Priceonomics has a great article on Susan Kare, the designer of some of the most iconic pieces of computer UI ever done and one of my tattoos.
Category: Apple History
Apple’s view of the future, from 1995⇢
I just love videos like this. While mid-90s Apple was kinda insane, there’s some real gold in these six minutes.
Some of Apple’s Lemons
While Macintosh hardware is considered some of the most reliable in the industry, the company has had some pretty epic failures in the past. We spoke about some of these a couple of weeks ago on The Prompt, but after doing some digging, I’ve tweaked and expanded the list.
This article isn’t comprehensive, and I’ve just ignored things like exploding iPod nanos and boring hardware failures. A couple are fairly modern, and a couple aren’t, but all of them are enough to make even the staunchest fanboy roll their eyes.
Looking back at the original iPod mini⇢
It’s been well documented that the iPod mini was the device that helped propel Apple’s music player to its status as a cultural icon. Andrew Kim’s photography of the music player makes me miss the gold model my brother had for years.
On the birth of Graphing Calculator⇢
While listening to the third episode of Chris Parrish & Brent Simmons’ podcast the record, in which the pair interviews Greg Robbins the Mac OS Drag Manager and Objective-C library for Google Data APIs, I noticed this in the show notes:
Greg Robbins is Graphing Calculator co-author ( a story you should already know about, that we don’t go over again)…
Turns out, I hadn’t read or even heard of the story behind Graphic Calculator. Turns out, it is a crazy one:
30 years and one day in the making⇢
Apple:
On January 24, 1984, Apple introduced the Macintosh. And with it a promise that the power of technology, put in the hands of everyone, could change the world. On January 24, 2014, we sent 15 camera crews all over the world to show how that promise has become a reality.
From sunrise in Melbourne to nightfall in Los Angeles, they documented people doing amazing things with Apple products. They shot over 70 hours of footage — all with the iPhone 5s. Then it was edited and scored with an original soundtrack. Thanks to the power of the Mac and the innovations it has inspired, an effort that normally takes months was accomplished in a matter of days.
Mr. Macintosh⇢
Sometimes, it really is better if ideas never make it out into the real world.
Update: Dr. Drang just reminded me of The Talking Moose. Old Apple is weird.
30 years ago, Apple was the same company⇢
MG Siegler points out that the more things change, they more they stay the same.
On Steve Jobs and Macworld⇢
Roman Loyola:
A few weeks after Steve Jobs posed for the cover of the first issue of Macworld, he changed his mind. He didn’t want to be on the cover anymore.
So David Bunnell, the founder of Macworld, used one of the oldest tricks in publishing: He lied about the magazine going to the presses.
Original Macintosh team gathers to celebrate 30th anniversary⇢
Husain Sumra:
Last night, over 100 members of the original Mac team gathered to celebrate the Mac’s 30th anniversary in De Anza College’s Flint Center, where Steve Jobs first introduced the Macintosh 30 years ago. The event was focused around three separate panels: the conception of the Mac, the building of the Mac and the third-party developers who built software for the Mac.
Thirty
Every Friday, I have lunch at the same Mexican restaurant with a handful of guys. One is the IT director for a local school, one is a retired photographer and professor and another helped operate one of the first Apple dealers in this part of the country.
Every Friday, we talk about Apple, photography, tech news and more. It’s a great way to round out the week, and (as a self-proclaimed Apple historian) it’s endlessly fascinating to talk about how Apple and its platforms have changed over the years.
Apple’s Macintosh history font⇢
Well, this is going to be fun to play with.