Notably, this was already much the same situation for the early "professional GUI", like the Xerox Star, or Perq (and, to a certain extent, the LISA, aiming at the low end of that market, centering on general productivity). In the early 1980s, it was really too early for this, without major investments in opening up that market in the first place. (In other words, it was really about the imaginary of what an organization or business was and how it should operate. As it turned out, nothing in this was self-explanatory.) At this stage, Jobs is clearly hoping for that market developing its own momentum, as organizations were becoming aware of the technology. Nevertheless, NeXt still failed, like its predecessors.
I guess, in the end, nothing substantial really became of that market, with evolving capabilities from the general productivity market eventually swallowing that segment. Which is also pretty much the story of NeXt Step's afterlife in OS X. Notably, and not entirely without irony, the professional GUI was a major prerequisite for this development kicking off, for having commercial GUIs and powerful general productivity appliances, at all, but it was still pretty much doomed to fail, right from the beginning.
It was too damned expensive and wasn’t colour. I saw the demo and thought holy #@$&! But even a Mac IIfx was about half the cost. Colour and had “pro” software. PCs were half of that and ran word and word perfect (and those janky keyboard templates) or 123 and did what business wanted. AutoCAD and pro engineer were about the most pro apps on PCs that anyone ran.
It's really incredible he went through such a long period in the wilderness with nobody paying much attention to him. He was mostly forgotten and alone until Apple makes a decision, based on desperation, to bring him back. He comes back literally like a phoenix, bringing everything he had learned and meditated on in his time away and turned Apple around into the greatest company on Earth.
I wonder what he'd make of AI? I wonder what he would have done with it. I hope he would have been more forward-thinking than Cook and wouldn't be begging his rivals to let him use their technology.
Apple has really dropped the ball on AI in the same way that Microsoft dropped the ball on the Internet in the mid-90s.
I don’t know that Apple has dropped the ball on AI. AI is a capability, not a product.
TBH iPhone has had AI inside since 2007. The keyboard pretty much can’t work without the predictive model inside - and this isn’t the drunken autocorrect elf I’m speaking of.
Thing they will need is some sort of copilot plugin for Xcode. Thats a hole I see right now.
I guess, in the end, nothing substantial really became of that market, with evolving capabilities from the general productivity market eventually swallowing that segment. Which is also pretty much the story of NeXt Step's afterlife in OS X. Notably, and not entirely without irony, the professional GUI was a major prerequisite for this development kicking off, for having commercial GUIs and powerful general productivity appliances, at all, but it was still pretty much doomed to fail, right from the beginning.
It was too damned expensive and wasn’t colour. I saw the demo and thought holy #@$&! But even a Mac IIfx was about half the cost. Colour and had “pro” software. PCs were half of that and ran word and word perfect (and those janky keyboard templates) or 123 and did what business wanted. AutoCAD and pro engineer were about the most pro apps on PCs that anyone ran.
With this video his passion and energy shines through, but he is trying to sell crumbs. 50,000 units / year!
C.f. 2024 when Apple sells billions of products a year. BILLIONS. Unreal.
That was my inspiration in posting it. The passion and insight and singular belief I. What he was doing
I wonder what he'd make of AI? I wonder what he would have done with it. I hope he would have been more forward-thinking than Cook and wouldn't be begging his rivals to let him use their technology.
Apple has really dropped the ball on AI in the same way that Microsoft dropped the ball on the Internet in the mid-90s.
Thing they will need is some sort of copilot plugin for Xcode. Thats a hole I see right now.