Apple Computers

Overview The Apple Computer Company (usually referred to simply as “Apple”) began designing and marketing personal computers more than 25 years ago. Apple originally focused on do-it-yourself computer kits aimed at computer hobbyists, but with the introduction of the Apple II in 1977 the company became known for its powerful and easy-to-use computers. Apple computers differed from IBM's first x86 machines as much back then as they do now. Today, Apple computers are considered some of the most stable, innovative, and user-friendly computers available. Visit this website for additional detailed information about  the Apple Computer company.

History and Development of Apple Computers With the release of the Apple 1 in 1976 by Steven Jobs and Steven Wozniak, Apple was born. This computer was designed for computer hobbyists, and originally sold for $666.66. Subsequent releases of the Apple computer (Apple II series and Apple III) added such technologies as floppy drives for storage and the first color display on a personal computer. With the release of the Lisa 2 in the early part of the 1980’s and the original Macintosh on January 24, 1984, Apple began building its reputation as the manufacturer of the most user-friendly computers on the market. The Macintosh series of computers revolutionized the personal computer by introducing what-you-see-is-what-you-get (WYSIWYG) displays, and the mouse. The Mac OS was the first widely used graphical user interface on the market. In the early 1990s, Apple began to lose its market share to Intel-based Windows computers. For more detailed information about the development of Apple computers and their GUI (graphical user interface) visit www.theapplemuseum.com. The Web site www.apple-history.com also provides the history of Apple--from its humble beginnings to its “high-end” G5 models.  

Today, the Apple manufactures and sells some of the most powerful, modern-looking computers on the market in their "iMac" and "PowerPC" lines. More information about Apple's current line of computers can be found by going to www.apple.com (or www.apple.com/ca/, the Apple Canada site). 

Difference between Apple Computers and PCs Apple pioneered the personal PC industry in the 1970s, and popularized the first GUI (graphical user interface) with the introduction of the Mac. The company has gone on to develop both hardware and software independently of IBM and Microsoft. Microsoft began work on Windows 1.0 in the early 1980s, but it was not until the release of Windows 3.1 that Microsoft began to seriously compete with the Mac OS.  The Windows operating system and Apple’s Mac OS have competed  for market share since their inception. Both technological advances, and available features from one camp, affected the development of the other as they tried to match each other's capabilities. Visit the About.com  Mac vs. Windows  page which provides a good comparison of Mac OS and Windows platforms. Read the article History of Microsoft Windows found at the Wikipedia encyclopedia site about early versions of Windows and Windows history. 

Mac OS X Apple’s newest operating system, Mac OS X, was first released in March 2001. The main difference of OS X, when compared with older OS versions, is that OS X is built on a UNIX-like file system and kernel. It also has an advanced graphical user interface similar to older versions of Mac OS. The main advantage of this entirely new OS is that it gains the stability of UNIX while still offering the easy-to-use Apple interface. Detailed information about OS X can be found at www.apple.com/macosx/. 

Shopping for Apple Computers and Accessories Apple has links to their Apple Store from their home page www.apple.com/. This site offers product information and sales. The site www.macobserver.com/ is a daily updated newsletter containing recent Apple Computer developments, sales, and product announcements.