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| | The origins of the Apple Computer:
In 1976, Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne founded Apple with later financing from Mike Markkula , who was at that time with Intel as product manager and engineer. Before founding Apple, Wozniak was a hacker of electronics. Steve Jobs and Wozniak were friends for several years, who met each other in 1971, when their common friend Bill Fernandez introduced 21yr Wozniak to 16 yr Steve Jobs. Steve Jobs managed to rake interest in Wozniak to assemble a computer and sell it. With the expansion of Apple, the company was in search of experienced executives, who could manage the expansion
In 1978, Apple hired Mike Scott from the National Semiconductor for the post of CEO for several years, which turned out to be turbulent years. In 1983, Steve Jobs enticed John Sculley from PepsiCo for the post of CEO of Apple, asking him, whether he wants to "sell sugar water for the rest of his life or join him and change the world". In the following year, during Super Bowl, Apple aired an advertisement "1984". At the annual meeting of shareholders of Apple on January 24, 1984, an emotional Jobs introduced the Macintosh to the admired audience; Andy Hertsfeld described it as "pandemonium". The Macintosh was the first commercially successful mini computer with a graphical user interface. Development of the Mac was initiated by Jef Raskin and eventually came into the hands of Steve Jobs.
While Jobs was the convincing and charismatic director of Apple, some of his staff since that time described him as an eccentric and active manager. The decline in sales in late 1984 deteriorated the working relationship of Jobs with Sculley and at the end of May 1985, after an internal power struggle and considerable layoffs, Scully sacked Jobs from the post of the Division head of Macintosh.
NeXT Computer:
The Computer NeXT, which used Tim Berners-Lee at CERN and which became the first server on World Wide Web.
Around that period, Steve Jobs formed another computer company - NeXT Computer. Similar to Apple Lisa, workstation NeXT was technologically advanced but in general, it was rejected by the industry, terming it to be too expensive. However, those who could afford it, became huge fans due to its technical advantages, mainly owing to the object-oriented software development system. Jobs introduced NeXT products to research and the academic environment because the products have innovative and experimental new technologies (for instance, Mach Kernel, digital signal processor chip and a built-in Ethernet port).
Steve Jobs introduced the NeXTcube as an "interpersonal" computer, which, he considered, to the next step after "personal" computers. That is, if computers had allowed people to easily communicate and collaborate with each other, it would have solved many of the problems, faced while using "personal" computers.
Still when email, for majority of people, was simple text, Jobs loved to demonstrate the email system of NeXT - NeXTMail - as an example of his "interpersonal" philosophy. NeXTMail supported all built-in visual interactive graphics and audio within the e-mail messages.
Jobes managed NeXT with the obsessional idea of aesthetic perfection, about which the things such as the Magensium Cube of NeXTcube testify. This rendered a significant load on the hardware division NeXT and in 1993, after selling only 50000 NeXT computers, Jobs shifted his attention towards the development of software with the release of the NeXTSTEP / Intel.
In 1996, Apply Inc. said that it is taking over NeXT for 429 million dollars. The deal was finalized in the end of 1996, by taking back Steve Jobs into company, which he co-founded. The de facto, Jobs became chief of Apple after the ousting of then CEO Gil Amelio in July. Officially, he was made interim CEO in September 1997. In March 1998, so as to concentrate the efforts of Apple to bring it back to profitability, Jobs closed several projects such as Newton, Cyberdog and OpenDoc. In the subsequent several months, many employees feared an accidental meet with Jobs in elevator, "with an apprehension that they would remain jobless when the elevetor doors open. Reality was that, punishments were very rare by Jobs but some victims were sufficient to terrorize the entire company". Jobs also changed the licensed program for Macintosh clones, making it high-priced for manufacturer's to continue making machines.
After buying NeXT, the major portion of technology of the company found its application in Apple products - at first, NeXTSTEP, which transformed into Mac OS X. Under the leadership of Jobs, the company considerably increased its sales with the appearance of the iMac and other new products; since then, the attractive design and powerful branding worked in favor of Apple. During the exhibition Macworld Expo in 2000, Steve Jobs was officially removed as "interim" from his designation in Apple and became its permanent CEO. Jobs jokingly said that, he would use the designation "iCEO".
After 2000, Apple Inc. diversified by introducing and improving new digital devices. With the appearance of the portable music player iPod, applications for digital music iTunes and the iTunes Store, the company entered the consumer electronics market and the distribution of music. In 2007, Apple entered the cellular phone market by introducing a sensor-based mobile phone, the iPhone, which had the functions of an iPod and brought a revolution to the mobile web with its mobile browser. By stimulating innovations, Jobs also reminded his employees, that the "real creator delivers", making it clear that delivering the working products in time is as important as innovation and attractive design. |
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Apple Inc had been under a lot of criticism over the reception issues with iPhone 4. Tens of thousands of loyal iPhone customers are so upset that they are switching to other brands. And if that were't enough troubles for Steve Jobs & Apple, iPod nano has big overheating issues. The Trade Ministry in Japan has ordered Apple to publish information detailing how first generation iPod nano owners can get replacement batteries if their device is overheating. At the moment, Apple is the most criticized brand in the blogosphere, according to research into consumer attitudes toward brands on the web.
