CHSWebDesign2020

by Olivia Conkling and Courtney Campbell Early Computing Devices Would early computing devices have been as successful if they weren’t ahead of their time? Before smartphones took over the World, tons of companies were trying to find a way to fit a computer into the pockets of consumers everywhere. The problem was that there were too many problems: too big, too expensive, and even weak tech. Handheld computers were not just a fad for Silicon Valley, they were a goal for many tech companies. Companies like GO Corp., who wasted millions of dollars trying to develop the new handhelds, and GeoWorks, attempted to be the next big thing in the tech world. A division named General Magic, with now-famous names like Pierre Omidyar, Tony Fadell, and Andy Rubin, and a division called Newton were both Apple teams. Newton created the Figaro, a huge tablet with networking and a hard drive. However, this device was too expensive to make, and was therefore a failure. The Newton MessageP

(Great title considering our Netflix Party next week!) By Anabell Mazzan and Hayden Minard In 1999 Mark Zuckerberg created The Web... A screenshot of Mark’s “The Web”: a java application  that allowed him to digitally map out his social circle. Okay, not exactly The Web, that was already a thing. I’m talking about “The Web”, a subpage on Zuckerberg’s personal website that linked to all of his friends’ sites so he could keep track of his social network. At age 15, Mark Zuckerberg had no idea of the impact this simple idea would have, but soon it would change the internet forever. From the moment Zuckerberg arrived at Harvard, he was creating ways for people to interact with each other online. His first project, Course Match, was a tool to help students pick their classes and see who else was taking them so they could feel more comfortable in this new college experience. Course Match was the first of many projects that all shared one theme—social conn

by Aakash Sell and Elliot Topper [Directions from Instructor: Please read the blog post below. If you did not write this post, you must respond at least once directly to the post, and then respond at least once to someone else's response. If you did write the post, you need only respond at least once to the initial responses from your peers.] Paypal /X.com Paypal was a new way of online transactions. It was originally named Confinity and was started by Peter Thiel and Max Levchin. Paypal was kind of like having a bank account on the internet and became popular with eBay buyers and sellers as an alternative to checks and money orders. Paypal had a competitor called X.com that was founded by Elon Musk. These two companies eventually merged to become Paypal. Paypal started growing very quickly and became profitable early on. They made money by taking a percentage of the transactions made on their platform. eBay eventually bought Paypal but Paypal’s success showed how th

By Erin Brady and Riley Forrester [Directions from Instructor: Please read the blog post below. If you did not write this post, you must respond at least once directly to the post, and then respond at least once to someone else's response. If you did write the post, you need only respond at least once to the initial responses from your peers.] Wikipedia How did blogging impact future companies on a larger scale? After the burst of the dot-com bubble, blogging served as the transition of publishing to the digital arena. Websites like Pitchfork allowed previously unknown writers to gain credibility by pushing the best content to the top. Through blogging, users were motivated to create their own content using websites like Napster, where MP3s created communities of shared interest. Websites like Slashdot and Flickr further promoted this idea, with communities debating articles and sharing photo albums, respectively. TechCrunch and Digg.com both had the ability to increas

by Ava Turner and Lynne Walenjus [Directions from Instructor: Please read the blog post below. If you did not write this post, you must respond at least once directly to the post, and then respond at least once to someone else's response. If you did write the post, you need only respond at least once to the initial responses from your peers.] The Initial iPod and iTunes Was the failure of the physical music industry worth a new generation of online music downloads? Apple had a rough start before Steve Jobs came back to save the day. Apple established its trademark as beautifully crafted computers that were innovative and individualized devices. Jobs wanted the iMac to be the central machine to a variety of other Apple products to create a digital hub. Jobs knew that music download was the key connector of the digital hub, but needed a way to unite this system. After purchasing Toshiba’s idea for a 1.8 inch 5 gigabyte hard drive, Jobs developed the iPod: a stainless s

by Hannah Arbeitel and Erin Burke [Directions from Instructor: Please read the blog post below. If you did not write this post, you must respond at least once directly to the post, and then respond at least once to someone else's response. If you did write the post, you need only respond at least once to the initial responses from your peers.] Origins of Google Irony can sometimes be the best cultivator of a situation. This stands out more than ever when the founding of Google is examined. Two men who seemingly had nothing in common coming together to create the biggest internet company ever is not the everyday tale of an internet startup. Larry Page and Sergey Brin did have one thing in common: their thought process, which would allow them to turn their startup into a global phenomenon.  The homepage of Google when the company first was available to the public in 1997. Both forward thinkers who looked to challenge why things should be done, they were able to