¿Te imaginas la vida sin Internet?
However, twenty-three years ago, when Apple introduced the iMac, Internet access was expensive and unreliable. Even so, Steve Jobs, then a director, was one of the first to see that connectivity has to be built into the product he has. This is the story of Earthlink and Apple.
Change trends
In 3, when Apple's returning interim CEO launched the iMac, the company had captured at least XNUMX IT trends that drove the product's global success and led Apple to rise:
- The idea that computers can be sold as consumer devices, not beige boxes, an idea that seems to have come to EOL now.
- A hunger for choice and the need to challenge the Windows-based status quo.
- The belief that the Internet would become as essential and as forgotten as any other utility.
Apple's handsome iMac was unlike anything seen before in computer design, and it came with a critical component that absolutely no one else offered at the time: a modem. You could plug in the system, press certain buttons and you were connected. Obviously, in these times of digital transformation, we take it for granted; Internet access and mobile technology have become essential for routine life in each and every walk of life. But it was not always and at all times this way.
Back to the future: EarthLink and Apple
I was reminded of the umbilical connection between the iMac and also the Internet through a podcast interview with EarthLink entrepreneur and creator Sky Dayton. Founded in XNUMX in response to the complexity of having a computer online at the time, the Dayton-based company became America's default internet vendor for Macs in XNUMX. To put this moment in perspective, many people have misrepresented or underestimated the transformative potential of the Internet at that moment. While some of us explored media, productivity, and information sharing, many saw it as a fad. Dayton shares the story of an Internet link provider he had been looking forward to working with who told him that he didn't see a chance because "everyone who wants to be connected to the Internet already is," they told him. "People didn't expect the Internet to evolve the way it has." One person who saw the occasion was Jobs, who invited the EarthLink creator to a session. (I like to think that part of the reason Jobs switched so much to the Internet was because he knew about the first Internet browser built at CERN in XNUMX on a computer made by his other company, NeXT, which devised a great part of the operating system we now call macOS, iOS, and iPadOS).
An encounter that changed everything?
Dayton recalls what was stated in the meeting: "So we got together in a conference room and the first thing I did was say, 'Hey Steve, can you explain what your strategy is for Apple?' "And he got up on the whiteboard and he drew 4 boxes. And he said, 'There's going to be a consumer product and a professional desktop and laptop product. 4 products, that's all. "And the usual desktop product was going to be called iMac, and the I, as we know, was for the Internet, and I wanted this computer to be unique in that you take it out of the box and plug it in. You plug in a phone line, so you turn it on, and the first thing you have to do is connect. Well, again, very really few people were on the Internet at the time, according to "So you can accept that most people who have one don't have an Internet connection."
Simplify the complex
After this session (Dayton won't say when this happened, but I'd guess it was early XNUMX) EarthLink became the default Internet provider. This meant that US users could buy an iMac, connect it to their phone network with the supplied cable, press certain buttons, enter their credit card information, and connect quickly. It was eye-opening at the time, and Jobs went on to bring other technology we use every day to the mass market with the release of the iBook in XNUMX. It was the first mainstream laptop to offer WiFi Access in an attractive package. Who does not use WiFi today? In XNUMX, EarthLink received a €XNUMX million investment from Apple, which had just introduced Mac OS X at its Macworld Expo San Francisco event in the first month of XNUMX. Arley Morgan Baker, EarthLink's director of corporate communications, stated at the time: “Everyone I've talked to just wants to get a new Mac. Mac OS X is what really made me drool.
Internet becomes a human right
The relationship between Apple and these technologies has always been essential. His adoption gave him a seat in the ring to embrace what we now see as the digital transformation of everything. Changes brought about by these connected technologies have led Apple to the iPod, iPhone, iPad, and (indeed) the current drive behind online privacy protection. These profound changes have also allowed society throughout this pandemic to protect at least a part of normal activity, with the work, learning and social connections that these technologies support. “It's amazing for me to come back to the electrical analogy genre, everything we do with technology and information technology particularly now, it all started with getting people to connect and I think EarthLink helped put it in the ten percent range for sure. . of the American population online or something like that,” Dayton said. “I mean, it's great. I meet people all the time, they still have their EarthLink email address. " These days, while digital technology is an integral part of virtually every facet of daily life, access is seen by many as a human right. You can hear the full interview here. Follow me on Twitter or join me on the sets from AppleHolic's bar & grill and Apple Discussions on MeWe.
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