I, Mac . . .

Memories of the Original Apple iMac

(Posted: 9/3/04)

Back in May of 1998, Steve Jobs said of me: "Today we brought romance and innovation back into the industry ... iMac reminds everyone what Apple stands for." (May 6, 1998 press release) I was billed as the "Internet-age computer for the rest of us"--well, for people, anyway. Within a matter of just six weeks, 278,000 copies of me were sold, making me at the time "the fastest selling Macintosh ever." (October 14, 1998 press release)

Considering some of the systems that preceded me by just a year or two, some might say it was no surprise that any halfway decent Apple computer would have succeeded. The Pippin gaming system (not to be confused with the hobbit) lasted only a couple of years (1996-1998). It could play games and surf the web on a television for $599. It didn't sell too well. Does anyone remember the 20th Anniversary Macintosh, released in 1997? Not only was the name confusing (last time I checked, the 20th anniversary of the Macintosh took place in 2004) and the system released almost a year after the actual 20th anniversary of Apple, but this sucker cost $7,499 USD when first released.. What were they thinking? By early 1998, this system was going for $1,999. Sure, it looked cool and had some nice features like television and FM radio tuners, but it was definitely not a hit. What about the Power Macintosh 9600? I guess it wasn't a bad system—it was your typical beige box--but if anyone needed to add something like, say, more memory, it was a good idea to keep a first aid kit nearby or be ready to have your finger surgically reattached after completing the upgrade. And don't even get me started on the Quadra and Performa lines! How many models and numbers can a sane company conceive of for computers?

While I received my share of praise when I came out in 1998, I also received a fair amount of criticism. Many were shocked to hear that I had no floppy drive. You remember, those, right? Back in the 20th century people used them to move files back and forth or even to backup data, even though most of these 3.5" disks could only hold 1.44 MB. While some PC makers still include these relics with their systems, a lot of them don't bother anymore or just offer them as options. Believe me, there are much better ways to move your files around these days (USB flash drives, e-mail, networking, etc.). Ok, but what about back in 1998? I, Mac, reluctantly grant that a lot of people were rightly miffed at the absence of a floppy drive. But probably most of these people were previous Mac users wondering how they could get their old files installed on my spacious (at the time) 4 GB hard drive. Since my primary purpose was to woo new computer users with my cool design and promise of easy Internet access, I guess the floppy drive didn't seem all that important. Trust me, someone had to take a stand and kill the floppy drive—or at least bring about its slow demise. Optical media, such as my internal CD ROM drive, was the wave of the foreseeable future. Other people criticized me for using USB as really the only means of adding peripherals. The decision to go with USB also ticked off a lot of loyal Mac users who were stuck with all kinds of devices that they now could not connect to me--things like printers, scanners, and pointing devices, for example.

And now comes the tale of one of the worst pointing devices ever made: my "hockey puck" mouse, as it was sometimes called. Sure, it looked pretty cool—kind of like a translucent flying saucer with a tail. Unfortunately, even I, Mac, admit that a more traditional design would have been the better way to go. That's the problem with constantly trying to innovate: every now and then you have a great success, but more often than not you come up with something really stupid. To all of you who injured your hand or inadvertently moved the mouse pointer the wrong way, I am sorry. To those of you wondering if Apple will ever add a second button to their mouse designs, forget it. Steve likes one button, so one button will remain.

Despite the fact that Apple discontinued me, my legacy lives on (and not just in computers—have you seen those little cooking grills in all sorts of translucent colors?). The eMac, for instance, is essentially a return to my innovative design, but I suspect in an age of flat screens, the eMac may not be around much longer. And the iMac line is still sold. Sure, they did away with the CRT in favor of a flat panel, but you can't blame them for that, can you? My good friend Jonathan Ive did a fine job on the previous iMac design. When the boss wants a computer that looks like a sunflower, he gets a computer that looks like a sunflower. When I came out I had a 233 MHz G3 processor. Times have changed, as evidenced by the newest iMacs running either a 1.6 or 1.8 GHz G5 chip. I'm just happy the new iMacs don't include a hockey puck mouse and aren't offered in Dalmatian and flower power designs (at least not yet).

Yes, back in 1998, I, Mac, saved Apple. But I can't take all the credit. Apple survives because of innovative designs, a great operating system and a loyal base of users who think different (they think computers ought to be fun as well as productive and that they should just work). Although I'm enjoying my retirement, it's helpful for me to reflect on my past every now and then. Who knows, maybe the next iMac will also have some exciting stories to tell someday. Or maybe we'll all watch as the iPod saves Apple. But does Apple need saving? That's a question for another article.