“I think our major contribution [to computing] was in bringing a liberal arts point of view to the use of computers. If you really look at the ease of use of the Macintosh, the driving motivation behind that was to bring not only ease of use to people — so that many, many more people could use computers for non-traditional things at that time — but it was to bring beautiful fonts and typography to people, it was to bring graphics to people … so that they could see beautiful photographs, or pictures, or artwork, etc. … to help them communicate … Our goal was to bring a liberal arts perspective and a liberal arts audience to what had traditionally been a very geeky technology, and a very geeky audience.”

Steve Jobs on Fresh Air in 1997.

Leave it to Steve to put it into the best words, it was his idea. And it continued after he returned to Apple with the iPod, iTunes, iPhone, iPad and everything else. But his idea that the computer is a tool that everyone can use, is what set the Macintosh apart.

I got a chance to see the first Mac at the Kleerup’s house in late 1984 (I think). Because Eric went to Stanford, they had the chance to buy one (and could afford it). This was not the first computer (or Apple) that I had seen and attempted to use. But the flashing green symbols on a black screen were just another language that I wasn’t too able to  master. Oh yea, I learned how to do some basic DOS programming (printing labels from a database and such). But I had to go back to my notes every time, and I the more complicated functions eluded me completely. I’d use Pomona College’s IBM 4341 mainframe as a giant word processor, but all that work had to be typed by someone because the professors didn’t accept ‘computer generated reports.’

But the Mac, I though I could make that work. And more importantly, I thought it might make my job easier. A world with no lines of code to master, where the image on the screen looked like the page it got from the printer – now that had my attention.  I bought my first Mac, a 512KE (1986 I think), with the larger disk drive, and soon was making flyers for my job. I’m sure by today’s standards, I’d be embarrassed by my work, but not needing to employ someone to create the flyer made it possible (since the money wasn’t available to pay someone else). And though there could always be the frustration of working with a machine that was unerringly logical, it was a real life saver at times. I had mastered a computer – it did what I wanted.

I’ve used other PCs since that time, but I’ve only purchased Apple. Sometimes not as good as they should have been, but I knew that I could make them work. Since the 512KE I’ve had a Powerbook, a Performa 5200, an original iMAc (and a later iMac at work), iMac G5, a MacBookAir, an iPod Nano (1st gen), an iPod Nano (2nd gen), 2 iPhones, and my present machine, a dual core iMac. Though I have no IT creds to my name, I become the default expert at most places I have worked, even with Windows-based machines. I believe this is because I see computers as tools, and I am not afraid to rolling up my sleeves and figuring out how to do what needs to be done. I even added memory and a wifi card to a Mac, something that I was assured was easy by the how-to guides I found online. It was!

I don’t know what the future will hold for Apple. It is possible that they have enough bright people in place to keep the originality that Steve brought to the game in place, but I know that his contributions to my life are too numerous to list. And his genius will be missed.