Apple II Bits

Ever since I left Computerworld for a new job in Boston, my daily commute has included public transit. Although some people may prefer the agency and solitude of driving to work, I enjoy letting someone else drive while I kick back for a relaxing ride.

Not being a smartphone owner, I’m not much for passing the time with calls, texts, games, or apps. Since my eyes aren’t glued to a pocket-sized screen, I’ve done plenty of people-watching in my two years on the bus and subway. It’s hard to ignore how smartphones have proliferated into everyone’s hands — most days, I see more digital diversions than the print publications I still enjoy. As someone whose career was founded in print, I feel a bit sad about its demise.

But on a completely different track, I also feel heartened when I see everyone holding not just smartphones, but iPhones. These devices are a far cry from the machine we celebrate on Open Apple and in Juiced.GS — yet from those humble beginnings sprang an empire that has worked its way into the lives of millions. I look around the sybway and see in everyone’s hands and pockets the same logo that was on the computer on which I learned to program, to write, and to game.

Image courtesy Jens Schott Knudsen.

As a college instructor, I’ve had plenty of students who have never used an Apple II or don’t even know what one is. And in a way, that’s okay, because some part of the Apple II has survived to today. The scrappy company born in a garage was so successful in marketing a product to me and my contemporaries that they grew beyond our wildest dreams.

Every morning, I see more Apple users on the subway than I’ve ever seen at KansasFest. To the makers of that smartphone, I think, "Well done, guys" — and to the people using them, I think, "You’re welcome."