Cyberjack
Encyclopedia
Cyberjack was the name for a Web browser application created by Delrina
in 1995. It was sold as a stand-alone product, and was also bundled as part of Delrina's CommSuite 95
offering.
In addition to the Web browser application, it also included an ftp client, Usenet
newsgroup reader, an IRC client, a graphic interface to gopher services and more. It used a Wizard-based front-end that provided access to all of these services. It was touted as being the first 32-bit based Web browsing program, and was aimed squarely at Windows 95
users. It could transform seamlessly from one application to another as required, a feature that would not be emulated until later browsers of the late 1990s.
As an application it arguably had two main drawbacks: its browser application was incapable of rendering tables, which were then becoming predominant in Web site design, and it also lacked an email client. While table support was added more than a year later, by that time it had lost important mindshare.
In the end, it arguably could not compete against other browser offerings that were offered for free, such as the contemporaneous Internet Explorer 2
, which came out November 1995 and Netscape Navigator
.
Although marketed by Symantec
, the Cyberjack suite was written by a small South African startup, Vironix Software Laboratories. Vironix was owned by Dave and Paula Hall and originally operated from Westville
, Durban. During the development of Cyberjack the majority of the programmers moved to a new office in Muizenberg
, a beach town near Cape Town. The entire programming team consisted of only about six developers, roughly one per Internet application. The suite was sold to Delrina, which was later bought by Symantec. However, it came to market at about the time that the Internet Explorer
/Netscape Navigator battle was developing, and the small programming team with limited resources could not keep up with the pace of browser development. After Cyberjack was discontinued by Symantec, Vironix went into liquidation although some of the members of the Cyberjack team went on to develop the WebFerret application.
Delrina
Delrina was a Canadian software company founded by four individuals, Dennis Bennie as CEO and chairman, Mark Skapinker as president, Bert Amato as executive vice president and chief technical officer and Lou Ryan as executive vice president of world wide sales...
in 1995. It was sold as a stand-alone product, and was also bundled as part of Delrina's CommSuite 95
CommSuite 95
CommSuite 95 was a communications software "suite" of products launched by the Canadian software company Delrina in December, 1995. It was a 32-bit based program created specifically for use in Windows 95...
offering.
In addition to the Web browser application, it also included an ftp client, Usenet
Usenet
Usenet is a worldwide distributed Internet discussion system. It developed from the general purpose UUCP architecture of the same name.Duke University graduate students Tom Truscott and Jim Ellis conceived the idea in 1979 and it was established in 1980...
newsgroup reader, an IRC client, a graphic interface to gopher services and more. It used a Wizard-based front-end that provided access to all of these services. It was touted as being the first 32-bit based Web browsing program, and was aimed squarely at Windows 95
Windows 95
Windows 95 is a consumer-oriented graphical user interface-based operating system. It was released on August 24, 1995 by Microsoft, and was a significant progression from the company's previous Windows products...
users. It could transform seamlessly from one application to another as required, a feature that would not be emulated until later browsers of the late 1990s.
As an application it arguably had two main drawbacks: its browser application was incapable of rendering tables, which were then becoming predominant in Web site design, and it also lacked an email client. While table support was added more than a year later, by that time it had lost important mindshare.
In the end, it arguably could not compete against other browser offerings that were offered for free, such as the contemporaneous Internet Explorer 2
Internet Explorer 2
Microsoft Internet Explorer 2 is a graphical web browser released on November 22, 1995 by Microsoft for Windows 95 and Windows NT and in April 1996 for Apple Macintosh and Windows 3.1....
, which came out November 1995 and Netscape Navigator
Netscape Navigator
Netscape Navigator was a proprietary web browser that was popular in the 1990s. It was the flagship product of the Netscape Communications Corporation and the dominant web browser in terms of usage share, although by 2002 its usage had almost disappeared...
.
Although marketed by Symantec
Symantec
Symantec Corporation is the largest maker of security software for computers. The company is headquartered in Mountain View, California, and is a Fortune 500 company and a member of the S&P 500 stock market index.-History:...
, the Cyberjack suite was written by a small South African startup, Vironix Software Laboratories. Vironix was owned by Dave and Paula Hall and originally operated from Westville
Westville, KwaZulu-Natal
Westville is an area near Durban in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, which is situated 20 km inland from the Durban city centre. Formerly an independent municipality governed by a Town Council, it now forms part of the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality, which also includes Durban...
, Durban. During the development of Cyberjack the majority of the programmers moved to a new office in Muizenberg
Muizenberg
Muizenberg is a beach-side suburb of Cape Town, South Africa. It is situated where the shore of the Cape Peninsula curves round to the east on the False Bay coast...
, a beach town near Cape Town. The entire programming team consisted of only about six developers, roughly one per Internet application. The suite was sold to Delrina, which was later bought by Symantec. However, it came to market at about the time that the Internet Explorer
Internet Explorer
Windows Internet Explorer is a series of graphical web browsers developed by Microsoft and included as part of the Microsoft Windows line of operating systems, starting in 1995. It was first released as part of the add-on package Plus! for Windows 95 that year...
/Netscape Navigator battle was developing, and the small programming team with limited resources could not keep up with the pace of browser development. After Cyberjack was discontinued by Symantec, Vironix went into liquidation although some of the members of the Cyberjack team went on to develop the WebFerret application.