Apple Celebrates 20th Anniversary of Steve Jobs Unveiling the iMac

[w5jck]

My first Apple computer was the Apple II+ way back when most of you guys were not yet even a twinkle in your daddy's eyes! I got a Macintosh SE while in graduate school in 1986. I loved my Macs back then and had several over the next decade. But by the mid-1990s Apple had lost its way, had too many models, and they were too underpowered with Motorola 680x0 chips to compete any more, plus they had a really aging OS that was long passed its prime. So I bailed out on Macs as soon as Jobs returned and stopped the licensing of Mac computers to 3rd party companies. Some of those 3rd party boxes were the best ever offered in that era. Certainly better than the junk Apple was then offering. I didn't return until they dropped those garbage PowerPC chips and started using Intel. I returned to using Macs in 2012 and love them again like I did in the 1980s. But seriously Apple, get your software for Macs and iOS thingies back up to tip top shape before you end up repeating the 1990s fiasco!

 

[groove-agent]

The original iMac pioneered many industry firsts such as USB, FireWire, and quiet fan-less operation

The quiet fan operation is what won me over to Apple from PC. If there's one thing I can't stand, it's fans arbitrarily spinning up and making noise.

 

[macsrcool1234]

Jobs aimed to simplify Apple's product lineup

Something that seems to be beyond the current leaderships comprehension.
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Seems like you always...ALWAYS have something negative to say, this should be a happy thread.

Because he's not a brown noser like some people....

 

[shyam09]

I wonder how Steve would feel about the continuing decay of the Mac lineup.

@SteveJobs you've been summoned.

 

[iMouse]

Ah yes. That mouse. Trivially easy to replace. Your point? The PowerPC was very fast. Remember we're talking about the intro of the iMac. The PowerPC at that time was faster than intel's offerings. Any poor performance browsing was due to the browser. Remember which one? Internet Explorer. That was the reason Apple had to make Safari. So remember to place blame where it was due.

Some early and low-end G3-based Macs (like the iMac) had small L2 caches or lacked a L2 cache altogether as well as having a slower FSB speed of 66MHz. Under certain conditions, you could really see the difference between similarly clocked G3 processors with and without L2 caches.

 

[rafark]

Mine is a 2008. God that thing is pretty. And reliable. And silent.

 

[cube]

The quiet fan operation is what won me over to Apple from PC. If there's one thing I can't stand, it's fans arbitrarily spinning up and making noise.

 

[DjanSeriyAnaplian]

Presumably he's turning in his grave.

 

[pl1984]

Puzzled how the iMac pioneered quiet fan-less operation when the original Macintosh, and some follow on models, lacked fans so they would be quiet.

 

[Dave245]

When Apple does something worthy of praise then I might be less negative.

I guess you’ve not heard of the AirPods, iPhone and iPad then?

 

[ignatius345]

the Pismo lasted for 8 years mostly in humid and hot Indonesia until it finally gave up after ~20.000 hours, YES Twenty-thousand hours

That is impressive. I had one of those machines too -- it was NOT cheap!

 

[Eduardo1971]

Happy birthday indeed!

Can’t wait to see what the 2018 iMac has in store-I need to replace my 2011 iMac.

 

[ignatius345]

However, that mouse...

Apple's mice always look great but put design ahead of ergonomics every single time and end up being awful to use.

The colored iMac "puck" was terrible because it was round and was very easy to turn and misdirect, and you'd have to look down to get the right orientation.

Then there was the one with the little scrolling "pea" that would inevitably get dirty and stop scrolling. You'd end up rubbing the damn thing on your pant leg or something to get it going again, or clean it with alcohol. A month later you'd be doing it again.

Now we've got an $80 Magic Mouse that gives you nowhere to rest your hand and has no physical buttons because, you know, we're living in the future now. We had one on a conference room Mac at my old office and everyone always struggled with it. It's so bad ergonomically that people sell add-on grips to make it usable.

Right now I'm using a $10 Amazon Basics mouse that feels more comfortable than any Apple mouse I've ever had.

 

[MacsRgr8]

Wow.. how times fly...
The original iMac was also such a great office computer, along with Office 98.

Steve brought the Mac back to the office workspace too, alongside the "only computer the wife wouldn't mind in the living room"
We miss you, Steve.

 

[iMouse]

That is impressive. I had one of those machines too -- it was NOT cheap!

Absolutely LOVED my PismoBook!

Had a Wallstreet too. It was nice, when it worked...

 

[Royksöpp]

In the two decades since, the iMac has undergone several revisions, keeping up with rapid technological advancements. Over those years, Apple's attention to both design and function hasn't wavered.

Article Link: Apple Celebrates 20th Anniversary of Steve Jobs Unveiling the iMac

There we go again posting opinions rather than facts. The iMac design has remained the same for over 6 years they only made it in space gray. The Mac Mini has also remained the same for over 5 years with no “technological advances”. They new MacBook Pros have proven to problematic with many users. Don’t even get me started on the Mac Pro. The Cook era has neglected the Mac, it’s a damn shame. This Apple! Dazzle us!

On a positive note, the original iMac is iconic. It's a very nostalgic little machine. It brings up good memories, especially for those who were kids when it was released. The schools in my hometown used Macs and I remember when they ditched the ugly power Macs and brought in the iMacs. You don't see design this bold anymore. It's as radical today as it was back then. Oh the memories!

 

[44267547]

I wonder how Steve would feel about the continuing decay of the Mac lineup.

Clearly he is not here anymore, so nor does it make your question relevant either. Perhaps out of Respect for Jobs, You don’t have to interject his name of What He Would Think When Apple’s name is derived of Apples product line.

 

[pl1984]

Apple's mice are always pretty bad. I think they just put design ahead of ergonomics every single time.

The puck was terrible. Then there was the one with the little scrolling "pea" that would always get gummed up and stop working. The Magic Mouse gives you nowhere to rest your hand. We had one on a conference room Mac at my old office and everyone always struggled with it. Right now I'm using a $10 Amazon Basics mouse that feels more comfortable than any Apple mouse I've ever had.

Ah, the mighty mouse...using one of those as I write this. I run the "wheel" across a piece of paper to get it working again. Has cleared it up every time.

 

[twistedpixel8]

The “Pixar lamp” iMac was awesome. One of my favorite Apple products ever made. It was so unique. Lasted me a really long time and it was very hard to let go of when I upgraded.

 

[ignatius345]

Absolutely LOVED my PismoBook!

Had a Wallstreet too. It was nice, when it worked...

Those expansion bays were sweet! You could run two batteries, one battery and a ZIP or floppy drive -- or, if I recall, you could run off AC with zero batteries and both expansion bays used for other things. I know modularity adds bulk but man was it useful.

 

[Poisednoise]

I have an indigo iMac in my living room, with an aquarium inside.

But yes, that era was amazing. I still have my wallstreet in the attic with hot-swappable bays - zip drive, superdrive, cd-rom, and of course a battery that’s totally given up the ghost (and it was my second one...).

 

[nwcs]

I remember it. A few months before the stock price was like $14 a share and Quicken had announced they would pull out. Steve met with them and they were suddenly back in and said that something great was coming. I so wanted to buy some shares but I did not have any money at the time. Oh well...

 

[Westside guy]

I do find these retrospectives interesting. But, seeing so many of them lately, it brings to mind how my local baseball team - the Seattle Mariners - marketed itself for quite a few seasons until recently. They kept holding backward-looking promotions and events focused on the glory days of the past because their current teams were mediocre (at best) and they didn’t seem to have a clear vision of how to improve things going forward.

 

[bluecoast]

It seems funny now, but it really did feel like the first computer that was directly geared for the internet instead of a beige box still geared for desktop publishing and word processing that did this ‘internet’ thing on the side.

It was the first computer that ‘got it’.

Turn on, tune in, drop out...

 

[Piggie]

And what a GREAT time for Apple that was.
New, fun and exiting things to see, time and time again.

Such a crying shame, today's leader at Apple have all the inspirational creativity of a Potato

All they seem to want to do now, if make as much money as they can, by altering things as little as they can, and produce yet another silver/black soulless lump of aluminium and glass, with no personality at all.

Oh how I hope one day, Apple's leaders will get the kick in the ass they need and someone new comes along to reinvigorate the now Monolithic Apple.....

One day, One day, but not for probably a couple of decades or more I'd guess....