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By almost any measure, Apple computer had a terrific 2001. It was one of the most
astounding and productive years in its history. There were bumps in the road too, some of
them severe (just ask someone who lost a hard drive to the iTunes installer bug). The
bumps were isolated glitches however, not the result of long-term mismanagement. The only
yearlong trouble was the bottom line. The best that can be said about Apple’s financial
performance in 2001 is that it could have been much worse, considering the pain suffered
by the industry in general. Yet despite slumping sales numbers, Apple continues to be able
to invest, grow, and innovate in ways that stand to deliver dividends for years to come.
The best that can be said about Apple otherwise is that we may be able to point to 2001 in
several years and say it was the beginning of another golden age for our favorite computer
company.
This year’s list of successes is breathtaking. Mac OS X, already updated to a point 1
release, plus a half-dozen bug-fix releases, the G4 PowerBook (which was refreshed twice,
first with faster processors and a speedier bus, and later with a Combo CDR/DVD drive),
the redesigned, slimmed-down iBook, (also refreshed with a faster bus), the QuickSilver
enclosures, the SuperDrive (DVD-R/CD-RW), NVIDIA GeForce3 video, Final Cut Pro 3,
QuickTime 5, and iDVD 1 and 2. Moreover, as if the traditional areas were not enough, two
ventures into new territory: direct retail stores and consumer electronics.
As I write this, Apple’s hardware lineup is the best it has ever been. The iBook is one of
the finest laptop computers ever made by any company. It is a light, inexpensive,
zero compromise Mac with performance that equals desktop machines. And it is a great
illustration of how much things have changed in the last year. In late 2000, the top of
the line laptop was a 500 MHz G3 “Pismo" PowerBook with a bronze keyboard and a “Lombard"
enclosure. It sold for $3,500 and was considered one of the finest PowerBook designs yet.
Today a 600 MHz iBook is essentially equal to last year’s Pismo, except for the addition
of 100 MHz of processor speed, a DVD/CR-RW drive, and the loss of several inches and
several pounds. Oh, and it's $1,800 less!
The rest of the current hardware lineup is equally impressive. The top of the line G4
PowerBook has AirPort range issues that need to be worked out, but it’s a gorgeous machine
and a worthy successor to the Pismo design it replaces.
Software. Oh, what a long strange trip it’s been. Years in the making. Too long to repeat
here. Now, after less than a year, Apple is the largest distributor of UNIX in the world.
They have grafted a Mac interface atop the most stable, ubiquitous, and formerly
user-unfriendly operating system in existence, and it succeeded. The OS still needs
polishing to equal Mac OS 9 in every single area, but it exceeds its predecessor in
countless ways, and the remaining blemishes are relatively minor. The great application
migration is almost complete, with most major applications available or soon to be
released. It is very likely that by OS X’s one-year anniversary everything except a few
specialized applications will be running under X.
A review of the Year That Was would be incomplete without mentioning two developments, the
iPod and the retail stores. Who could have predicted the excitement generated with each
new store opening, as lines stretched as far as the eye could see. Will they make money? I
don’t now. But Apple now has a very public face in some of the most upscale and busiest
retail locations throughout the country. iPod marks a change as big as the device itself
is little. No words or photographs do it justice. I was somewhat concerned by its price,
until I heard one. Apple is going to sell a boatload of these, and if they are durable,
will pave the way for a slew of personal electronic devices that will be the very best in
their class.
On a personal note, this year marks another anniversary for me. I bought my first personal
computer in 1981. Twenty years of exploring computers, watching the industry, and writing
about both is now history.
And none were more interesting than the year that just was. Happy New Year!
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"The Year That Was"
