Quote from: Wed 9 Jul 1986

    A Macintosh computer was recently a star witness in the first-degree-murder trial of Sagon Penn, who was charged with the shooting deaths of two San Diego policemen.

    The defense contended that shots had been fired in self-defense as Penn attempted to escape a brutal beating by the police.  The defense's case centered on a 2.3-second tape sequence recorded by the police dispatcher that contained the voices of citizens complaining of police brutality;  the voice of the dispatcher; and, faintly in the background, six sounds that both the defense and prosecution agreed could be gunshots.  Determining the exact timing of these shots was critical to Penn's claiming of self-defense.  Defense attorneys hired speech expert Tito Poza to assist in analysis of the brief tape sequence.  Poza used a Macintosh with the Mac-ADIOS audio digitizer and MacSpeech Lab signal-processing program (both produced by GW Instruments of Cambridge, Massachussetts) to locate and time the gunshots and represent the data graphically on the Macintosh screen.

    According to Poza, "I knew the only way I could get my specialized findings across to the jury was to play the critical section of the tape to them over and over, with millisecond timing .... [With the Mac] there were none of the false starts you get with an ordinary tape recorder."  Although a verdict in the case had not been reached at press time, Poza said that the attorneys, the judge, and the jury were impressed with the Macintosh technology and its contribution to the analysis of important evidence.

John Scully, chairman of the board, announced that Apple will offer MS-DOS support via an add-on board for the Macintosh personal computer.  Furthermore, they will also add ATT Unix in a renewed bid to penetrate the business and technical markets.  The announcements were made at a closed meeting of financial analysts at the company's Cupertino headquarters.

Development of the UNIX system for the Macintosh is taking place inside Apple, the company says, using proprietary software bought from Cadmus Computer Systems, Inc. of Lowell, Mass.  The MS-DOS implementation, on the other hand, is being done by a third party, and will be supported as an add-on board.

The publisher of the California Technology Stock Letter, Michael Murphy, was at the meeting and said, "Sculley specifically said they are going to announce, during the next 12 months, more products than Apple has announced in its entire corporate history to date."

Apple has asked its current employees to help find good people to fill the numerous new job openings here. I've decided to do my part by referring all the good people I can find through Usenet.  Of course, I'm not motivated soley by loyalty to my old net buddies -- if you end up getting hired, then I get a gift certificate to the company store and a slim chance at a free vacation somewhere.

The kind of people Apple is looking for are those who are "willing and able to jump into Apple and start making things happen" and "whose dedication to achievement, innovation, and quality match our own."  If you're one of those people, send me your resume and I'll refer you. I'm especially interested if you're qualified for one of the job descriptions listed below since I think I get some kind of additional prize if you're hired for one of those.

Dan Winkler
Advanced Development Group
Apple Computer, Inc.
20525 Mariani Ave., MS: 22Y Cupertino CA 95014
408-973-2695 winkler@apple.csnet


SOFTWARE ENGINEERING MANAGER: Networking and Datacom.  Strong background in SW development and testing, SNA, OSI, and datacom architecture.  Oversee staffing, drive design reviews, and develop junior management.  BSCS/EE and 10+ years experience.

SENIOR HARDWARE ENGINEER, I/O INTERFACE: Design I/O interfaces for a next generation computer.  BSEE, 4+ years experience in digital circuit design.

PRODUCT DESIGN ENGINEER: Electronics packaging design.  Design sheet metal and plastics, address thermal, EMI, cost and testing issues. BSME and 4+ years experience in product design.

AREA ASSOCIATE B:  Fluency in English, and Japanese or Chinese. Perform basic support tasks and assist in projects.

CONTINGENCY PLANNER: Design Apple's disaster recovery plan.  Establish procedures for life safety, building safety, etc. in the event of a disaster.  BS and 3 years contingency planning.

TELECOM SPECIALIST B/A:  Consult with users to assess telecom needs. Responsible for providing service at work sites; prepare work orders for installation techs.  Need telecom courses/college.

ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY MANAGER:  Manage research for Apple's Advanced Development Group.  Prototype, evaluate future technologies.  Run group of 12 working with hardware, software, and VLSI technologies.  BS/MS in EE/CS;  8+ years in development and mgmt.

SENIOR FINANCIAL ANALYSTS:  Positions in Sales, Marketing, and Engineering groups.  BS Finance or Accounting and MBA required;  2-5 years in finance, financial/strategic planning, or comp. analysis.

SENIOR HARDWARE ENGINEERS:  Work in Communications/Networking group, evaluating and enhancing 3rd party products, designing new datacom hardware.  BSEE, 6+ years digital design experience; VLSI, Motorola chip set, and comm hardware exposure helpful.

I arrived at the expo Thursday morning after a wonderful week in New York. The show was very large, with all the major vendors there.

Apple announced the APDA, (Apple Programmers and Developers association), which, as was mentioned in an earlier posting, will handle the sales and distribution of all programmer type stuff.  This includes Tech Notes, Software Supplements, MPW, MDS, Third party compilers, books (they didn't have mine available yet...argghhh), just about anything that could be remotely related to software development.

The membership is $20, which at the show included a copy of Scott Knaster's book "How to write Macintosh Software", (which by the way is an awsome book), a poster, a catalog, and a newsletter.

You can order the beta version of MPW from APDA, $100 for the shell and assembler, $75 for the C Compiler, $75 for the Pascal Compiler, and $50 for MacApp.  There is NO upgrade path to the finished version however.

There's also a new version of Smalltalk, version 0.3, for the MacPlus...$50. The address for APDA is:

Apple Programmer's & Developer's Association
290 SW 43rd Street
Renton, WA  98055
(206) 251-6548

There was dBase for the Mac by Ashton Tate. I know nothing about IBM dBase so I can't say if it is similar or not.  It did however, have a nice normal Mac Interface.  Big bucks..$495.

LightSpeed Pascal was there, list $125, ComputerWare had it for $89. It almost makes me want to go back to Pascal.  Tremendous debugging facilities. The little hand tracing through your code, a la MacPascal, as well as a low level debugger like TMON.  The object code is not compatable with LS C. The next version of the C compiler will be available sometime in September.

There were two companies at the show selling large external screens. MegaScreen from Micrographics Images lists for $2995, E Screen from E Machines Inc lists for $1995. I liked the E screen better, it didn't have the flicker the MegaScreen had.  There was also a third company showing a monitor to a few people at their hotel room, it is perhaps the best of all the monitors and will be announced at the Seybold Desktop Publishing Conference in early September. 

The U.S. company that was writing MacAuthor, which got purchased by Next Inc., was showing their word processor, (now called WriteNow I think), at the T/Maker booth.  It won't be available until October, but it looks like, (from what I've seen), the best of the new word processors. Better than Multi-Write, MacAuthor (UK), HabaWord, WordHandler, etc...

Andy Hertzfeld gave a talk and demonstrated "Servant", a program that will replace the finder, switcher, resource editor, font/da mover, and who knows what else. This program has so many features (in only 40K of code), it's disgusting.  I won't even try and describe it here, you just have the see it.  At the show he sort of gave out version .79 by putting it on one of the hard disks in the hands-on area. One funny thing about the .79 version is that at midnight on Halloween, the program will self destruct and turn into a pumpkin.  Honest.  His reason for doing so is that by that time, there will be a new improved version available, and he wants people to use the latest version. 

Consulair had version 5.0 available. It allows you to declard Pascal functions, and supposedly compiles twice as fast. 

Aztec was showing their source level debugger, which will be available sometime later this year. 

Zillions of SCSI hard disks and tape backups.  Hyperdrive had an external SCSI - $1195.  It supports disk tags.  SuperMac's dataframe also supposedly supports disk tags as well. The only two hard disks beside Apple's. 

Farallon computing had wired up a bunch of the booths with Phone-Net before the show began.  During the show, Centram had Tops running over the Phone-Net between Macs, PC's, and Unix machines.  It was pretty impressive. 

BMUG and MacroMind threw big parties every night, throughout the suite were a bunch of Macs, all phone-netted together so that people could play  MacroMind's new game: "Maze Wars Plus".  It was a lot of fun. 

InfoSphere was showing "LaserServe", a print spooler for Mac and LaserWriter.

There was a company showing a flat-screen Mac called "DynaMac". The company apparently puts a 512K mother board in a new case with a built in drive, modem, 2 or 4 megs, and an electro luminescent orange screen.  Some of my friend thought it was neat, I thought it was horrible. Decide for yourself. 

I can't think of anything more right now, the products I mentioned above were the "neat" new things. 

HEAR YE!  HEAR YE!  HEAR YE!
Announcing details of the 3rd annual Princeton MacFest!
(For details not covered, please call (609) 452-6002)
WHAT:  PRINCETON MACFEST'86
WHEN: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 20TH
WHERE: WOODROW WILSON, UNIVERSITY CAMPUS
HOW: EASILY REACHABLE BY TRAIN OR CAR! (Train drops you off
     right on Campus - a 10 minute walk to MacFest'86
ADMISSION: Attendees FREE; Vendors $50
WHO:  ...lecturers will include:
  Andy Hertzfeld   (Old hand - fresh from China & Radius)
  Cathy Hoolihan   (Apple User Group's)
  Guy Kawasaki     (Newlywed - tired from Honeymoaning)
  Peter Maruhnic   (Author of Lightspeed Pascal at THINK)
  Phil Nelson      (Graphic Specialist, now with Apple)
  Scott Watson     (Author of Red Ryder v10.0)
(also, there may be someone in a cowboy
hat if he can be coaxed a bit more...)
VENDORS!
SEMINARS!
from 11am (or 12) until 4pm:
  PROGRAMMING!
    (Peter on Pascal, and Scott on C.)
  COMMUNICATIONS!
    Scott Watson & ??
  DESK TOP PUBLISHING!
    Apple/Phil Nelson on Graphics,
    Desktop Publishing,
    Mac and Graphics
BEGINNERS!
  Apple on Introduction to Macintosh
DOOR PRIZES!
  3 copies of MORE, and more...
PUBLIC DOMAIN SOFTWARE!
SPEAKERS!
  Guy Kawasaki - keynote speech 4:30-6pm
    Wedding slides, etc.
  Andy Hertzfeld - lecture 6-7pm
    Andy on whatever Andy wants!

SAN FRANCISCO -- Steven Jobs was speaking in polite tones, but what he was saying was probably not what the 1,000 participants at a symposium on the hot new field of desktop publishing wanted to hear.

"You're here at a $600,000 event to talk about a non-existent industry in two years," the iconoclastic co-founder of Apple Computer Inc. told the Seybold Conference on Desktop Publishing here last week.

Desktop publishing is the use of personal computers and high-quality printers to produce the equivalent of high-cost typesetting.

"The perception is that desktop publishing is a market," Jobs said. "The reality is that the technology will be built in."

Jobs predicted that within two years, most personal computers will have desktop publishing capabilities without the need for special software -- thus making the current raft of expensive desktop publishing products unnecessary.

He drew a parallel between desktop publishing and word-processing programs, noting that just a few years ago software publishers were selling expensive word-processing programs that have since become obsolete because many computers now come with built-in or very cheap word-processing programs.

Jobs, long known as a computer-industry visionary, was making his first public appearance since leaving Apple almost a year ago to found a new computer company, Next Inc.

Ironically, Jobs' old company has been heavily promoting the concept of desktop publishing to sell systems based on its Macintosh computer and LaserWriter laser printer, and as a result Apple has become the leading hardware manufacturer in the desktop publishing market.

Jobs' prediction came at a conference that was supposed to celebrate the growing desktop-publishing field, featuring the unveiling of many high-cost computer programs that will enable personal computer users to produce news letters, advertising material and other documents without professional help. Contrary to Jobs' contention, many in the personal computer industry believe that the desktop publishing business will lead to explosive new growth for the personal computer industry as a whole.

For instance, another personal computer industry pioneer, William Gates, chairman and co-founder of Microsoft Corp., said desktop publishing is having a fundamental effect on the personal computer industry.

He said he had been surprised to learn that more than 300,000 laser printers -- which provide high-quality graphics and text output -- have now been sold, indicating that the desktop publishing market is growing rapidly. John Scully, Apple's desktop publishing marketing manager, said Apple is selling one laser printer for every two to three Macintosh computers.

Industry analysts say that desktop publishing is breathing new life into the PC industry and reminding many of the personal computer boom of the early 1980s.

Paul Brainerd, chairman of Seattle-based Aldus Corp., said the desktop publishing market had expanded beyond his wildest dreams. "Desktop publishing has taken on a life of his own," said Aldus, who is credited with coining the term "desktop publishing."

Although Jobs said he did not believe that a separate desktop publishing market would survive, he predicted that new desktop-publishing capabilities soon would be available to personal computer users.

For instance, he said he expects a new generation of "designer" memos, reports and documents for desktop publishing that will allow users to select styles designed by well-known graphic artists.

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Apple Computer Inc. of Cupertino, Calif., on Monday will introduce the Apple IIGS personal computer, which will have a basic system price between $1,600 and $1,900 depending on its components. According to a company statement scheduled to be released Monday but obtained Wednesday by the San Jose Mercury News, the new IIGS will be three times as fast and have twice as much memory as the IIe, the workhorse of the Apple II line. The new computer will be available in computer stores in limited quantities Sept. 27.

The new computer will have a jazzier appearance than its predecessors in the Apple II line: The color has been changed from khaki to platinum, and the housing has been redesigned to look less boxy. To entice early buyers, a limited number of the new computers will be signed by Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, who created the first Apple II computer.

The IIGS -- the "GS" stands for graphics and sound -- can simulate some musical instruments, has a human-like voice and high-resolution color. Some industry analysts who have seen the new computer say it will churn up as much excitement in the home and educational market as the IBM personal computer did in the business market.

"I expect demand will be phenomenal," said Richard Matlack, president of InfoCorp, a Cupertino market researcher. "It is one of those products that will get people's attention and get the market re-stimulated." The basic central processing unit of the IIGS will cost $999. That price includes a detached keyboard, numeric key pad, a mouse, manuals and training disks. Apple is also introducing a monochrome monitor and two color monitors priced up to $499. In addition, there are new disk drives -- a 3 1/2-inch disk drive costing $399, a 5 1/4-inch disk drive costing $299 and a 20-megabyte hard disk costing $1,299.

The IIGS, which will be made in Singapore, will top the 9-year-old Apple II product line. Sales for Apple's leading home and education computer, the IIe, have sagged this year. During Apple's last fiscal quarter, sales of Apple's business computer, the Macintosh, surpassed the IIe for the first time. Market researchers are optimistic that the IIGS's color and sound will draw customers to computer retail stores, especially as Christmas nears. "Apple is approaching the home and school markets in a way they want to be approached," said Stewart Alsop, editor of the PC Letter. "Teachers need great color and great sound to make education software programs interesting." For the IIGS screen, Apple has borrowed many features from the Macintosh, including pull-down menus and icons.

"When it is running its new software, (the IIGS) is unbelievable," said Douglas Cayne, vice president of the Gartner Group of Stamford, Conn. Computer dealers and manufacturers have thirsted for new computers during this year of drought. Except for Apple's introduction of the Mac Plus in January, no major personal computers had been introduced until this week, when Houston-based Compaq Computer Corp. unveiled a desktop model that's twice as fast as IBM's top-of-the-line PC-AT computer. Analysts say Apple is making some smart moves with its new IIGS. One of the smartest, they say, is that the 3.7 million Apple IIe computers that have already been sold can be upgraded to IIGS capabilities by replacing the standard mother board with one for the IIGS. The mother board contains the microprocessor that runs the computer.

The upgrade kit for the IIe will be priced at $499 and will be available in the first quarter of next year, according to the company. The new IIGS can also run 90 percent of the software programs now available for the IIe. This will be a big advantage for the company, analysts say, because only a few software developers will have programs ready for Monday's introduction. The IIGS won't be able to run software written for the Macintosh. But it will, as Apple promised back in January, be able to operate Mac accessories, including the popular LaserWriter printer and AppleTalk networking software. More than 40 new products, such as software and memory cards made by Apple's third-party developers, will be available in time for pre-Christmas sales, Apple said.

What the hell does Apple think its doing?  I've seen the machine, and its neat.  It can run all 10,000 old Apple II programs.  It also has a ROM with Mac-like routines, and it can run Mac-like programs. Note: It cannot run Mac programs, it doesn't have a 68000 or an emulator. Developers must re-code theor programs to use the new ROM calls. It has graphics that can keep up with the Atari, and I must admit, since it has half the vertical pixel count of an Atari 1040ST, I don't see how it produces color pictures that look better.  But it does.

But on to the main point.  Price and performance.  The Apple IIGS costs $995, plus monitor and disk, which is $1600-$1900 list.  Okay, so maybe its $1400 at a discount.  But the Atari costs $1000, complete. The Apple IIGS runs at 3 MEGAHERTZ!  Thats slower than an IBM PC. My Bicycle can go faster than that. It comes with 256K, expandable to 8 meg.  How can Apple sell a computer with one third the speed and one quarter the memory of an Atari 1040ST for 150% of the price? Is there some vital point I have missed?

Final Comment:  The new keyboard on the Apple IIGS is slated to be put on all Macs next year.  It is Platinum (Apple's new colors this year, as John Dvorak says, it looks like grey to me), it is lower (thinner) than the Mac keyboard, and looks a little flimsier.  It does have a control key, along with an option key, and a combined cloverleaf (command) and appple key.  I didn't get a chance to type on one, so I don't know if it feels good or not.

This is really the final comment:  Infoworld, an always reliable source (cough cough) said that developers have prototypes of the new Macs, and they have 68020's, slots, a space for a math coprocessor chip, and some kind of memory management in hardware.  Also, the display is on a card in one of the slots, thus you could put in any kind of display you want.

Mac 512K Enhanced: $1699
Mac Plus: $2199
Hard Disk 20SC (SCSI): $1299
Hard Disk 20: $1199
LaserWriter: $4995
LaserWriter Plus kit: unchanged at $800
 
Bundle I:
  Mac Plus, Hard Disk 20, ImageWriter II and cable, MacWrite, MacDraw, MacProject, Switcher: $4558
 
Bundle II:
  4 Mac Plusses, 1 LaserWriter Plus, AppleTalk connectors and cabling, 4 copies MacWrite, MacDraw, MacProject, and Switcher:
  $17634
 
(Apple claims to be selling a LaserWriter for every 3 or 4 Macs)
 
 MDS development system version 2:
 - HFS support
 - hard disk support
 - linker strips dead code
 - new editor with Undo and 9 windows at once
 - path manager
 - 128K ROM support (equates, debugger)
 - upgrade: $25 with your old MDS disk 1 before 31 Dec. 1986
 
Mac System Software update: $15
 
Apple II products of note:
 - IIgs with amazing, 16-voice sampling sound capabilities from Ensoniq-licensed chip, custom IC's, 24-bit addressing, 200x600 color graphics, AppleTalk, etc., etc.  ($1000 base price without monitor or disk drives)
 - GRAY-SCALE monitor for IIgs
 - new color monitor, analog RGB
 - SCSI adaptor card for II series