In the history of computers, few are as memorable and as important to a company’s history as that of the Macintosh. Famously championed by Steve Jobs, the 1984 release of the Macintosh and its “1984” advertisement set the stage for a turbulent time in the company but ultimately one that would lead to some of its greatest achievements.
The Beginning of Macintosh Computers
The Macintosh project started in the late 1970s with Jef Raskin (1943–2005) (see the nearby image), an Apple employee who envisioned an easy-to-use, low-cost computer for the average consumer. He wanted to name the computer after his favorite type of apple, the McIntosh, but the name had to be changed for legal reasons. In September 1979, Raskin was authorized by the management to start hiring for the project, and he began to look for an engineer who could put together a prototype.
Macintosh Visual History
The first Macintosh board, designed by Burrell Smith, had 64 kilobytes (KB) of RAM, used the Motorola 6809E microprocessor, and could support a 256×256 pixel black-and-white bitmap display. Bud Tribble, a Macintosh programmer, was interested in running the Lisa’s graphical programs on the Macintosh.
The Macintosh Catches Steve Jobs’ Attention
The design caught the attention of Steve Jobs, Apple’s co-founder. Realizing that the Macintosh was more marketable than the Lisa, he began focusing on the project. Raskin finally left the Macintosh project in 1981 over a personality conflict with Jobs, and the final Macintosh design is said to be closer to Jobs’ ideas than Raskin’s.
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