2006 at a Glance (IT-based)

2006 at a glance (The Star Online TechCentral - http://star-techcentral.com/tech/story.asp?file=/2006/12/28/itfeature/16322186&sec=itfeature
)

January

[1] Apple Computer Inc unveils the first Intel powered iMac desktop and MacBook Pro notebook computers. The company's shares subsequently leap to an all time high.

February

[1] Dell Malaysia launches regional command centre in Penang.

[2] KL Sentral receives cybercentre status from MDeC.

March

[1] Error in McAfee's antivirus software incapacitates its customers' PCs worldwide.

[2] Microsoft Corp unveils Windows Live search engine.

April

[1] Microsoft steps up its anti Windows piracy campaign with nagging pop-up messages that appear on
screens of computers that are using illegal copies of the company's operating system.

[2] Celcom (Malaysia) Bhd and Maxis Communications Bhd interconnect their 3G networks.

[3] The Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) turns 10 years old. It is renamed to MSC Malaysia while the Multimedia Development Corporation or MDC is renamed MDeC.

May

[1] Intel opens its RM152mil Design and Development Centre in Kedah.

[2] MySpace founders win Webby online achievement award.

[3] WiMAX tests begin in Cyberjaya.

[4] Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi announces the International Multilateral Partnership Against Cyberterrorism (IMPACT)
initiative. Symantec Corporation, Trend Micro and Kapersky Labs agree to be key partners and serve on IMPACT's international advisory board.

June

[1] Sony BMG is criticised for secretly installing spyware in customers' computers through its music CDs.

July

[1] Abdul Wahab Abdullah steps into office as Mimos Bhd's new president and chief executive officer.
Later, he reveals plans to turn the company into an R&D-focused organisation.

[2] Former Dell Malaysia general manager, Yasmin Mahmood takes over as managing director of Microsoft Malaysia.

[3] Rural folks in Sabah have 420 public telephones and 3,000 IP residential phones installed in 14 districts as part of the MCMC's Universal Service Provision (USP) project.

[4] Celcom announces nationwide 3G coverage.

[5] Google is recognised as a verb and included in the 11th edition Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary.

[6] Maxis hands out research grants amounting to RM774,000 to Multimedia University and University of Malaya to fund studies aimed at improving the local mobile communications industry.

[7] Microsoft discontinues tech support and bug fixes for Windows 98, Windows 98 Second Edition and Millennium Edition.

[8] Intel unveils its Itanium 2 processors.

[9] Niser is reorganised and renamed the National Cybersecurity Centre. Its new responsibilities include enhancing coordination, importing and sharing information between relevant government agencies.

August

[1] TMNet embarks on its easy-to-own PC initiative.

[2] The Government postpones the tender for the 2.3GHz WiMAX spectrum licences to iron out its specifications and conditions.

[3] Malaysian computer gamer Rinie Ramli wins the FIFA Soccer 2006 tournament at the World Cyber Games 2006 Asian Championship in Singapore.

[4] Dell recalls 4.1 million notebook computers due to faulty batteries, manufactured by Sony, that could reportedly overheat and catch fire.

September

[1] TM Net launches its http://music.bluehyppo.com
website as an alternative to Apple's iTunes online music service.

[2] MacPro, the Intel powered Mac, makes its debut in Malaysia.

[3] Hewlett-Packard Co (HP) get drawn into a spying scandal involving the leak of confidential company information to the media. As a result, the company's chairman at the time, Patricia Dunn, resigns.

[4] Maxis begins offering wireless residential broadband Internet access through HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access) technology.

October

[1] Yahoo! kicks off its time capsule project. A copy of submissions to the capsule will be buried at the Yahoo! campus and opened on Yahoo!'s 25th anniversary in 2020.

[2] Google buys video sharing site YouTube.com for US$1.65bil (RM6.1bil).

November

[1] University of Cambridge makes all of Charles Darwin's evolution theories available for free on the Web.

[2] Multimedia Development Corp (MDeC) opens a representative office in Bangalore, India to help attract foreign direct investment to MSC Malaysia.

[3] The Malaysian government adopts a neutral technology platform policy that does not favour open-source software (OSS) or proprietary software. As a result, the Malaysian Open Source Master Plan is altered.

[4] Intel launches its quad-core processors.

[5] Nintendo's Wii and Sony's PlayStation 3 videogame consoles are released for sale in the United States.

December

[1] The Technopreneurs Association of Malaysia (TeAM) and MDeC team up for a series of clinics aimed at helping local technopreneurs build their business.

[2] Yahoo! plans an extensive shake-up in hopes of regaining its competitive edge and restore investor's fading confidence. A consortium of 17 Malaysian Internet service providers (ISPs) launch the Malaysian Internet Exchange (MyIX).

[3] Alan Shugart, one of the pioneers of the hard drive industry and a co-founder of Seagate Technology LLC, dies at the age of 76.