A Look At A Secret New Computer (1984)

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in General Discussion edited January 2014




Quote:

A look at secret new Apple computer

By Evelyn Richards

Business writer



(Note: First published in the Mercury News in January, 1984)





After two years of secrecy, brainstorming and sometimes zany company maneuvering, Apple Computer Inc. will unveil a new personal computer Jan. 24 that is the size of a stack of paper and, for about the same price, contains more power than the basic IBM PC.



Known as the Macintosh and considered by analysts to be critical the the future of the company, the machine already is winning rave reviews from the dealers, software developers and industry analysts for its compactness and ease of use.



The machine, which sources way will sell for $2,495, is designed to catch the fancy of the college students, small businessmen and the American consumer who wants to have ``fun'' with a computer. It is priced between the less expensive Apple IIe and the more expensive Lisa.



According to former employees, industry analysts and dealers, Mac weighs just under 20 pounds and is 9.7 inches wide, 10.9 inches deep and 13.5 inches high.



When one takes the Mac home, said one market watcher, ``It's not a one-night stand. You fall in love with it.''



The Cupertino-based company had carefully orchestrated an unveiling for the public beginning Jan. 23, a Monday. Initially, the company had asked publications not to publish public information until Jan. 24, when Mac will be unveiled at the company's annual meeting. But the ``release date'' was advanced a day, reportedly in order to capture the cover of Newsweek magazine, which appears every Monday.



During the last few weeks, however, information leaked out from software developers, dealers and reporters who had seen the Mac but had signed agreements not to disclose data about the product. The Mercury News was not given a so-called sneak preview and has not signed a non-disclosure agreement.



Those persons who signed non-disclosure statements agreed to be interviewed only if their names were not used.



In brochures and advertising campaigns, Apple will be billing the Mac as an alternative to IBM, sources said.



One planned television advertisment takes a direct stab at the IBM PC. It reportedly shows the PC, accompanied by piles of necessary manuals, while Mac is portrayed as a simple teach-yourself computer, sources said.



Apple's brochures and TV ads proclaim, ``Of the 235 million people in America, only a fraction can use a computer.'' Macintosh, they say, is ``the computer for the rest of us.''



One flaw in this strategy, several observers said, is that Apple may not be able to capture the high-volume sales to large corporations more interested in number-crunching than flair.



Apple reportedly expects 85 percent of its sales to come from its 3,000 dealers. By giving large discounts to a consortium of two dozen universities, it hopes to sell 5,000 to students by the end of the year.



For $2,495, Macintosh buyers will get a computer that operates unusually quickly and is directed by a mouse - a handheld device that, when slid across a table top, moves the cursor on the Mac's screen.



The user gives commands by pointing the cursor at graphic symbols on the screen, such as a paint brush and an eraser to enable the user to draw a picture, or a trash can to destroy a document.



The user also will be able to divide the screen into a variety of compartments, or ``windows,'' that each can be used to perform different jobs. For example, the user could be writing a letter on one part of the screen, then create a window and begin another.



The monochrome screen, measuring 9 inches diagonally, is built into the body of the Macintosh, although the keyboard is detached. Below the high-resolution screen and to the right is a single, 3.5-inch floppy disk drive manufactured by Sony and able to hold 400,000 bytes of information - about 250 typewritten pages. (Another disk drive could be attached, but Apple hasn't release a price. Indeed, Apple didn't settle on the $2,495 system price until recently. For a time, sources said, the machine was to sell for $1,995.)



Also on the body of the machine is the Apple logo - an apple with a bite missing. The word Macintosh will not appear on the computer.



Inside the Macintosh will be 128K bytes - or 131,072 characters - of random access memory. Although that's more than the basic IBM PC model, software developers say it still could limit the flexibility of the Mac.



The computer's brain is a 68000 Motorola microprocessor, the same chip that is the heart of the larger Lisa computer, introduced a year ago. On Jan. 24, Apple also will announce three new models of the Lisa - the Lisa 2, Lisa 2+5 and Lisa 2/10. These machines will be lower priced than the current Lisa and will run Macintosh's software programs.



There will be numerous software programs waiting in the wings when Mac is introduced. Apple itself will announce two - MacWrite, a word processing program, and MacPaint, a program used to draw designs.



MacPaint and MacWrite will be available at no cost - or a very low cost - to early Mac buyers, a source said. Separately, they reportedly will be priced around $100. For $2,495, a bundled Mac package will include the machine, the two software packages and a dot-matrix printer, sources said.



In addition, 80 other companies are developing software for the Macintosh, according to Apple literature. Within the next few months, Microsoft Inc., a Bellvue, Wash. software publisher closely allied with IBM, is scheduled to introduce a spreadsheet package for making financial projections, a graphing package and the Basic programming language.



According to several sources, Microsoft has been working on Mac software for more than a year. Early on, Mac project leader Steve Jobs took the Mac plans to Microsoft founder Bill Gates, sources said. Gates reportedly agreed not to produce similar mouse-based software for a year, but with Mac behind schedule, Microsoft was able to jump into the market in 1983 with its own mouse programs for the IBM PC.



Other Silicon Valley companies reportedly developing Mac software are Software Publishing, Living Videotext, Sorcim, and Chang Labs. Lotus is said to be readying a version of its popular 1-2-3, which combines a spreadsheet, graphing and a database function. Several sources said, however, that Lotus is constrained with 128K of RAM and may not announce a package until Apple is able to increase RAM.



Observers expect Apple to build in 512K RAM when 256K RAM chips are readily available later this year.



Because the machine now has one drive and 128K of RAM, several sources said users might have to ``swap'' diskettes in order to move information from one program to another.



On the back of the Mac are several connectors, including one for the mouse, one for a second external disk drive and two serial ports that can be sued for printers or a communications modem. One port is designed to attach the Mac to other Apple computers using a local area network.



Macs will be made in Apple's new automated factory in Fremont, which sources said cost $20 million and can turn out a machine every 27 seconds.






Comments

  • Reply 1 of 10
    screedscreed Posts: 1,077member
    Who's the leaker!? Fire him immediately!!



    ...Ah the memories... Well not mine, I was 11 years old at the time.



    Screed



    Addendum: Quotes of thundering irony



    Quote:

    In brochures and advertising campaigns, Apple will be billing the Mac as an alternative to IBM, sources said.



    Since then Apple and IBM have gone through so much... for instance Apple used to have advertising campaigns (plural), my how things have changed.



    Quote:

    One flaw in this strategy, several observers said, is that Apple may not be able to capture the high-volume sales to large corporations more interested in number-crunching than flair.



    Ouch.
  • Reply 2 of 10
    screedscreed Posts: 1,077member
    dp
  • Reply 3 of 10
    wow thats awesome--i'm gonna use clips of that article for away messages on ichat
  • Reply 4 of 10
    I remember going to an Apple re-seller to see the computer in Santa Monica, CA. Several years later I did buy an SE for our office.
  • Reply 5 of 10
    willoughbywilloughby Posts: 1,457member
    Quote:



    Within the next few months, Microsoft Inc., a Bellvue, Wash. software publisher closely allied with IBM, is scheduled to introduce a spreadsheet package for making financial projections, a graphing package and the Basic programming language.





    Damn. 20 years ago Microsoft was hardly a blip on the radar screen. Who'd a thunk it that they'd be the biggest freakin company on the planet.
  • Reply 6 of 10
    Quote:

    Damn. 20 years ago Microsoft was hardly a blip on the radar screen. Who'd a thunk it that they'd be the biggest freakin company on the planet



    The honest truth is that Bill Gates was MUCH smarter then Steve Jobs.
  • Reply 7 of 10
    Ah, I remember them... First time I saw a Mac. Not when they came out though - they're older than me. 1995 or so, still in daily use at my school's library. Sadly, they got replaced by PCs a couple of years later. I think a couple of my friends still have them tucked away in their rooms somewhere...
  • Reply 8 of 10
    Quote:

    Originally posted by MacsRGood4U

    The honest truth is that Bill Gates was MUCH smarter then Steve Jobs.



    Key word in that sentence is WAS much smarter. Was.
  • Reply 9 of 10
    jadejade Posts: 379member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by MacsRGood4U

    The honest truth is that Bill Gates was MUCH smarter then Steve Jobs.



    No Bill Gates is a better business man. smarts has nothing to do with it. Steve Jobs is single-minded and focuses on a specific vision. Bill Gates wants to make more money.
  • Reply 10 of 10
    Quote:

    Originally posted by jade

    No Bill Gates is a better business man. smarts has nothing to do with it. Steve Jobs is single-minded and focuses on a specific vision. Bill Gates wants to make more money.



    I still think Jobs has just become smarter, his vision has progressed from being singular to being encompasing and much more broad. Jobs sees things as if they have already unfolded or at least how he believes they will unfold and is eerily correct as of late. Gates sort of tries to force a "vision" based on the direction and path that others trailblaze for him, often it ends up bringing him money because he can tap the markets more easily than smaller but more effective companies/solutions.
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