Today in history

From Wired, today's the 25th anniversary of ethernet. Developed by Bob Metcalfe at the venerable Xerox Palo Alto Research Center, the design was patented shortly after its implementation. However, Metcalfe was able to convince the funders of the project – Xerox, DEC, and Intel – to allow it to become an open standard, and thus the non-proprietary standard triumphed over IBM's Token Ring and GM's Token Bus. Ethernet was at first limited to networks in offices, universities, and research centers, but it entered America's hearts and homes when broadband became popular about a decade ago. Its use will wane eventually, though, with the further development of wireless technology. Anyway, on this day, just be thankful that these companies forfeited their government-granted monopoly.