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Jonathan Ive wins British Visionary Innovator award
Jony Ive can add British Visionary Innovator to his long list of design awards. The Apple design head was given the award by Britain's Intellectual Property Office as part of its World Intellectual Property Day celebration. As noted in a Macworld UK report, Ive won with 46.6 percent of the vote. He was followed by Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the man behind the HTTP protocol and the World Wide Web, who grabbed 18.6 percent. Ive certainly has earned the award. Since he joined Apple permanently in 1997, the UK-born designer has played a prominent role in the design of the iMac, iPad, iPhone, Mac Pro, MacBook Pro/Air and other recent Apple products. [Via Macworld UK]
Dear Aunt TUAW: What is this remote?
Dear Aunt TUAW, I found a mysterious Apple-branded remote control at a friend's place (picture attached) and I was wondering what it's for? Can you identify it? Your loving nephew, Richard Dear Richard, Auntie believes this is a remote from one of the many early Apple Video/TV systems like the Macintosh TV. A variety of computers in the Performa, Quadra, and LC line offered multimedia solutions that allowed you to watch TV or connect inputs from VCRs, camcorders, or laserdisc systems. The Macintosh TV was introduced in October 1993 for just over US$2,000. Sporting a Motorola 68030 chip and 5MB onboard RAM, it was discontinued in February 1994. Hugs, Auntie T.
CNN Money: New York Times gets Tim Cook's earnings wrong
The New York Times ran a report over the weekend that claimed Tim Cook was a million-dollar-a-day CEO. Acording to a follow-up report from CNN Money, that estimate is way off. The CNN report claims the NYT was correct with the CEO's yearly salary of US$900,000, but made a mistake when it included the one million shares of Apple stock that Cook was granted in 2011. These shares won't vest for ten years, which means Cook won't see any of that money until 2021. CNN Money took the value of those shares ($376.2 million on the day they were granted) and calculated that Cook would get $103,000 a day over the ten-year period. When you combine the stock money with Cook's salary, the resulting figure is not even close to the $1 million the NYT claims.
Should Apple build a museum on the new campus?
Computer historian David Greelish argues in a blog post that Apple should build a museum on the grounds of its new Cupertino campus. He points out that the flying ring-shaped office will attract everyone from architects to Apple fans who want to check out the unique building. Apple, Greelish says, should embrace these tourists and build a museum that'll showcase Apple's achievements. Greelish offers his ideas on how the museum should be built and even provides a few sample designs. Greelish isn't the first one to propose an Apple museum. Apple toyed with the idea of a corporate museum in the past, but Steve Jobs rejected the idea and gave a collection of Apple memorabilia to Stanford University instead.
Walter Isaacson: "Apple will settle Google Android dispute"
Walter Isaacson, the author of the blockbuster bestselling biography of Steve Jobs, believes that the "less emotional" Apple CEO Tim Cook will settle the company's dispute with Google over the Android operating system for smartphones. In his book, Isaacson quoted Steve Jobs as telling Google executives, "You can't pay me off. I'm here to destroy you," referring to the way that the widely-licensed Android OS parroted iOS, in much the way that Windows followed the Mac's look and feel. How and when Cook will settle the dispute with Google wasn't part of Isaacson's statement to the Royal Institution in London. Isaacson also hinted that Apple will revolutionize the digital photography and television markets in the next two years. While the rumors of an Internet-connected Apple HDTV have been flying since Isaacson's book was published last fall, this is the first time that digital photography has been mentioned as another potential big market for Apple. The company's iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch products contain digital cameras, and the company makes the popular iPhoto and Aperture software products as well, but those products are hardly revolutionary. In his talk, Isaacson also professed his belief that, in a hundred years, Jobs will be seen as one of the great all-time inventors alongside Henry Ford and Thomas Edison. Isaacson was quoted as saying that "Steve Jobs is a greater genius than Microsoft's Bill Gates because he has transformed multiple industries." [via Digital Spy]
Ashton Kutcher prepares to play Steve Jobs
Ashton Kutcher photo from Helga Esteb / Shutterstock.com iPad publication The Daily reports that Ashton Kutcher is whole-heartedly preparing to play former Apple CEO Steve Jobs. Producer Mark Hulme of Five Star Feature Films: "He is already meeting with folks that knew Steve Jobs. He's working with professionals to get inside the voice. He's letting his hair grow out. I understand he's canceled all meetings and actually canceled all other projects." News of Kutcher's new gig was first announced by Variety on April 1st, prompting many to question if the notorious prankster had pulled a fast one. But it is a real project. The Daily reports that the indie film, which is not based on Isaacson's bio, will simply be called "Jobs."
Walter Isaacson on the leadership of Steve Jobs
Walter Isaacson, the author who wrote the Steve Jobs biography, penned a recent column for the Harvard Business Review focusing on the traits that made Jobs an excellent business leader. Isaacson spent many hours with the Apple CEO while writing this book and uses the insights he obtained to draw out those traits that helped Jobs re-build Apple into the one of the most powerful companies in the world. Among other traits, Isaacson talks about Jobs's intense focus and his emphasis on simplicity. The entire article is seven pages long and includes 14 different qualities that sets Jobs apart from his peers. It's well worth a read if you have the time to digest all the information packed into this column.
Two years with the iPad
Two years ago today, the original iPad went on sale. It was first unveiled by Steve Jobs on January 27, 2010 during an Apple press conference at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco. After a few months of snickering about its name, the world was ready to buy the tablet in droves. Apple sold almost 15 million the first year and 40 million in its second year. It grabbed more than half of the tablet market by the end of 2011. Sales figures and market analysis are important, but what's more important is the impact the iPad has had on our lives. How has the iPad changed us? What do we do differently now that we have used an iPad for one or two years? Read on to see what the staff here at TUAW has to say about Apple's tablet device. Chris Rawson I skipped the first iPad, and in retrospect I'm glad I did. From what I hear (and not just from the media, who are obviously prone to overstating things), the original iPad was an underpowered machine whose flaws are becoming more apparent as the software that runs on it becomes more demanding. But the iPad 2, oh my. That was the first iPad I used for more than five minutes at a stretch in some electronics retailer's little Apple products cubbyhole, and within days it became my primary computing device. I loved that thing, and the transformative, almost Zen-like experience of it becoming whatever was on the screen at the time was mind-blowing. That feeling has only grown more profound with the iPad (3), a device that has the best-looking screen on any device I've ever used. Admittedly, for most of my first year of iPad use it was almost strictly my "screwing around" device – games, reading, news, and the like. It's only relatively recently that I've begun using it in a work context, and even then it's mostly for things it does better than the Mac – drawing, sketching, diagramming. For the traditional "heavy lifting" tasks like photo editing, video editing, and even word processing or spreadsheets, I still default to my Mac even though the iPad is technically capable of all these things. The Mac remains better-suited for some portions of my workflow... but when I leave the house, the Mac stays behind and the iPad comes with me, every time. Steve Sande I've owned three iPads, one of each generation. They've each provided me with endless hours of entertainment, and they've been the topics of several books I've written. Every day I find myself moving another piece of my work life from a Mac to the iPad, and see the day coming soon when rather than owning an iMac, MacBook Air, and an iPad, I'll probably just have one Mac and an iPad. The biggest impact of the iPad in our family hasn't been on me, but my wife. In the past six months, she's undergone two knee replacement surgeries. During the recovery period for each knee, the iPad has kept her entertained and connected to the world while she's been homebound. Through her participation in an online joint-replacement forum, she's not only been able to learn a tremendous amount about what she's going through, but has been able to offer advice and consolation to others who are recovering from this difficult and painful surgery. The iPad has become a virtual chat room for my wife, allowing her to become part of a worldwide community of fellow surgery patients. Mike Rose Two years? Seems like much longer that we've been in the iPad era, but thinking back pre-iPad I remember a lot of discussions -- some heated -- about what the hypothetical Apple tablet "absolutely had to do" to attract users and buyers. On some Sunday nights, I found myself explaining at length to a few of our Talkcast listeners why their sincere and heartfelt wishes for an Apple tablet running Mac OS X were simply not going to be fulfilled. The tablet was clearly going to be an iOS device -- the proverbial "big iPod touch," which provoked derision and denial. "That's going to suck, a big iPod touch; who's going to want that?" Meanwhile, when I discussed the rumors with my non-technophile wife, her immediate reaction was exactly the opposite. "A big iPod touch? That's going to be awesome!" Just like Jason Snell recounted in his iPad 3 review, as soon as my spouse got a share of the family iPad it was difficult to get it back. While it promised to be "the computer for the rest of us," during the 26 years between the Mac's 1984 introduction and the iPad's 2010 launch, Apple's revolutionary desktop never quite achieved that goal. In just two years, the iPad has made a strong case that it finally will. Megan Lavey-Heaton I bought the first iPad not long after it came out, hoping to free myself from my 2007 MacBook. It went to a new home, and I was happy ... for a time. It did everything that Steve Jobs promised it would do, but I found myself frustrated that I couldn't do other things, such as blog for TUAW while away from home if I only had an iPad. I couldn't use Photoshop or InDesign, and I realized I needed a machine that could bring me these. I used it as an ebook reader but found that I was staying up stupid hours of the night and keeping everyone else awake as well with the bright LCD. I could feel the eyestrain as I read a lot of books. In February 2011, I sold the first iPad to my comics partner and got an 11-inch MacBook Air and a Kindle. Bliss. In August, I decided to get an iPad 2 to help me do reviews. It was rather silly for an app review editor of an Apple blog not to have an iPad. Except for reviews, it sat mostly untouched until January when I went to Macworld | iWorld. I put my hand on a very good stylus, on several pieces of software, and saw some brilliant use cases. Suddenly, I began to realize, "I could change my workflow with these things." I got home and started taking the iPad 2 to work. I began loading paper budgets (lists of items going in a newspaper) onto it and marking it up with my stylus. I got work email on there and began to do more things. We can even log into our virtual desktops from the iPad. I don't even keep a notepad around my desk anymore because I have my iPad. All of my work documents are contained in Readdle's Remarks. I have knitting patterns in iBooks, edit photos in iPhoto and more. I keep the iPad up as a second screen and watch Netflix a lot. I read on my Kindle, and my mobile tasks are divided among the MacBook Air and iPad. The iPad is absolutely brilliant, it just took time (and a second chance) to figure out how to make it work for me. What's even cooler? My editors have begun adopting iPads as well thanks to the work I've done on them. Mel Martin I've had the first 2 iPads. They are a joy. I do a lot of remote controlled astronomy, and using Team Viewer I can control my astronomical equipment from the house, or even anywhere else with WiFi. I'm also a news junkie, and Zite and I get together several times a day. There's nothing like it on OS X so Zite alone is a reason to buy an iPad. Richard Gaywood I've owned two: the original iPad (64 GB Wifi) and now a new The New iPad (same again). To me, the iPad has three key features. It's the quintessential living room computer (for everything that doesn't require lots of typing, anyway -- I still break my MacBook Pro out for blogging) for lazing on a sofa reading the web, light gaming, checking IMDb, that sort of thing. It's the computer I can carry anywhere -- I take it to work every day, for example, and using it for note-taking in meetings and catching up on personal stuff during my lunch break. The small chassis, light weight, and rarely-have-to-think-about-it battery life are a great combination. And finally, it's the perfect travel computer, effortlessly eclipsing the meagre seat-back entertainment offering on planes and letting me keep up to date with the web and do light photo post-processing of my RAW files before I get home. Erica Sadun I feel like I've probably already said it all before when the iPad first launched and then again this year. And here's what we were all hoping for before the iPad was announced. Victor Agreda Some derisively called the first iPad just a larger iPod touch. But after giving my kids iPod touches, I can say the iPad is more of a creative tool and utility device than I ever imagined. At first I used the iPad for some yoga videos and to help me practice magic, as it's much easier to control playback on the iPad than a DVD player. I also loaded it up with games. I read the entire Steve Jobs biography and a few other books on the first iPad and it's a decent ebook device. Now I'm using the new iPad to inventory my magic in Bento, compose music in GarageBand and write articles and comedy. I usually perform holding my iPad. I frequently use it as a second monitor, which has freed up desk space. The 4G hotspot is icing on the cake. I sometimes find iPad apps which evolved from Mac versions are easier to use on the iPad. OmniFocus is one example. Then there are apps which just make the most sense on a big touchscreen, like Bebot. Finally, nothing blows people away like mirroring my iPad screen on my HDTV using AirPlay. TJ Luoma I bought the iPad 1 a few months after it came out, and loved everything about it, except for the RAM. It was *just* a little underpowered, which made it a hassle to switch to another app and then come back to Safari and find the tabs needed to reload. I used it mostly for reading (books, web, email, RSS) and some games. It was also great if I needed to take minutes at a meeting or notes during a class because it was compact and didn't seem as intrusive as a laptop would have in some situations. I sold my iPad 1 to Gazelle when the iPad 2 came out. In hindsight, that was a big mistake. Gazelle gave me a fair price for it, but it would have been much better to hand down to my wife or son. It would have gotten a lot of use. The iPad 2 was as close to perfect as I could imagine. It felt like it had enough RAM, the screen was great, and the battery life was amazing. I used it even more. My mom also replaced her aged Windows laptop with an iPad 2 last summer and has loved it. My mother-in-law bought one a few months ago and has used and enjoyed it far more than she ever used a PC because it doesn't intimidate her as much as a "real" computer. A few months before the iPad (3rd generation) came out, I said to my wife, "I'm not sure how Apple can improve on this." But of course, the answer was "a retina screen display." I ordered one as soon as they were available, and my wife inherited my iPad 2. In the meantime, my mother-in-law has nearly sold *her* step-mother on one, and my mom sold my uncle on getting one for his wife. My son is already eagerly awaiting the "next" iPad so he can inherit the iPad 2. How can they improve the iPad? I love my iPad 3, but in some ways it does feel a little like the iPad 1. Although Apple increased the RAM, it doesn't feel much faster than the iPad 2. Obviously the retina display is working the RAM and processor hard. Also, 16 GB is starting to feel like "barely enough" rather than "enough." As hard as it is to believe, I think the next version of the iPad is going to be the one that blows *everyone* away, assuming that they manage to make it feel a bit faster with whatever combination of processor/RAM improvements they can make, and increasing the base storage amount. Kelly Hodgkins I've always wanted a tablet device. I spent years spending time and money on Windows XP Tablet PCs. I would buy them, use them for a few weeks, and then sell them after they sat in their boxes unused. The tablets, like the Samsung Q1 or Viliv X70, had solid hardware, but they just didn't have the software or ease of use to fit into my daily life. It was a chore to use them. Not only was the iPad familiar to this iPhone owner when I bought it on launch day two years ago, it was the right size to hold while sitting on the couch, didn't have any clunky physical keyboard and was fast to boot. It was the first tablet I actually enjoyed using. Now two years later, the iPad hasn't replaced my iPhone or even my MacBook Pro, but it has filled that gap in between. It's also changed how I think. Whenever I have a problem to solve, I often turn to the iOS App Store first and ask if there is an iPad app that'll help solve my problem. Just this week, we realized my son needs extra practice with fractions and the first thing I did was buy an iPad app that he can use. And I always go to the iPad first. The iPhone is too small, my MacBook is too cumbersome, while the iPad is just right. My husband also uses the iPad everyday to read. He used to go downstairs to read Safari bookshelf on his notebook at his desk downstairs, now he sits with us in the living room.
How America benefits from Apple
Apple has gone from near death in the 1990s to the pinnacle of success two decades later. TIME tech journalist Ben Bajarin notes in a post today that the company is a highly important and necessary part of the American economy and says that "America needs Apple to keep doing what it's doing." Probably the biggest point Bajarin makes is that Apple now drives economic growth in the country. During a deep recession, the company showed record growth and revenues. Apple didn't stay stagnant during this recession or the previous dot-com bust; instead, the company invested in retail stores and completely new product lines (iPod in the early 2000s, iPad in the 2010s). Apple's impact on the S&P 500 was remarkable in the last quarter; if Apple had been taken out of the picture, the S&P 500 growth rate would have been only half (around 3 percent) of the figure with the company. Bajarin also points out the positive impact of the iOS app economy, which by Apple's own measures has created about 210,000 jobs. Add to that the huge number of accessory manufacturers that have sprung up in the U.S. (think of DODOcase and Pen & Quill, for example), and the impact is even greater. Apple has made America technologically competitive again, with the most wildly popular consumer electronics products not coming from Asia or Europe but from the U.S. Bajarin also postulates that American cell phone companies wouldn't have invested as much in 3G and 4G networks if the iPhone hadn't been around to create the need for those networks. It's time to take the "pie" out of the old saying and just say "It's as American as Apple."
Steve Jobs reportedly disliked "Siri" name
Network World's Yoni Heisler attended Technori Pitch in Chicago yesterday, and related a story about Siri that not only sheds new light on the name of Apple's intelligent assistant, but on Steve Jobs' low opinion of the name. Technori Pitch is a monthly meeting where Chicago-based startups can tout what they're working on, and yesterday's speaker was none other than Dag Kittlaus -- one of the founders of Siri. The company was bought out by Apple in April of 2010 for US$200 million, and of course Siri became the outstanding feature of the iPhone 4S. We had always heard that the Siri name was a play on SRI International, the contract research institute founded by the trustees of Stanford University in 1946. Siri was a spinoff company of SRI before its purchase by Apple. However, in yesterday's talk, Kittlaus noted that "...Siri means in Norwegian, 'beautiful woman who leads you to victory.' I worked with a lady named Siri in Norway and wanted to name my daughter Siri and the domain was available. And also consumer companies need to focus on the fact that the name is easy to spell, is easy to say..." Kittlaus, who was the CEO of Siri, was invited to talk with Steve Jobs at one point for three hours at the late Apple CEO's home. Kittlaus noted that Jobs really didn't like the Siri name, but Kittlaus kept pushing him to keep the name. When Jobs couldn't find anything better, he decided to stick with Siri. Similar stories have come up about the naming of the iMac and iPad, both products that were given names that Jobs initially hated but eventually came to like.
Apple's beautiful packaging
Anthony Kay takes unboxing to a whole new level. There's no video, no jazzy music, and no wild photos. He has a simple unboxing method that examines Apple's stellar product packaging. Kay points out that packaging is often overlooked by most companies, yet the box "really is part of the overall experience of owning a product, starting before you even purchase right until the moment you finish unpacking and start using it." You can follow his detailed look at the iPad's packaging on his Posterous site. [Via The Loop]
Apple, Steve Jobs win patents for Shanghai Apple Store design
Apple is constantly adding patents to its portfolio of intellectual property, many of which are not directly associated with the design or operation of the consumer electronics products the company makes. Patently Apple reported today on a patent awarded to the company and late founder and CEO Steve Jobs for the design of the Apple Store, Pudong in Shanghai, China. Like the 5th Avenue store in Manhattan, the Shanghai store is primarily underground, with a clear glass structure above ground. Instead of a giant glass cube a la 5th Avenue, the Shanghai store features a large glass cylinder. The store was designed by architectural firm Bohlin Cywinski Jackson Architects, but Apple and specifically Steve Jobs were singled out for the idea of the giant curved glass panels that make up the cylinder. Other Apple notables listed as inventors on the patent include senior director of Real Estate and Development Benjamin Fay and ex-VP of Retail Operations Ron Johnson. Steve's fascination with large curved glass panels in architecture is also reflected in the design of the still-to-be-constructed world headquarters in Cupertino.
London Evening Standard interviews Jony Ive
The London Evening Standard interviewed famed Apple designer Jonathan Ive. As the man credited with the industrial design of the iPod, iPhone and iPad, Ive's name is well-known, but his face is not as public as CEO Tim Cook or Phil Schiller. This exclusive interview paints a personal picture of Ive that we often don't see. During the interview, Ive talks about his knighthood, London and, of course, his time at Apple. When asked about his earliest encounter with product design, Ive describes his first Mac: It was when I first used a Mac - I'd gone through college in the Eighties using a computer and had a horrid experience. Then I discovered the Mac. It was such a dramatic moment and I remember it so clearly - there was a real sense of the people who made it. You can read this and other gems from Sir Ive at the London Evening Standard's website.
It's the 57th anniversary of Steve Jobs's birth
Today would have been Steve Jobs's 57th birthday. In memoriam of the man who inspired us to think different, we've assembled a few of Jobs's most memorable moments. Get out the tissues as we remember the life and achievements of the Apple co-founder in the videos below. For even more memories, you can visit the Computer History Museum's tribute page to Steve Jobs, the Ultimate Steve Jobs Collection and Folklore. Steve Jobs introduces the Mac Steve Jobs talks about thinking differently after his return to Apple Steve Jobs and the Death of Mac OS 9 Steve Jobs' 2005 Stanford Commencement Address Steve Jobs visits a Palo Alto store in 2007 Steve Jobs and Bill Gates on stage together at AllThingsD 2007 Steve Jobs: One More Thing And Boom! Steve Jobs's Funniest Moments
Bell & Howell MICRO Computer Apple II Plus found on Ebay
Here is an auction, spotted by Steve Troughton-Smith, that you don't see very often. Seller christique1 is auctioning off an Apple II Plus that was built specifically for Bell & Howell and sold to educational markets. Internally, the unit resembles a standard, beige Apple II Plus, but it's clad in a black casing made specifically for that model. The auction includes only the computer. There is no power supply so the seller can't confirm the unit works. Even if it isn't operational, it's still a collector's dream. It's a rare model, less than 10,000 were supposedly made, and it's described as being in good condition with only a few dings and scratches. The keyboard is covered and in remarkable condition. Right now, the auction has one day left and has reached US$100. If you are into collectibles, here's you chance to own a rare piece of Apple history.
Early Apple employee Jerry Manock remembers Steve Jobs
When you think of notable, early Apple employees, you think of the big names like Steve Wozniak, Andy Hertzfeld, and John Sculley. Beyond these key names are a multitude of lesser-known people who played a crucial role in the early years of the company. One such employee is Jerry Manock, who worked on the Apple II, the Disk II, the III, and Lisa before joining the original Macintosh design team. Manock worked closely with Steve Jobs during his tenure at Apple which stretched from 1977 to 1984. He worked with Steve Wozniak on the Apple II. While Wozniak developed the logic board and internal hardware, Manock was responsible for much of the design of the Apple II. Manock's also know for his choice of Pantone 453, the light beige color that characterized Apple's early computers. Manock now lives in Burlington, Vermont with his wife and family. He has his own design firm and teaches product design courses at the University of Vermont. He recently talked about these early years with Seven Days,a local arts-oriented newspaper that's available in Vermont and online. Manock only had kind things to say about Steve Jobs in his interview. He fondly recalled a time that Jobs recognized Manock for his early contributions to Apple during an annual meeting. Manock attended the meeting unannounced and Jobs spotted him in the audience. He also has some strong criticism of today's design methods that use computers and not hands-on time with the actual materials. You can read the rest of the interview at Seven Days's website.
Former Warner Music Group Chairman discusses Apple upon exit
I don't know about you, but I would have loved to be a fly on the wall when Apple was negotiating its iTunes deals with the major record labels. We can't go back in time, but we can get an occasional glimpse of what it was like from those who were there. Such a person is exiting Warner Music Group chairman Edgar Bronfman Jr., who recently sat down with AllThingD's John Paczkowski and talked about digital music and Apple. Bronfman was optimistic about mobile devices like the iPhone and said mobile was "a massive opportunity for music." He acknowledged that the iPod kicked off portable music and the phone is the future. Though he supports mobile music, Bronfman regrets the deal Warner ultimately cut with Apple over iTunes pricing. Apple from day one believed in music and content. That was the good news. The bad news is that they decided all songs where created equal, and I fought Steve on that. Ultimately, Apple got the better part of that deal. Ultimately, I wish we'd gotten more pricing flexibility. I'm sure the recording companies would love to set higher prices, but, as a consumer, I'm pretty happy with Apple's pricing. Most albums are around US$10 and most tracks are $1.29 or less. This price point is low enough that most people can afford to buy the occasional album without putting a dent in their budget.
Happy 28th Birthday, Macintosh!
It's hard to believe that 28 years have passed since the Macintosh was introduced by a young, bowtie-clad Steve Jobs, on January 24, 1984. It was Apple's annual stockholder meeting and Jobs (and his Macintosh crew) were going to unveil the Macintosh to the public. It was a magic moment aptly described by Andy Hertzfeld on the Folklore website. Even back then Steve was a showman, unveiling the Macintosh from underneath a bag. What audience member would believe that 23 years later, Jobs would pull out another Macintosh, the MacBook Air, from a manila envelope. It's amazing when you look back and see how the Macintosh computer set the stage for much of what we have today. When I watch the first Macintosh presentation, I see the the MacWrite and MacPaint apps as predecessors to iWork, iPhoto and iMovie. It's not the apps themselves, but what you can do with a computer that Apple seemed to capture with that first Mac. Even the description of how the Mac team worked to exhaustion to get the applications ready just in time for the presentation reminds me of how startups today still operate. When I see the scrolling text on the first Macintosh, I think of the iPad, sitting in a conference room, with a teleprompter app scrolling text across the screen. And when the first Macintosh talks to us, I can't help but think of Siri. Yes, I know the underlying technology has changed, but the vision was there back in 1984. Rather than continue to wax philosophically about the Macintosh, we'll leave you to watch the video recording of the unveiling. It's pure gold at the end to see the smile on Jobs's face and the enthusiastic applause of the crowd. It makes you want to go back to that event and revisit a time when most technology was revolutionary. It also makes me thankful that companies like Apple are still willing to push the boundaries and keep this revolution going.
How Apple tests product packaging
We all know just how obsessive Apple is about the little things. Scott Forstall, Apple's VP of iOS software, has mentioned that he uses a photographer's loupe to make sure that every pixel on the iOS interface is "just right." Now an upcoming book opens the door on a secret room at Apple HQ where product packages are designed and tested. The book, Adam Lishinsky's Inside Apple, will be available in ebook and printed form tomorrow (January 25, 2012) and opens the kimono on the inner workings of the company. NetworkWorld had an early look at the book, and in one section Lishinsky described a packaging design room that is accessible to only a few people who have the proper security clearance. Apple wants the user experience to start when the consumer first picks up a product box in a store. Lashinsky discusses how the room was once filled with hundreds of iPod box prototypes. The reason they had so many prototypes? Apple wanted to determine exactly which box evoked the proper emotional response in a customer when they unboxed the product. In a quote from the book, Lashinsky notes that "One after another, the designer created and tested an endless series of arrows, colors, and tapes for a tiny tab designed to show the consumer where to pull back the invisible, full-bleed sticker adhered to the top of the clear iPod box. Getting it just right was this particular designer's obsession ... What's more, it wasn't just about one box. The tabs were placed so that when Apple's factory packed multiple boxes for shipping to retail stores, there was a natural negative space between the boxes that protected and preserved the tab." Apple's fixation on box design must work: I still have all of the boxes for my iOS devices and Macs. Most other product boxes end up in the recycle bin after a few days.
iPod shuffle debuted on this day in 2005
On January 11, 2005, Apple introduced the iPod shuffle to the world. Designed as a way to enjoy music while exercising, the shuffle brought random play of music to the iPod. The first edition of this device looked remarkably like a white stick of gum, featuring no display or scroll wheel, and plugging right into a USB port for syncing. It was also the first Apple iPod to do away with an internal hard drive, using only flash memory to store music. Since that time, the iPod shuffle has been transformed several times. The first change in September, 2006 turned the device into a small clip-like device similar to the iPod shuffle we know and love today. The third-generation shuffle, which was introduced in March of 2009, took small size to a ridiculous extreme. This model did away with on-device controls, using volume and track buttons on the white earbuds instead. It was also the first iPod to provide VoiceOver to announce track names and other information to listeners. The latest incarnation of the iPod shuffle returned to the larger size of the second generation device, bringing back the buttons and retaining VoiceOver. Announced on September 1, 2010, the current iPod shuffle costs only US$49 for 2 GB of storage and comes in five colors. Happy anniversary to the popular and low-priced iPod shuffle!
