Who Invented Macintosh?

Macintosh, also known simply as Mac, was introduced during the early 1980s and represents one of the most successful computer lines in history. Macintosh was geared towards educators and creative professionals and featured the first graphical user interface. The inventors of the computer also pioneered the use of the mouse in interaction with the machine. During the late 1980s and 1990s, the Macintosh saw a decrease in market share, but the 1998 release of iMac revitalized the brand.

History

The project to build and develop the Macintosh began in the 1970s. Apple employee Jef Raskin planned to create a cost-effective computer that would be easier for the average consumer to use than other personal computers. In 1979, Apple green lit the project and Raskin began to hire a team. Joining the project was Bill Atkinson, who helped develop the Lisa computer, and Burrell Smith, a service technician. The full team also featured Chris Espinosa, George Crow, Bruce Horn, Jerry Manock, Joanna Hoffman, Daniel Kottke and Andy Hertzfield.

Features

The first Macintosh featured 64 kilobytes of RAM, a Motorola 6809E microprocessor and a display option that functioned with a 256 x 256 black and white monitor. By the end of 1980, the main board was upgraded to use a Motorola 68000 microprocessor and supported a 384 x 256 monitor. It also had a speed of 8 megahertz. The bonus of the Macintosh was that it used few RAM chips and could be upgraded to 512 kilobytes. This meant that the cost out-of-box was less than competitors.

Considerations

Co-founder of Apple, Steve Jobs, realized that the Macintosh would be able to be marketed much easier than the company's Lisa computer. Under his leadership, a new design language was developed by Hartmut Esslinger. Known as "Snow White," it was paramount in the easy functioning of the computer. However, a number of power struggles began to rise as the Macintosh was released to the public. Raskin, left citing personality conflicts between Jobs and himself. Jobs himself resigned in 1985 after a disagreement with CEO John Sculley.

Famous Ties

A paramount individual in the process of marketing the Macintosh image to the public was director Ridley Scott. During the third quarter of Super Bowl XVIII on January 22, 1984, a television commercial that cost $1.5 million aired. The commercial, known as the "1984" ad, featured a woman wearing a Macintosh image on a white tank top as she threw a large hammer into a large screen on which a big brother figure was represented. Macintosh was going to save humanity from technological conformity, an angle Apple still plays to the hilt. Scott's imagery and high-budget production value made the ad a classic and helped spur the sales of many Macintosh computers.

Significance

Macintosh is the best-selling computer of all time. From the original model released in 1984 to 1997, the computer was highly popular with consumers and educators. Following Jobs' return to Apple in 1997, the company released an updated design of the Macintosh. Within 138 days, over 800,000 Macs had been sold. It also stimulated the company to release a laptop version of the computer, known as the iBook.
Macintosh also was the important factor in keeping Apple alive during a market downturn in the early 1990s. Microsoft's Windows operating system caused many consumers to move to other computer manufacturers. Apple's other models, such as the Performa, proved to be fairly unsuccessful during this period. Without the sales of its Macintosh line, Apple most likely would not have survived.

Resources

• Apple Macintosh