor. It is a 100-MHz Pentium-compatible plug-in replacement. Price is US$84 each for 1000.

• Caldera buys DR DOS from Novell.
• Compaq Computer discontinues the ProLinea desktop computer line.
• Digital Equipment begins shipping the 433-MHz Alpha 21164 processor.
• Intel begins shipping the 200-MHz Pentium Pro with a 512-KB cache.
• IBM ships the 225-MHz PowerPC 604e processor.
• Apple Computer releases System 7.5.3 operating system for the Macintosh.
• Visual Information Service Corp. signs an agreement to purchase the intellectual property and inventory of Amiga Technologies GmbH.
• ESCOM AG (owner of Amiga Technologies) files for bankruptcy.

• Microsoft releases Microsoft Internet Explorer 3.0.
• Intel releases the 150-MHz mobile Pentium processor, designed for use in portable computers. The processor uses 0.35 micron technology, and operates on 3.3 volts of power externally, while its internal core only requires 3.1 volts. Price is US$341 in quantities of 1000.
• Robert Frankenberg resigns as president and CEO of Novell.
• Hewlett-Packard introduces the Vectra XW line of workstations. They are based on 200-MHz Pentium Pro processors and Windows NT Workstation operating systems.

• Hewlett-Packard unveils the Vectra XM and Vectra VL series of Pentium-powered computers.
• Hewlett-Packard introduces and ships the OmniBook 800 notebook portable computer. It features a 133-MHz Pentium processor, PCI bus, 10.4-inch active matrix screen, 16 MB RAM, 1.44 GB drive, and weighs 3.75 pounds. Price is US$4850. CD-ROM and docking station are optional.
• Motorola announces its entry into the Power Macintosh clone market, by unveiling the StarMax (Mac-compatible) and PowerStack II (Windows NT-based) series, featuring the PowerPC 603e and 604e processors, operating at 166-MHz and 200-MHz.
• Microsoft unveils Windows CE operating system for hand-held PCs. Code-name of the project was Pegasus. "CE" stands for Consumer Electronics.
• IBM launches OS/2 Warp 4, in San Francisco, California. Price is US$249.
• The IBM Personal Computer Company releases the IBM Series 365, the first IBM PCs with an option for dual Intel processors.

• Seagate Technology introduces the Cheetah ST19101 9.1 GB 10,000 RPM disc drive.
• A group of disk drive and media manufacturers announce an agreement to produce CD-Rewritable drives and media.
• Microsoft ships the Visual J++ Professional Edition development kit, for US$99.
• Compaq Computer enters the workstation market with the announcement of the Professional Workstation line of Pentium Pro based systems.

• Enorex Microsystems introduces the Enorex Ultra PC line of Digital Equipment Alpha processor-based workstations. The systems offer 366-MHz to 500-MHz speeds, and come with Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 Workstation. Prices start at US$3000.
• Compaq Computer ships the PC Companion, a hand-held computer running Windows CE. Weight is under 1 pound. The unit measures 7 inches wide by 3.5 inches deep. It runs on AA batteries, lasting up to 20 hours. Prices range from US$499 (2MB RAM) to US$699 (6MB RAM).
• NEC Computer Systems ships the MobilePro HPC, a hand-held computer running Windows CE.
• Hitachi Home Electronics ships the Hitachi Handheld PC, running Windows CE.
• Casio Computer ships the Cassiopeia, a hand-held computer running Windows CE.
• IBM shows a prototype Professional Workstation at Fall Comdex, with a 16.1-inch color active-matric flat-panel LCD screen.
• Microsoft unveils Microsoft Office 97 at Fall Comdex. Prices: standard edition US$499 (upgrade US$209), professional edition US$599 (upgrade US$309).
• IBM shows a 300-MHz version of the PowerPC processor at Fall Comdex in Las Vegas, Nevada.

• Apple Computer buys Steve Jobs' NeXT Software company for US$424 million in cash and Apple stock.

• Intel begins shipping the 200-MHz Pentium Pro processor.

• NEC Electronics begins shipping its R4101 processor for persinal digital assistants. The chip includes a 33-MHz 4100 processor core, 2 KB instruction cache, 1 KB data cache, real-time clock, DMA controller, audio driver, and interfaces for serial port, keyboard, infrared, and touch-screen interfaces.

• Digital Equipment announces availability of the 500-MHz Alpha 21164 processor. The chip uses a 0.35-micron die.

• At the Microprocessor Forum, Advanced Micro Devices announces the K6 processor, optimized for 16- and 32-bit code, supporting MMX, and including 32KB cache memory. The chip will plug into a standard Pentium socket.

• At the Microprocessor Forum, Cyrix announces the M2 processor, optimized for 16- and 32-bit code, supporting MMX, and including 64KB cache memory. The chip will plug into a standard Pentium socket.

• At the Microprocessor Forum, Exponential Technology debuts the Exponential X704, a PowerPC compatible processor for the Macintosh OS and Windows NT microcomputers.

• Micro Express ships the MicroHex-686/100, the first computer using the Cyrix 6x86 microprocessor.

• Advanced Micro Designs discontinues the NexGen Nx586 processor.

• IBM produces a single processor chip version of its 8-chip Power2 architecture. Dubbed the P2SC, the processor contains 15 million transistors, of which 9.3 million are for cache arrays. The 135-MHz processor is made with IBM's 0.29-micron COMS-6S process.

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