A Cyberpunk Timeline

1980

- City Come A-Walkin' published
- The Artificial Kid published

1981

- Spacetime Donuts published
- "The Gernsback Continuum " published in Universe 11
- True Names published

1982

- Software published (Jan.)
- Blade Runner released
- Tron released

1983

- Gibson, Sterling and Shiner visit Rudy Rucker in Lynchburg after Balticon; Virginia hasn't been this hip since Thomas Jefferson was alive
- War Games released
- The short story "Cyberpunk" by Bruce Bethke published in Amazing Science Fiction Stories; this is, allegedly, the first use of the term anywhere (Nov.)

1984

- Neuromancer published; "cyberspace" coined
- Dr. Adder published
- Frontera published
- Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution published
- In Japan, robots kill four humans in seperate incidents
- Terminator released
- 2600 begins publication
- VPL Research Inc. founded by Jason Lanier
- Gardner Dozois, reviewing "hot new writers" for The Washington Post, refers to a group called "cyberpunks". The name sticks (Dec. 30)

1985

- Schismatrix published
- 20 Minutes into the Future (aka Max Headroom) released
- Eclipse published
- Donna Haraway's "A Cyborg Manifesto" published in Socialist Review (Apr.)
- Japanese translation of Neuromancer published (July)
- "Cyberpunks" panel convenes at the National SF Convention in Austin. Panelists are Rudy Rucker, John Shirley, Bruce Sterling, Lou Shiner, Pat Cadigan and Greg Bear (Aug. 31)

1986

- Burning Chrome published
- Hardwired published
- "Pakistani Brain" virus infects IBM computers world-wide (Jan.)
- Rudy Rucker's "What is Cyberpunk?" appears in REM #3 (Feb.)
- Count Zero published (Mar.)
- Norman Spinrad's "The Neuromantics" published in IASF (May)
- John Shirley confounds the elders at the Science Fiction Research Association panel "Cyberpunk or Cyberjunk" (June 28)
- Cheap Truth ceases publication (Aug.)
- Michael Swanwick's "A User's Guide to the Post Moderns" published in IASF (Nov.)
- Mirrorshades published (Dec.)
- Interzone reprints "the New Science Fiction" by Vincent Omniaveritas (Winter)

1987

- Science Fiction Eye premiers with all cyberpunk issue
- Robocop released
- Akira released

1988

- In England, Max Dowhham's "Cyberpunk: the Final Solution" published in Vague
- Islands in the Net published
- Mississippi Review entire issue published devoted to cyberpunk; academic colonization of the Movement begins in earnest
- Metrophage published
- Shatter graphic novel published
- Going GaGa begins publication
- bOING bOING begins publication
- Wetware published (Apr.)
- The Internet worm strikes (Nov.)
- Mona Lisa Overdrive published (Nov.)

1989

- Mondo 2000 begins publication
- Neuromancer: The Graphic Novel published
- The Cuckoo's Egg<.i> published
- Semiotext(e):SF published
- Cherry comix special cyberpunk issue published
- Crystal Express published
- Tetsuo:The Iron Man released
- Timothy Leary interviews William Gibson
- Phrack #24 distributed containing the E911 document hacked from BellSouth (Feb. 24)

1990

- The Difference Engine published
- Hardware released
- EFF founded
- Secret Service raids Steven Jackson Games in Austin (Mar. 1)
- Harper's Magazine publishes "Is Computer Hacking a Crime?", a transcript of a WELL conference during which Phiber Optik hacks the TRW database and distributes John Barlow's credit history (Mar.)
- Operation Sun Devil (May 7-9)
- Paul Di Filippo's "Ribofunk" published in bOING bOING #2 (Winter)
- In England, The Hardcore special "Cyberpunk is Dead" issue published (Winter)

1991

- Storming the Reality Studio published
- Synners published
- Terminator 2 released
- The Silicon Man published
- Transreal! published
- U.S. intelligence agents reportedly cripple Iraqi air defense computers with a virus during the Gulf War (Jan)
- Lewis Shiner announces in the Op-Ed pages of the New York Times that he has resigned from cyberpunk (Jan.7)
- Steven Jackson Games sues the Secret Service (May 1)
- "Michelangelo" virus media panic begins (Dec.)

1992

- EFF moves to Washington D.C. and is immediately compromised
- The Hacker Crackdown published
- Snow Crash published
- Mondo 2000: A User's Guide to the New Edge published
- Lawnmower Man released
- "Michelangelo" doomsday; nothing happens (Mar. 6)
- Jaron Lanier loses his patents to his creditors (Nov)
- Future Sex begins publication (Nov)

1993

- Wired begins publication
- Virtual Light published
- Fringe Ware Review begins publication
- Time Magazine "Cyberpunk" cover story; real cyberpunks outraged (Feb. 8)
- Court rules in favor of Steven Jackson Games, Secret Service ordered to pay damages (Feb.)
- Wild Palms premiers (May 16)
- Billy Idol's new album Cyberpunk released; real cyberpunks outraged (July)
- Flame Wars; The Discourse of Cyberculture published

1994

- The Hacker and the Ants published
- Data Trash published
- Cyberia published
- "VNS Manifesto" published in Unnatural: Techno-theory for a Contaminated Culture
- Phiber Optic begins serving a 13 month sentence for computer intrusion and conspiracy (Jan.)
- In Paris, "Cyber SM" gives first public demonstration of virtual sexuality, S&M style (Jan.)
- Line Noiz e-zine distributes results of its opinion poll "Does Cyberpunk Still Exist?"; no conclusions, as usual (Aug. 12)
- Western news media reports two thirds of Russian computer users have encountered viruses, 85% of those viruses were Russian made (Nov.)

1995

- Diamond Age published
- EFF retreats to San Francisco
- The Cyberpunk Handbook published; cynical opportunism reaches new low
- Synthetic Pleasures released
- The Net released
- Hackers released
- From Australia, geekgirl debuts on the Net (Jan.)
- Kevin Metnick arrested by the FBI for numerous computer crimes (Feb. 15)
- Italian police raid BITS Against the Empire BBS accusing the computer group of subversion (Feb. 28)
- The Steampunk Trilogy published (Apr.)
- VR 5 premiers (May 24)
- Virtual Futures conference meets at Warwick University (May 26-28)
- Johnny Mnemonic released (May 26)

Post-Johnny