They ruled the educational market, and there were a lot of businesses that used the Apple III. Then IBM came in, and Microsoft, and they stole Apple's lunch, and Apple wasn't able, or willing(?) to react. Interesting that later day Apple basically gave up on the 'business market' by killing their server(s), and hogtying their Unix/Linux OS. Ignoring a massive facet of the whole computer market isn't a great path to increased market share. *shrug* Maybe admitting defeat helps them survive. They have done pretty well for having such a small part of the computer market.
That is an interesting series of events. I think that Steve had time to steam... I mean...
think about this in his exile. I believe that is one of the reasons he pointed out the fact that Apple had to "let go of the notion that for Apple to win, Microsoft had to lose" immediately upon his return.
Since then, I think Apple has targeted "the
right customer", not "all customers". The "right customer" for Apple, in my opinion, is the
consumer, NOT the computer nerd or pro. That is a much, much bigger market.
Still, Steve was firing on all cylinders upon his return and we got the perfect storm of great vision turned into game-changing products combined with absolutely BRILLIANT marketing, all the way until his death.
The iMac, then the iPod, the iPhone, and the iPad. Laser-targeted strikes right at the
heart of the consumer. This is what saved Apple, and continues to keep it on top. And even though he was furious about Android, he still treated it like Microsoft in the "competition" space: "They don't have to lose in order for us to win."
Tim was there, so he knows this. Products under his tenure have continued this trend: AppleWatch, AirPods, HomePod are all extensions of the above.
But Steve also loved the arts as much as the tech, and Apple creators and engineers needed the tools to build with, so he maintained the "Pro" side alive as well.
