360What happened in 1984?
2 moments from 1984 on 360n60, each told in 60 words or fewer.
- On this day · 24 January 1984
Apple launches the Macintosh
On 24 January 1984, Apple launched the Macintosh personal computer. It made the mouse and on-screen windows, icons and menus popular with ordinary users, instead of typed commands. It sold for $2,495 and set the style that most computers still follow today.
- On this day · 7 February 1984
An astronaut flies free in space
On 7 February 1984, the American astronaut Bruce McCandless flew about 100 m away from the space shuttle Challenger using a jet-powered backpack, with no safety line. It was the first untethered spacewalk. A famous photograph shows him floating alone against the blackness of space.