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For those of us who use technology on a day-to-day basis, we don’t often stop to think about the story behind the buttons we are pressing. When is the last time you took a moment to ponder who invented the command key on your keyboard before you closed a window or saved a document? Did you know that standard power button you use on everything from your laptop to your air conditioner to your X-Box 360 actually has it’s origin in World War II?

Since we already take for granted the vast array of new devices and technologies that permeate our daily lives, it becomes even harder to remember the small details that were once inconceivable. That is why I found Gizmodo writer Bryan Gardiner’s piece on the history of symbols and icons so refreshing and informative. Bryan attempts to trace the history of some of the most widely recognized and utilized symbols in the digital world, such as the At, Ethternet, BlueTooth and USB icons.

What surprised me most, besides the fact that Apple employees or engineers came up with almost all of them, was how many images could be traced back centuries to iconography from Greek Mythology, Danish Kings or accounting machines from the 1800’s. There is a rich and meaningful history behind most of these symbols, and where there is history, there should be a Dipity timeline.

I decided to take Bryan’s article and whip up a topic on Dipity using his images and descriptions. It was easy to copy and paste image URLs, descriptions and dates. All in all, it took me about 25 minutes to create the perfect visual supplement to Bryan’s written content. Here is the result:

Dipity timelines are the perfect tool to use alongside any article or blog that addresses the history of any particular topic. In the past we have looked at Rick Rollin’, Chere Mamo, Kia Hamsters and even The World Cup. Whether ancient or modern, ongoing or done and gone, the topics we have addressed on our blog have been greatly enhanced by the use of an embedded timeline. Embeds are available to anyone who has a connection to the internet.

Our belief at Dipity is that the applications for timeline technology are limitless. The visualization of data in a chronological format is relevant to anyone who uses the internet, and that is a huge market. Our vision is that, much like the symbols and icons that make up part of our daily interaction with computers, our timelines will soon be one of the many technologies that web users utilize without thinking twice. One day, when users take timeline technology for granted, a blogger somewhere will attempt to find out where it all started, and they will end up right back here, at Dipity.