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Interview: Ask Steve Wozniak
Since you're reading Slashdot, there's approximately a 100% chance that you know who Steve Wozniak is and why so many of us consider him to be a Geek God in whose shadow all others dwell. Before you start asking him questions, though, please take a look at his personal Web site, which already answers most of the obvious stuff. Then ask away. All questions must be asked and moderated by noon (EST) Tuesday. Woz's answers to the selected questions will appear Friday.
It does not suck...it is mediocre...big difference.
As one of the great True Engineers of the past that many of us look up to, what are your thoughts on Apple's part in the design of the Macintosh M&M (mouse and menus) GUI? The Xerox PARC story has been told, and often in many variations, but from what I recall, a group from Apple got the idea of an M&M interface from PARC, "borrowing" graphical concepts, object-orientated GUI development techniques, and even PARC engineers (such as Larry Tessler).
How much actual engineering went on at Apple in regards to the Macintosh and do you have any ethics comments?
Thanks!
Pixar has be doing tremendous things for long time. Do you think there will be a time in its future where it will not work with Disney?
CUZ LIKE I SAW THAT MOVIE WITH IT AND I SAW YOU ADMIRING STEVE JOBS ASS AND I ALSO SAW YOU TRYING TO TOUCH HIS PACKAGE AND FAMILY JEWLS.
I HAVE NOTHING AGAINST HOMOS I JUST WANT TO KNOW.
Forgive the anonymous post, I can't recall my login ( at work, have login at home ). My question: Woz, My oldest son (8) is getting interested doing more than just playing games with computers. What in your opinion is the best way ( language choice, technique, etc ) to start to bring him into the world of programming? Thanks, Gray
do you think Natalie Portman could have portrayed you better.
From everything I've heard, read and was told personally (sp?), Apple fell back in areas such as memory/task management (and, and...) because the employees were out of control.
You must have heard that managing Apple was like hearding cats... or that Apple was a company in dire need of adult management? Well, if what I "know" is true (the GIGO principle), that was true, but reality was even worse.
Employees that had absolutely no clue about "the outside world", that what they did could affect other people (read: 3rd pary developpers) adversely, that did not listen to management, internal politics and power struggles... heck, someone even implied that, by the early 90's, the source code for a good part of MacOS 68K had been lost, forcing OS developpers to link to this big and obscure hunk of machine code!!! The migration to PPC actually forced a re-writing, a re-implementation of the OS, the "re-creation of the source"!
(Actually, this started with the "Star Trek" project that created an x86 version of MacOS.)
No Apple prez/CEO/whatever was able to make Apple employees (this include virtually all upper management) behave and go in _one_ direction after Jobs was ousted in '85. And only Jobs was able to impose his views and a _direction_ to the company. If there had been a head honcho with _real_ authority (and who understood the overall market) at Apple between '85 and '95, Apple would have never flirted with extinction and Big Bill would never be watching us... er, Bill would never amassed so much control over the market. And MacOS would be fully buzzword compliant nowadays.
But that was not the case and Apple survived despite itself.
Do you have full access to the Apple OS source code? Can you just call people at Apple if you have an idea for an improvement or a bug fix (or do you care to anymore)?
Thanks!
Come on! Why was this moderated down? Anyone who was an Apple geek in the 80's knows about the llama easter eggs and the various llama references. Woz could probably explain this.
There was a wired article on Woz, he teaches at a elementry school in California.
For the issue:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/6.09/
The story:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/6.09/woz.html
Y'know... just curious (and posting as Anonymous Coward for obvious reasons)
P.S.: You, sir, definitely rock!
In what way has SGI been embraced by the "community"? What kind of community are you talking about anyway? In case you haven't noticed, Apple never tried to be accepted by the Linux community.
Steve, How do you feel about apple's current advertising propaganda and the fact that their hardware and operating system hardly live up to it.
Steve, My first computer was an Apple ][+, and the elegant, simplicity of this machine has yet to be matched. Thanks for all the great time I had with it. After Apple, you worked on a universal home appliance controller. Unfortunately, this wasn't commercially successful. Today, people are used to universal remotes, and not as uncomfortable with programming as before. It is also possible to design fairly easy to use graphical programming languages (as JavaStudio or te Lego mindstorms set). Standards for home automation have also advanced. Do you think it is possible today to design a viable home automation hub that is not a PC (i.e. expensive, unreliable, noisy, space-wasting and slow to boot). If so, how would you go around doing this ? Would you do it again ? Thanks, -- Fazal Majid (cuzbog@yahoo.com)
An interview with JLG would also be nice. A no BS kinda guy....
Are you jealous of Bill Gates?
Win98 is just DOS with a pretty shell.
Why is it that Apple seems to have such a hard time putting in a standard expansion slot into thier new hardware. I really like the iMAC concept but without some sort of expansion slot, such a PC card or one of the Low profile PCI standards, it is hard to convince ones self to go for it.
Please understand that as far as I know you have very little influence at Apple but I fail to see why they can't embrace a Hardware Expansion STANDARD for all in ones CPUs. Your insite and experience with Apple may help to generate a clearer picture of what the problem is.
As it is I run Linux on both my PC (686) and Laptop (586) and would like your comments on what you see as the future of Linux.
Thanks
Dave
Thanks for everything. ;)
My question is, the early superiority of the Mac vs. DOS PC was very clear. However, mass-produced PC clones eventually won-out in terms of market dominance. During that time of PC vs. Mac did you or Apple ever consider licensing Macintosh technology to create Mac "Clones"? What were the internal discussions like and what opinions did you beleive in at the time? Looking back, do you think Mac "clones" would have maintained the Macintosh market dominance? Would you do anything differently?
Hi Mr.Wozniak, I know that you have been really involved in education. Given that Apple next OS uses UNIX as its foundation, do you have any concerns that this new OS will be too complicated for young students or the average user?
First : I'm sure he loves the comparison because he's a very arrogant fellow and
Second: I'm sure he considers himself the "Mozart of software design" because he's a very arrogant fellow
Steve, do you feel that the industry still has room for another Apple, where two guys have an idea and start something from scratch? Or is the industry too far developed for that to happen again?
When was the last time you looked at Apple's product line. 1986?
8600s, 9600s, G3s beige and B&W all have screwless motherboard access.
Macs now use all PCI, AGP, ATA, open firmware boot roms, USB, Ethernet, and 1394 ports standard.
So get out of the radio shack wanker.
Just who the hell is this Natalie Portman person?!?!
WHO IS NATALIE PORTMAN!!!??
yeah but pinyin is not a very good way of entering chinese changjie is ok but still not perfect, no way that uses a keyboard with 101 keys would be i guess, in HK i have seen ppl demonstrating pads where u write the character with a stylus and it appears on the screen.
superior hardare won't do you much good if you're company is being run by idiots
What is your view on hardware clones?
AC post due to the fact it's been 90mins and still waitng for password.
There's no such thing as a unix mainfram, dipshit
I would like to say that when my site was slashdotted running Solaris on my home ASDL line my connection went down too. I don't like macs that much, but 25,000 hits on a home ASDL connection running any OS, and not being prepared for it will take down just about anything.
where did you learn how to code and hack together electronics (other than the homebrew computer club)? is there anywhere online that I can get the instructions to build the first apple?
Gates is a coward. Cowardice and genius don't mix (look at me).
By no means is Gates a genius.
Linux, hot grits, Natalie Portman Naked and Petrified, Llama McDougal, First Post Mastah Mick, Imposter First Post Mastah... Slashdot, what more could you ask for?
Your sig is racist.
She is the chick from the new Star Wars. I am old school, so if she does not have danish attached to the sides of her head, I am not interested.
Are you referring to the legacy OS? OS X will change that if that's what you're referring to. The hardware is hardly "legacy"
You know....
Gates, by all accounts, is a genius as well. He was just a more brilliant businessman.
I agree about portrayals in general, but Gates' conduct from '92 on should have been delved into deeper to balance out the picture. Compared to what Gates is, his depiction in pirates was a commercial lap-dance.
(sorry 'bout the mixed metaphor: TNT treated Gates with kid-gloves, not Woz)
MODERATE IT DOWN!!!!
and a warm CPU is all we ask for ...
Most mac programs written in assembly? what the hell kind of crack are you smoking???
Please, Uncle Woz, tell me the story about how the chroma signal was generated in the Apple][ video circuitry?
I got my Apple][+ in 1979, while I was a technician in the Navy. When I saw the schematics in the manual, I set myself to the task of understanding everything I could about every chip and gate within the Apple][. I fared quite well until I got to the chroma generator. Then I hit a dead end.
Oh, I did find a clue here and there (phase-shifting the 2.x MHz oscillator), but the big picture eluded me. And still does.
Please, help?
- Bob Cunningham
rcunning@acm.org
I'm an engineer with 15 years experience who has started down the path toward becoming a teacher. I have found the process to be both needlessly complex, and endlessly frustrating.
What route did you take? Which certification(s) do you hold? What grades have you taught?
- Bob Cunningham
rcunning@acm.org
explain why...
(and, in general, computer science has been an academic political ideology meant to extract money from students for teaching them outdated technologies in a counter-productive manner so they can work for corporate America instead of themselves and the advancement of human knowledge [as it should be] )
memory protection is just a buzzword as, depending on what's being discussed, is java... the result of memory protection is what matters here, so talk about that and add some context to your statements...
BTW, i'd like to thank you for almost everything you made, and especially for the Apple ][. Back in 82/83, when I was about 5 and barely able to read, I wrote my first basic program on a ][ owned by a true hacker of my hood (may he rest in peace (the owner, not the machine, which still run fine as far as I know)) ; I had seen a ZX Spectrum a few time before, but the apple ][ was just something *entirely* different.
I think I wouldn't be there writtin this cropped JSP-based app right now if i didn't stare for so long at this awful green and black monitor. Thanks.
Bon, ben sur ce...
(you guessed right, english ain't my native tongue)
Good points, but I must take issue with your painting of QuickDraw3D as revolutionary. QuickDraw3D no one cares about those picture-cube things, and that was the only cool feature. Thank god apple deep-sixed that one.
if you think memory protection is just a buzzword, you need to learn to program in any systems language. Knowing PERL and java doesn't mean you know shit about OSes, or computer science.
and MacOS9 is just MacOS1 with prettier graphics, and guard pages. At least win98 makes a pretty good attempt at memory protection. Apps can't scribble on each other. Too bad the OS itself does regularly.
why on earth did a computer in 1999 have 4 megs of ROM? We don't run these things off floppies anymore, you know.
MODERATE THIS UP PLEASE!!!!!!!
you aren't using a mac so why do you complain
and quit trying to bring back advertising .sig's
LinuxPPC is often slower then MacOS. Seriously. If I ever bought Apple harware for a server (which I would not) I would probably run LinuxPPC, but for a desktop.. naw. X11 on LinuxPPC is *slow*.
TROLL
That would be awesome ... but unnecessary. The Apple ][ is already being emulated as a MacOS application.
See emulation.net: http://www.emulation.net/apple2/index.ht ml.
I have seen the innards of a 9600 taken apart and inserted inside an Apple ][e box (a long time ago, don't remember where the link is). Uses a processor daughtercard, so as of recently this creation (think it was created by the mac treasure tracing club over in Japan) can been upgraded to a G4 (aka 7400).
Okay, it's begging to be asked...
What, honestly, do you think of various media portrayals of you, your life, your relationship with Jobs? For example, in "Pirates of Silicon Valley" (please don't flame me for bringing it up!), you were pretty much treated as a naive dumb kid that happened to find a good idea. From all reports (and a good look at your work), though, you're a smart guy that did ingenious stuff. Everybody seems to want a different portrayal of Jobs or Gates-- what about you?
Not much hes pretty much a looser
Dont go public!
As so many have said, thanks for the Apple ][, Steve. A hell of a lot of successful people owe you big time.... including myself.
Mighty the Wizard
Who found me at sunrise
Sleeping, and woke me
And learn'd me Magic!
Great the Master,
And sweet the Magic,
When over the valley,
In early summers,
Over the mountain,
On human faces,
And all around me,
Moving to melody,
Floated the Gleam.
- Alfred, Lord Tennyson, "Merlin and the Gleam"
I don't see why the +1 shouldn't apply to questions... You get a bonus because you're more likely to post something worth reading than the average poster. This seems equally applicable to questions - you're also more likely to post an interesting or relevant question, right?
I'm not arguing for or against the bonus. But if we have the bonus, why shouldn't it apply to questions as well as comments?
I'd also like to hear Woz comment on BeOS and JLG. In my mind, BeOS is a worthy successor for the spirit of the MacOS. Easy to use/admin but also a robust, modern OS. Oh, and did I mention *FAST* ;) > How's 'bout a Gassee interview, eh? That'd be a blast! As others have said, JLG is a very interesting and quotable person - matter of fact, see "The Quotable Jean-Louis Gassee" on BeDope... http://www.bedope.com/qjlg/ Best regards to Woz, the real heart of Apple, David Huff dhuff@pobox.com (who's too lazy to recall his /. passwd ;)
I would like to know when Woz is going to hack his beautiful creation, the Apple ][, to run a Motorola 7400 chip?
The original Apples (I and ][) basically launched the personal computer as we know it... I would like to know what platforms you most admire other than your own designs- Amiga, Mac, Be, Wintel-x86, Linux, Acorn, Multics?
Since you also have an interest in gadgetry, what's your favorite PDA? Where do you see the future of embedded systems and similar low-power, low-cost technology going?
Of course, since you've spent some time teaching, someone has to ask your views on the future of technology in education...
HUAGHUAGHUAGHL IT'S THAT GUY WHO KEEPS MENTIONING WWW.JERKCITY.COM...plus a crackwhore girlfriend.
I'm ignoring that post...
yeah, i think computers shouldn't be made for average users. I work at retail store chain, uh...let's say Office Depot. The people that come into our store have ask the dumbest question that one can't never thought of and we have to deal with dumb ass. Example of what we have to deal with, "hey, the AOL's address book and bookmark can't be print out and Y2K is coming. Can you tell me how to print it? 'cause i'm afraid the Y2K will crush my PC" Geeeeeee...how the f**k am I suppose to know? Shouldn't you be calling AOL and ask for tech support? Come on, we have AOL's f**king disc in our store but it doesn't mean WE KNOW EVERY DAMN THING ABOUT AOL version 5!!! Average people shouldn't have computer because they're way too dumb. p.s. I got more dumbest question ever asked about computer. That I'm going to write a book about them someday.
Propagation delay -> phase shift.
You're not remembering to "Think Different"; you're still basing you're entire concept of what a PC should be on an 15-year old design, the IBM PC AT. No one complains that their TV/VCR/stereo etc. doesn't have an expansion slot, do they? An appliance for use by the masses should have a sealed case with a sticker that says "No user servicable parts inside."
Woz, Have you used the dev release of OS X client and if so your thoughts. Has Apple finally developed an OS worthy of its processor?
If you get to the "hundred million dollar" mark, the only thing that can give you orgasm is more money.
What are your thoughts / feelings on the Apple II's that are still in use today? I plan to put mine back into regular use once I get a bigger place. Is it any surprise, what you expected, or thought its time has passed (I use linux, mac, pc... none are perfect, but all have their good points).
why? it's the most thought provoking question yet.
Doesn't anyone else think this is a good question to ask The Woz? Certainly moreso than "WHAT'S YOUR SEXUAL ORIENTATION?" or "What was your high score on Tetris?" ~sigh~
The preceding post can only be fully appreciated by knowing about Jude Farley, stonecutter. The title of the book, by the way, is Jude the Obscure.
open case, connect internal video cable to 19" monitor. look at Xwindows of pr0n
How many teeth does he have these days?
The changes which were made to Mach and BSD in Mac OS X Server have been handed back. But since these things don't involve Linux directly, it's no wonder you haven't noticed.
Oh please. How is he a coward compared to Jobs? He won't leave the company he founded in digust and keep coming back?
You can call him a hell-bound greedy bastard with no innovation of his own, but you, I and Jobs are bigger cowards for not having the fortitude to run the world's biggest software empires well
Screw the fact for a second that he hurts your feelings by not releasing the source code for his company's blood sweat and tears or that he doesn't make IE for linux, or give away ALL his money to charities.
I hate it when threads get started for comments like this...
Aint that the truth...
heh ... think... what if this thread was on a beowulf cluster!
man
With hot grits poured on it.
Hey Woz,
How do you feel about all those illegal AT&T Alliance Teleconferences folks dumped you into during the '80s? We used to love showing you what K-RAD phreakers we all were by adding you into teleconferences filled with teenage twerps enamered by simple blue boxes, MCI codez, and whistling 2600hz. Remeber when you had to blow off a trunk to get to those teleconferences (before AT&T made it available via it's 0-700 number)? HA! Those were the days...
And Natalie Portman nearby.
This could go on forever.
As an old 6502 programmer, I always thought that its small register structure (A, X, and Y) helped greatly to enforce good programming practice, even over other small processors of the time like the Z80.
Do you think that a return to RISC will be required to bring software design and practice back to the high quality levels seen in the 6502 days?
Naked and petrified
Steve, Whose idea was it to put a bare chested Woz on the cover of San Jose Magazine in a swimming pool full of apples?? I can't eat apples anymore!!! :)
Many of us saw the impact you had upon an industry (and society in general) and tried to model ourselves after you. What advice do you have for those of us that are still in school (Elementary to Grad school). Anything you recommend we pursue/avoid? Thanks
whats the URL for that dude ? can we access the rejected stories and/or input queue on /. ?
Moderate this one up.... made me laugh pretty hard :)
no, we've already exhausted all the good troll subjects. except...
LINUX SUX!!!!!!!11
Through this myriad of failed sw projects, apple has moved their hardware trhough three generations and one evolution. from 68030 to 68040, evolving to ppc601, and moving up through 603/4 and now G3/4 class chips, nevermind the nubus-to-pci, adb-to-usb and the scsi-to-firewire transitions. Technically their hardware has more than kept pace with the rest of the industry. One can only wonder where the personal computing industry would be had apple managed to follow through on its OS projects like it has on its hardware projects.
For apple, it would have meant at least 2-6 billion in additional revenue over the last 8 years. They would probably be between dell and compaq in size, and windows could not possibly have achieved the dominance that is has today.
So since this is a q/a forum, and we're supposed to ask Woz new questions, how's this :
Considering your experience and success in the personal computing industry, what in your expert opinion, are the three most signifigant developments in this industry of the last/next ten years?
-earl
Um, I know you have been helping kiddies learn how to use computers, but what else have you been doing? I've been to your site and it seems pretty pathetic. Your rants about the great things you once did remind me of Al Bundy telling Peg about his old football days.
Are you like Orson Wells who made his best movie first and then lived a life knowing he could never surpass it? Are you afraid to try and do anything usefull? If you are so concerned about the kiddies learning computers and you are truely a genius, why dont you go back in the field and make loads of cash and hire people to teach them? What does that not pad your ego enuf? I am not trying to flame, I am pointing out what is obvious to many but they are afraid to ask.
Sadly you will never even see this as this will be moderated down to -100 shortly. Your not seeing any constructive criticism will be the slashdots version of the Emporer wore no clothes. Hows Zach like Seattle?
SHE NEEDS BIGGER BREASTS, BRAH.
Y'KNOW, MORE IN THE CHESTAL REGION?
A LITTLE BIT MORE BOOB?
CLEANER CLEAVEGE?
ITS HULKAMANIA, BRAH!!!!
Hi Steve.
What did you and the rest of the guys at Apple think of the other non 80x06 machines like the Amiga, Atari and Acorn Archimedes?
Also what was it like to be a pioneer in the early home computer scene?
anyway, i'm glad he is getting interviewed though... he's a really cool guy.
/ k.d / earth trickle / Monkeys vs. Robots Films /
Large print giveth, and the small print taketh away
/ k.d / earth trickle / Monkeys vs. Robots Films /
Large print giveth, and the small print taketh away
Do you foresee any concrete relationships between members of Linux-Unix world and the Mac folks? Although Linux can run on the G3 and G4 and other Macs, it would be kinda nice to see Apple joining other big players like IBM and Compaq and supporting Linux. (Many Applications Crash, If Not The Operating System Hangs)
Windows is going the way of phlogiston...
Why not use this opportunity to ask for a really authorative advice? What is currently lacking in KDE or GNOME to become as good as MacOS or Windows for the ordinary user?
Hi Steve, turn on the way-back machine... Amidst all the politics surrounding the Apple ][ vs. Mac debate of the late 80's and early 90's, I have to ask - who (or what) really killed the ][?
I still think the ][ series (especially the GS) are the friendliest, most inspiring, and hackable machines ever made (thank you for that). I don't believe the Macintosh was a worthy replacement.
Hi Woz,
Do you think that the microcomputers killed the mainframes, as everybody else seems to think....
Or do you think that the mainframes simply got smaller, cheaper, disguised themselves as micros, and now live on our desks? And are the real micros dead?
I look at this PC of mine - it's fine, does a great job of running Linux and acts in every way like a big Unix mainframe should - but then I look at my friend's Playstation and am amazed at what it can do with 1 Meg of RAM and a 30 MHz processor. Now THAT's a micro!
So if you were to build a micro today, how would you do it?
The Apple ][ video memory mapping has an unusual layout, once
described as "like a venetian blind". I was told that this
arrangement saved the use of two OR gates. Is this true, or is there
some more mundane explanation for the mapping of pixels to memory
addresses?
-dca
Steve,
Many many years ago my family owned a computer store we touted as "the only apple only dealer in town" In those days with mostly just apple ][ series and some early macintoshes, I met you on several occasions. To me that added a personal touch to the company that apple was, And also made me more proud to own an apple product. Especially since I had an apple ][e and a mac 128 and mac 512 Signed by you. Through the years it seemed to me that more and more apple Lost its nice personality and became more of just a Machine to makret products and Mac Users began to Have to fight their friends over computing issues. I eventually lost my drive as an Apple supporter and a mac fanatic when I began to do alot of unix and networking. Even now it seems that just a simple question about hardware to the SOS-APPLE line and you have to pay about as much as microsoft tech support.
Do you think that apple has lost that personal touch that everyone loved so much in the 80's, and If so at what point do you think it really begain to decline.
Daniel Powell
I know you were tight with Captain Crunch (John
Draper, King of Phreaks). Are you still in touch
with him? If so, how is he doing? I'd heard he was
having a rough time, and I hope it's untrue.
Happy New Year, Woz. You da man.
How do you feel the return to Apple of Steve Jobs? How do you think he will affect the company? In what direction will he take Apple?
Apple is a closed company. Few hardware specifications have been released, even for old machines. Projects such as MacBSD/NetBSD/OpenBSD have progressed slowly. Do you agree with this choice?
Why has MacOS lagged so much? Protecting memory, efficient multitasking and symmetric multiprocessor capabilties are either new or still absent. In light of Copland, then the NeXT acquisition and now the fragmented MacOS X, what should MacOS become?
I've a vague recollection that he has a classroom set up in his garage where he teaches kids about computers.
Methinks I saw this on one of Robert X. Cringley's documentaries.
...j
Mr. Wozniak,
Not to be completely trivial, but...
If you were to do US Fest this year, what bands would you have there?
Microsoft is to software what Budweiser is to beer.
hmm, I have a 3, the post was marked up +1 interesting....
shit, do as I say, not as I do
sorry
hehe
My question is of similar nature to that asked of Ken...
Q: With the benefit of hindsight, is there any aspect of the original Apple, either hardware or software, that you'd now design differently?
PS: I have a small shrine to Woz sitting next to my electronics bench. I pray to the Spirit of Woz to bless my ratnest circuits before power-on. If the magic smoke escapes, I know that I've angered the Spirit of Woz. When the circuit works, I can be certain that Woz has blessed me. Is this weird?
You started up a company, worked on some really cool ideas, struck it rich, and found a way to follow your dreams.
Two decades later, Silicon Valley millionaires aren't hard to find. It seems that if someone can choose just the right startup, it's not too difficult to exchange hours for dollars.
But in the frenzy of Silicon Valley life, where 'day' and 'night' often have no meaning, where the phrase 'working hours' has become a joke, where trips to Fry's help convert that pesky disposable income into toys and gadgets... it's easy to lose sight of what really matters in life.
I'm looking to you for advice, since you've been here: how do you find out what's really important? How do you get off the Silicon Valley rollercoaster, and make the transition from creating the future to creating a home and family?
I struck it rich at Netscape, and I'm currently working sixteen-hour-days on a Steve Jobs project at Apple. I have dreams of bailing out, building a house, and raising a family, but there's a side of me that sees that as quitting, and I don't know how I'll ever be able to look at technology from the other side of the fence. I do know that I can't maintain this pace forever, though...
Steve,
(Woz? Mr. Wozniak, sir?)
We hear and see a lot of negative things about childhood these days. Stories in the media about violence in the schools is not uncommon.
Given your work with children, what is your opinion of "The State of the Union" of under-eighteen year-olds? Is school a brighter place, given all the exposure to new technologies? Or is it really as gloomy as the media portrays?
Finally, what has been your own children's experience of the school system, and are they at all technically inclined?
Thanks,
David
Share data. Share code. Share ideas. Share the wealth.
http://stockfilter.org
Steve, will you personally take responsibility for Apple's buggy Open Firmware and pathetic Forth implementation? Because if you would, I'd very much like to bitch-slap you for it.
I don't know how many times Open Firmware locked up on my 6500/225 trying to get the damn thing to boot directly into LinuxPPC. booting MacOS just to bootstrap Linux via BootX is completely unacceptable.
last but not least, can you make Apple release all the hardware specs for every m68k? why on earth should free software developers have to reverse engineer 10 year old hardware just to get the damn SWIM floppy to work??!!
/rant
-l
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it's only slow because the XFBdev xserver has to be extremely flexible and therefore has NO non-vesa-2.0 optimisations (actually, it may have no optimisation whatsover. may just be making syscalls to the kernel driver for /dev/fb*).
if some linuxPPC ppl would take the time to make really nice xserver modules for XFree86 4.0, it'd be just as fast as the comparable chipset on x86.
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You garnered a lot of fame for the first disk drivers for Apple floppy drives. Free OS developers like those working on Linux, FreeBSD, and others have a great number of problems getting specs and developing drivers for their systems. As a person who has written drivers *with* specs, you seem best able to appreciate what those developers have accomplished, and yet you've also worked for a company that produces hardware and so you can understand a hardware company's needs as well. What's your thoughts on the problems faced by hardware companies afraid to release specs, and consumers/developers that want to author open drivers for them?
US Citizen living abroad? Register to vote!
Steve, I'm looking into getting into hardware design, and I was wondering what books give a good introduction to the subject? Is it possible to learn to design motherboards and such without having a degree in electrical engineering? How would you suggest a person learn digital electronics?
Jon
Engineering and the Ultimate
Hello Mr. Wozniak,
You've been credited with helping spawn the personal computing industry.
Two questions:
1) Are you happy?
2) In retrospect, would you have done anything differently?
Reeses
Dear Mr. Woz, My questions regard the Apple I specs. You are well-known to be an educator in the computer world. I heard that the original Apple I specs were given away by you for the benifit of other eletrical engineers. I have looked all over your site for info on this. Is this true? If so/not, what do you think of GPL'ing the Apple I specs? I hardly doubt that anyone with those would create something that would be a competitor to the new G4's, and it would be an exellent tool for budding engineers of all ages to try to tackle and to learn the basics. Thanks for your time. ++Om
In my experience Xpmac -mach64 is as fast or faster then Mac OS running at 1024x768 @ thousands of colors. Then again, on my 2 meg ATI Mach64, that doesn't take much.
Just for the sake of insanity, let's play with a hypothetical situation....
:)
Situation #1: You're approached by a no-name company. Basically another Garage Shop. They tell you have have the cash and the resources, but they need the inventive spark. They're basically asking you to re-create what you and Jobs did "in the dark ages". What do you tell them? Do you go with it assuming all they want is the ideas and leave you enough time to teach, or do you have them go talk to Jobs and get him to do it?
Situation #2: All life is blown off the planet save you. What things would you want to have around since you're now the "Only Man On Earth"?
And my final question: Do you bother reading After Y2k? You seem to be a rather permanent fixture there.
Hey! What's this fruit-striped apple thingy in the corner?
I'm thinking someone has had a bit too much of Dr Seuss in his reading diet lately... :)
:)
I'm impressed though.
Hey! What's this fruit-striped apple thingy in the corner?
of asking you a question. Your creation sparked my involvment in computers, and more specifically at the time - the computer underground.
1. When computing was young, and the technology far surpassed the laws restricting its use - hacking (cracking) and phreaking were the tools of teaching to many youngsters who simply didn't have access to the latest and greatest hardware. In your opinion - are todays computer missuse and tresspass laws to strict or lax in the U.S.?
2. Rumor (heh) has it that you built and Steve Jobs sold blue boxes when you were both in college together. The AppleCat modem was by far the most powerful modem ever sold, and remained so for many years after its release. Programs like Cat's Meow revolutionized the world of phreaking at the time. How aware were you of the missuse(?) of the AppleCat modem in regard to phreaking?
3. Did you ever hang out with Capt. Crunch? Did he really lose his mind after his stint in prison?
(I never expect all of these to be answered)
http://windows.scares.us
What are your top ten music art and literature influences?
i.e.: If you were stranded on a desert island, what ten books, CDs/albums and visual art would you want with you?
Thanks,
James F. Bickford
Sys Dev Assistant
Electronic Interface Support
pronoblem
It was a "Garage Developer" that made the car MPEG player that runs on Linux. That is a nice hack if I may say so.
Garage developer days are not over... There are hundreds of examples.
www.empeg.com
James F. Bickford
Sys Dev Assistant
Electronic Interface Support
pronoblem
I was wondering about your airplane accident during the early 80s. From what I hear, it caused head trauma and memory recall problems.
After that, do you still fly? Have you developed a fear of flying, or did you get right back into it?
I'm a pilot, too. But I find soaring much more fun and interesting. (You can come soar with me anytime) http://www.ssl.umd.edu/skyline/
-- If you met me, you probably wouldn't remember me. I'm pretty hard to remember.
In your opinion, is Apple a hardware or a software company, or both?
Can they survive as both?
--Matt
Know what I like about atheists? I've yet to meet one that believes God is on their side.
Background: Franklin was a company that produced a clone of the Apple II+ in the early '80's. They had moderate retail success (remember seeing some Franklins in Sears), but were successfully sued by Apple and forced out of the clone business - some sort of intellectual property infringement, I forget the specifics. (Can anyone fill in the details?) Franklin is still around (or was a few years ago); now they make electronic organizers/dictionaries.
First off if this does reach the greater of the two Steves may I wish to you a thousand years of living and much funding to all your works.
Anyone that can touch so many with his works, as well as putting the Clash and David Lee Roth on the same stage should be blessed with an extra long life.
Now to the question...
Back in the mid 80's I did a interview with Andy Herzfeld for my college Computer Club newsletter. In the interview he described a bet he had with you to see who would be the first to wire up a plain old clothes iron to do disc copys. Was this was a real bet and if so how far did you get?
What was the hardware hacking in general like back in those days? Do you see yourself doing more hardware hacks in the now and future? If so, what are you cooking up now?
Do you see yourself doing more hardware hacks in the spirit of the tone boxes, dial-a-jokes and the like...things that are more fun as well as functional?
Poor little clams! Snap! Snap! Snap! Poor little clams! Snap! Snap! Snap! Poor little clams! Snap! Snap! Snap!
Have you been in touch with Alan Kay, Dan Ingalls, et al. about what they've been doing with Smalltalk (now called "Squeak!",) about what can be done to help children and others with active imaginations use computers to their best advantages?
MSBPodcast.com The opinions expressed here are my own. If you don't like 'em... Think up your own stuff.
I recently had a chance to meet Captain Crunch, the original creator of the red box. Many years ago, the feds and the phone companies were after him so he fled the country. He ended up in Bombay. Now he's back in the states floating around living off of donations and hand-outs. My question is, do you think Apple would have ever gotten off the ground if you guys didn't have that cash source in the very begining? :)
Yes, Windows 9x proves that you can be fully buzzword compliant, have excellent backwards compatibility (even on the driver level!), and still have an unstable POS OS.
Not that MacOS is a paradigm of stability, but I think it stands up pretty well to Win 9x, even while failing to provide modern OS services and also having piss-poor backwards compatibilty for anything older than 3-4 years. Either the Mac community is so rabid to be blind to these faults, or in the real world these concerns are vastly overblown.
I'm not getting into a flamewar either -- only making the point that from the average user's point of view, the unmodern nature of the MacOS is a non-issue (and in fact has probably made some interesting audio/video applications that demand 'bare metal' access possible). From a programmers standpoint, I can see how one would think the MacOS sucks.
--
Business. Numbers. Money. People. Computer World.
Don't worry, I understand the concepts here, and as an occasional Mac user, I can't wait until OS X comes out. My primary platform is Win NT, so I can attest to the benefits of a reasonably sound implementation of modern OS concepts (although the Linux folks will probably disagree!), and just deal with rebooting if I need DOS or Win 9x games.
My point is simply that in the real world implementation matters more than buzzword compliance. Despite it's modern feature set, an app crash in Windows 9x is just as likely to lead to a reboot as one in MacOS. Multitasking is smoother under Windows 9x, but most Mac programs are written to allow long jobs to be run in the background, so the users hardly notice the difference.
The real problem here is MS's tendancy to kludge unstable bits onto the OS (such as ActiveDesktop and that horrid Win98 ACPI stuff) before fixing what they've got. Despite Apple's utter failure to get a modern OS out the door, they've been doing a hellava lot of bugfixing over the years, and ye olde MacOS is actually quite stable despite it's architectural faults.
{From a marketing standpoint, Windows 9x is just bizzare -- with WinNT sitting (rotting?) on the shelf for so many years, Microsoft has insisted on dumping engineering into the old DOS/Win platform. Backwards compatbility *can't* be that important to the user base. It's like Apple coming out with MacOS X and then continuing with 5 years of development of the old MacOS. I just don't understand it.}
--
Business. Numbers. Money. People. Computer World.
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I have been waiting for the day when I could thank you for the path you have led us down. Even if this comment does not get moderated up and sent to you, I hope you'll take the time to peruse all of what we've said and see it - because I mean it, and I'm sure that my feelings echo those of hundreds (thousands!) of fellow slashdotters.
What do I thank you for? For innovation, for hard work, for going back to education and doing what you love, for hacking together the coolest hardware when people said you couldn't do it, for putting up and understanding the other Steve when those with less of a backbone would have walked away, for keeping up with the times and the community 20 years later, and giving this interview...
Long live the Great Woz!
[Yes, I have some questions to ask, and I hope you read them too, but when I have this chance I feel it's more important that I, and We, say thanks - come on moderators, let Woz know what we think of him!]
woz.com has already been slashdotted it seems. It's frequently dropping HTTP packets, and the user-controllable woz-cam is going crazy. :)
Now, for my question: While Apple's MacOS is (generally) recognized as the model of 'ease of use', most GUI based/interfaced OS's are still WAY too complex for the masses, not only in configuration complexity, but also in the fact that they are generally American/European-ly ethnocentric. For example, no ones come up with a really good way to input/output Chinese characters on a PC. (at least to my knowledge
Implying that they're anti-Chinese is kind of like saying that using tools is unfair to creatures without opposable thumbs.
Part of the reason that typewriters and keyboards were developed by Westerners is that their written language contained a limited number of symbols which could be put onto a keyboard. Pictographic languages like written Chinese make that kind of hard.
However, this hasn't stopped Chinese people from using computers, nor has it prevented people from coming up with all kinds of schemes for inputing Chinese on computers.
I really *hate* when people start trotting out their high-test political correctness without first opening their brain. Assuming that ethnocentric is even a valid concept, are we to assume that there is vast conspiracy of Westerners to keep the Chinese people off computers?
This is getting completely OT, but here goes.
IF win95 has protected memory, explain this to me:
How come Netcape can take down an entire machine? I have seen it happen repeatedly, first the cursor is corrupted, then a second later the machine refuses to respond. You can blame it on Navigator's bugginess, I have no issues with that statement. I just want to know why the hell the machine went down too.
-Smitty
± 29 dB
1) Student maturity - at what point are students mature enough to carry a computer around without wasting endless hours on desktop frills, games, and chat? Seventh grade seems too early to me.
;^)
Umm...I'm still not past that point
-Smitty
± 29 dB
For what reason did Apple opt not to support one of the better selling computers in the world, the Apple ][? From the end user standpoint, it would seem that Apple distanced itself from a product that it should have been very proud of.
ok, you're probably right, but consider: at the time qd3d began, opengl was embryal or nonexistant or still named IRIX GL or something. for it's time qd3d was at least uesful, although opengl rose into the place qd3d wanted to go. The RAVE standard was pretty important as well, although opengl took over that purpose as well. Seems to me the 3dmf file format would have been something really nice for everyone, although some kind of 3d object standard may have risen in its place (i doubt VRML counts, it didn't seem to serve the same purpose) i wouldn't know, i know very little on this subject.
also some people still like qd3d because it was so much more high-level; so many things were predefined, it wasn't like OpenGL's you-must-declare-every-vertex-yourself strategy, you just say "draw a sphere here" or "place this 3dmf here" and it's there. Of course you can get the same thing with opengl with graphics libraries. I assume that's what GLUT is there for. (haven't quite gotten that far yet..)
Either way i'm glad to have an open, unencumbered standard like opengl instead of something like qd3d owned by a specific company [even if that company is apple]. And opengl seems better anyway, and it looks like _much_ more work has been done on it.
BTW.. qd3d is still alive in some people's minds. A group of people actally ported it to linux. their version is called "quesa" and those of you with far too much time on your hands may wanna check it out..
but yeh, maybe qd3d didn't belong on that list. it may have been nifty at first, but opengl made it irrelivant. esp. now that apple has embraced opengl fully. whatever.
i misspelled my sig, didn't i? i must be some kind of idiot.
Irritable, left-wing and possibly humorous bumper stickers and t-shirts
"Its far better then a mac, however." Not only is the english well put, but your touting an opinon as a fact :) No os is any better than any other os (I can eat my words on that one... but what the hell), its all in what you want it to do. Mac os is easier to use than Windows... in my opinion! I have had a lot of good experiences with Mac Os, and have missed those experiences with Windows. Mac Os does what it does, and it does it well (opinion). I think that the main difference between Windows and Mac Os is that Apple is changing what is wrong with Mac Os... something that very few people can say about Windows, without laughing. I think that this is the point that mcc was trying to make... Apple is changing what is wrong (or atleast trying), and I dont really see Microsoft trying to do this.
I need to do my laundry
Please send $3 to:
Jon Allen
p.o. box 308142
1. I didn't state anyone was anti-Chinese.
2. I'm well aware of the reason why we use keyboards as the primary input device on modern PC's, and so are most other slashdot readers.
3. I didn't state anywhere that any Chinese person has been prevented from using computers.
4. Ethnocentricity is a valid concept, and your unduly negative comments exemplify it.
5. You really put a negative twinge on an otherwise positive thread.
6. For the record, I'm not Chinese, nor do I know how to write Chinese characters, but I'd be willing to bet BILLIONS of Chinese would buy a cheap computer with an interface that had input and display in their native tounge and print without having to resort to learning another character set and another language to use it.
Lighten up, chill out and quit looking for conspiracies where there are none. You'll be a happier person for it.
Woz, I'd like to apologize for this person... they forgot to RTFP.
-t
The second and third sentences should read: "... , Apple donated 20-ish Apple II's to the elementary school in my small ( 'less than symbol' 2500 people ) hometown's school. Like many Slashdotter's..." The slashcode code ate the "less than" symbol when I posted in HTML mode. Please forgive. -t (PS - The town had 2500 people, the school less than 800 kids + staff, thank the maker for Woz!)
So is this an analog to the Japanese Kanji system?
Steve ,
What do you think about Bill Gates buying a portion of Apple?
What will this do to Apples future?
Thanks Sherm
(a big fan of yours)
A few years ago, Apple acquired Jobs' company, NeXT, with the implications that the technology (ie the beautiful UI, the DPS WindowServer, etc) would be worked into MacOS at some point. Aside from OS X having a Mach microkernel and NetInfo, I've seen no signs of NeXT technology being used. IMHO, it'd be a crime to allow it to go to waste - do you have an opinion on this?
"If ignorance is bliss, may I never be happy.
-- Veni, vidi, dormivi
Woz,
I had the distinct pleasure of seeing you speak at a meeting held by the student chapter of ACM at University of Illinois. You told some rather fascinating (and funny) stories about your evolution as a geek. Instead of being a major software geek (though you did some cool stuff with color on the Apple II), it seems your first love is hardware design.
You spent significant effort on the motherboard designs of the Apple II. You've spoken in the past about how you would tweak things here and there just to eliminate the raw number of chips in use on the board. The puzzle (and challenge) for you was designing elegance through the most minimal architecture possible while retaining maximum function.
[Q] In your opinion, how well do today's motherboard designers perform at their craft? Have you learned any new hardware tricks from modern day designs? Have any of your old tricks been lost, and if so, what are they?
Thanks for your contribution to computing. A lot of us wouldn't be here if not for you.
cr
I was just curious: what were, and are, the games you play? not necessarely computer games; stuff like chess, for example. I ask because I'm a chess player, who also teaches chess to kids. By the way, thank you for making my youth extremely fun (I had an apple ][e for years a while back; tons of fun :)
De gustibus et coloribus non est disputandum
What can we do as a society to promote the profession of teaching?
-BW
Mmm.. Z-80, man. That's where it's at. Zilog's 8080 clone has recently been beefed up with an all-in-one flavor that includes ram and rom on-chip so you don't even need to solder the way one used to in order to get a working z-80 system (with a memory controller and so on and so forth).
Real easy assembly to learn (and good stepping stone to x86 assembly). You probably can even build a machine that takes your old 8-bit ISA cards with a little effort.
-Chris
What's your favorite OS (actually, how about a favorite past and favorite present) and why?
Being the creator of the Apple computer, you're somewhat familiar with revolutionary, world changing technologies. What do you think the most revolutionary technology of this millenium (well, the last 999 years anyway) was, and what do you think the next Really Big Thing is?
-Andy Martin
-Andy Martin
If y'all don't like me, blow me.
Do you think that Open Source software stands a chance on systems running Mac OS? While there are some of ports of GNU software (though not as many as on other OSes), there are even fewer programs that were originally developed on the Mac OS. A few people, like myself, are trying to make an inroads, but with minimal success. What suggestions do you have for those in the Mac community want to give back to that community by producing Open Source software? How can we make users accept the fact that Open Source software is at least as good as, if not better, than commerical, shareware, and especially freeware titles available?
As a follow up question, do you have any ideas about how to encourage Mac programers who already develop freeware to make it free software?
-- Gordon Worley
Which of your design decisions are you proudest of or happiest with, and which make you reach for the brown bag to hide your shame?
I was just thinking this morning how I've never enjoyed programming on anything else the way I enjoyed 6502 on the Apple ][... but I *assume* that someday someone will write a GUI that's equally elegant, and gives even beginning hackers the same sense of transparency. Or is this a pipe dream?
Woz we PC people gotta know,
Why a 1 button mouse?
someone pointed this out already, but BSD was not writen by mainframe programers. Unix was always about mini, and later, microcomputers (PCs)
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
Woz is one of the best tetris players in the world, infact He had to start using fake names to get in the pages of Nintendo power after a while :P
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
I mean, wouldn't it have made a lot more sense just to leave it plugged in?
Besides all the stuff woz would have written would have been burned into ROMs
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
that was clearly a two sentance post
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
Actualy, I'd rather have 9x and MS-DOS backwards compatibility then somethign with the NT kernel, NT has always bugged me, I don't know why
Your right, it is posible for an app to bring down a windows9x macine, and it shouldn't be, this is beacuse the OS is buggy. Its far better then a mac, however. I know, I've used them both.
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
I use AmigaOS an an A4000/040
I use an unsupported CAD program XCAD
BUT it's custom menu program allows me to configure intuitively my own interactive menues and write my own COGO program in AREXX...BAM@@.
The OS rules..except I think dragbars SUCK!!!
I use a 3-button mouse and use the middle button flip through the screens, it make winbloz look like a fog in th Way.
I run Siamese network to run my PZ......
What would I be doing today if you had not
done what you did?
Thanks!
Don't feel so special, Linux trolls. Implementing a buzzword-compliant Unix wannabe is almost trivial, and thousands of people do it every year in CS classes all over the world. The real problems start when you try to implement those features while staying backwards compatible with a legacy API. This is the real reason why it took Apple so long to come up with a replacement for MacOS, not the lack of focus or engineering talent.
I'll lend your arguments more credence if you can tell me how to take a standard iMac with a 15" monitor and upgrade it to 19".
Oh well, no point in steering now.
The same way you put a 10" screen in your PalmPilot, or a 20" screen in your ThinkPad.
Actually a ThinkPad can be plugged into a docking bay which can then be attached to whatever output device you want. They are over priced but it's do-able.
As for the PalmPilot - I agree with you completely, it is in the same ballpark as an iMac. The PalmPilot is, however, much more portable. Both systems typify the thinking that a system is a black box and you - the user - shouldn't muck about on the inside. I don't think it's necessary that everyone muck about on the inside of their system(s) but I think the option should be available.
As for the G4/G3; I love the case. It is the best case I've ever seen for any system. But these systems aren't meant for the average Joe. I think they should be.
And that's my point. While the G4/G3's are nice, it's the iMac which is targetted toward the masses. And it does not even allow the option of fiddling. You have to up the payout significantly to get that ability. Barriers to entry are no way to promote power to the user.
So I reiterate:
I'll lend your arguments more credence if you can tell me how to take a standard iMac with a 15" monitor and upgrade it to 19".
And as for your last comment:
Give us a break.
I'll give you a break if you actually come up with some reasonable arguements.
IMHO, as per
J:)
Oh well, no point in steering now.
I have a professor friend who has a CL9 remote control and I want one too. The design is so powerful (even being 6502 based) which still blows most everything else in the market. Is there ANY hope of getting them back in limited production?
:)
I have remote controll needs!!!
Also, What is your opinion on all of the homages in the cartoon series Futurama. Example is an episode where they X-ray benders brain and find a 6502.
Praise be the Woz.
Yes, this is me. I've been away in Holland for some time. I want to ask you if you use Web* and if so, why? I know an old friend of your's swears by it, do you? I know others that use it too.
:)
Comment: Yes, the bluebox still works. It may be harder today as PCs can accurately generate the tones. I used a Demon Dialler (Hack-Tic technologies - my design) in the US a number of years ago and was able to call home fine.
Finally, Steve, what do you think of what we have done in Holland? Is it a mistake or would the 'world' have discovered the Internet sooner or later if i'd not escaped to this fine country? Remember we were up long before the ".com" nonsence and greed came into play.
BillSF
Mr. Wozniak, do you have any "wild stories" from the blue boxing days like Capn Crunch's Toilet Paper Crisis? I would love to hear any you have.
spoo
Is not that there is no good way to input Chinese character. It's just that there are 20-50+ decent methods and no one is significantly better than the other.
Since there are a few thousand common chinese character, a page of chinese contain more information than a page of English. How many people need to type high speed at work anyway? I don't think that's a big problem.
I use pin-yin too. Any other methods need some training, it's not worth it if you don't write everyday. Even shorthand pin-yin or dumb-proof pin-yin is much faster, I just too lazy to learn (the distinction between "sh" and "s" is killing us cantonese, not that cantonese pronounciation spelling is better.) I always think that voice regoniztion can leap over the chinese input issue. I think it needs a rather powerful machine like a pentium III and such. It's reachable in 5 years.
btw, a lot of culture has given up Pictographic writing like Vietnam, Korean and (sort of) Japanese. Chinese are not likely to change Shu-Fa (calligraphy) any time soon.
Chen Ye
what do you see as the future for apple ? what will apple look like in 2010 ? 2030 ? 2050 ? and beyond ?
RP
While you're vouching, you can say that you know and admire me if you want. You know, while you're vouching.
RP
I went to Woz's site and the thing keeps reloading every 15 seconds or so back to the main page. Damn IE... Gonna try it on Opera and see what I get.
I wanted to look at generic 28.8 modem description to see if it was generic enough to work with a 33.6 modem. This Apple box had no 33.6 description on it. These description files are ASCII text. The only editor on the machine was Simpletext. Guess what? It wouldn't let me just LOOK at the file. The OS pasted up a very huffy message about it being a system file. I had to put it on a floppy and look at the stinking init strings on an NT box. Turns out the file had 33.6 init strings in it. Go figure.
It seems to me that MacOS goes out of it's way to stymie users who have the least amount of clue. I'm aware there are third party tools that allow one to truly admin a Mac box but I shouldn't need them. Hey Apple, how about an Advanced folder with things like ping, traceroute, a fully general text editor that can look at any ASCII on the system and maybe a terminal emulator too? I've torn my hair out more than once for the lack of such basic tools. At least, they should be easy to add to OS X without spending an arm and a leg.
Hi Steve!
As so many twenty-something computer geeks I came into contact with computers through the Apple ][ (the ITT 2020 to be exact. Still have it. Might become a museum piece)
Back then, The 'Steves' were these mythical persons way across the big pool of water (I'm in The Netherlands) or 'them-who-made-this-machine'.
Later, I learned that you were mainly the electronics guy, and Jobs more the marketing and idea guy.
My question to you: how and why did you change from being a 'geek' into this humanitarian person you are now? I gather you do a lot for education, also internationally.
Keep up the good work, and I hope to meet the 'Woz' in person one day.
SnakeNuts
---
BOFH in training: Just give me your login...
Trainee BOFH -- Just give me your username & password
Why do you think Apple lost so much market share in the late 80's and early 90's? How could a system with both superior hardare and software lose to something like Microsoft? If you had it to do all over again, what would you change to keep this from happening?
Just to let you know, you are a personal hero, and I'm glad to see Apple doing well again.
+-- (Score:-1, Moderator on Power Trip)
They both have more money than they can ever spend, but Woz has something Gates will *never* get: The respect of people who know technical skill when they see it.
-jcr
The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
Do you think that Apple should ship a 2/3 button mouse with their computers now that the Mac OS has contextual menus? (I won't even mention the "hockey puck")[wait I just did]
Hi Woz!
... are you there yet and/or beyond?
... are there any questions you would
I am so curious that I can't settle on just one question, so here are ten
for you to choose from.
Thank you in advance for your kind and mindful reply.
1) Your son Jesse seems to have inherited your computer talents and enthusiasm.
Does he have a nickname such as Woz, Jr. or Woz II or Son of Woz?
2) I read that you were not accepted at Cal Tech but some of your classmates were.
Did you, or those classmates, ever have the privilege of attending a lecture or being taught by Nobel
laureate physicist Richard Feynman?
3) You stated in an interview that you aspired to be as great a teacher as your own
teacher
4) Ice cream and pizza appear in interviews and articles about you. Do you like
sushi as well? Are you a vegetarian or a meat eater? What is your all-time
"favoritest" food?
5) Who is your all-time fave rock star?
6) With such a large family and so many responsibilities and demands on your
time, do you take time to be alone and ponder the big questions...the mystery of
life, the origin of the universe, the ultimate fate of the universe, etc. If yes,
about what do you tend to ponder the most? And have you come to any conclusions
or solutions or hypotheses?
7) Were you involved at all in developing computer access solutions for the
Nobel laureate Steven Hawking, arguably today's greatest living physicist?
8) So many people ask you questions
like to ask "the people"? If yes, what would you like to know?
9) I've read you are the eldest of three children. Are your younger siblings
involved in technology too?
10) Does your mind ever rest? If so, how do you achieve that?
[I know I'm posting pretty late, but I'm hoping that someone more knowledgeable about Windows is reading this.]
And thank you for that one sentence post. That's what the "No Score +1 Bonus" radio button is for.
The point here is that I fail to see how Windows9x is not merely a graphical shell for DOS. Now, I don't have much of a conception of the way WIN.COM works, but I'm curious. It seems that I can still prevent Windows from loading by setting BootGUI=1 in my MSDOS.SYS file. Obviously, something does some pretty crazy stuff to make the graphical part Windows. Isn't this just a shell? If not, what is your definition of a shell, and how does it differ from WIN.COM (or whatever)? Forgive me for my lack of knowledge on this subject; I'm merely curious.
If so what distro of Linux have you used?
You sound like Joseph McCarthy :)
--
"HORSE."
"HORSE."
-Flaming Carrot
How to solve most of our problems: 1.Lots of nuclear plants. 2.Cure aging.
How about a Sir Clive Sinclair interview? Is he still alive? My first computer was a Sinclair ZX-81, known in the U.S. as a Timex-Sinclair 1000.
Mike van Lammeren
Mike van Lammeren
It will challenge your head, your brain, and your mind.
Obviously the world has changed a lot since the Apple II - one (exceptional) mind could grasp the whole system, and create an entire personal computer. That person was in control of the whole box. Now the expectation of a useful system is such that it is impossible for one person to do the whole thing (do you agree?). With this change comes transfer of creative direction from an individual to a group. One example of this effect might be the differences between the languages C and Ada.
How do you feel this changes the results, and had this been the case at the time of the Apple II, would it have ever been so good?
(I never had one - used to book time in 30 minute blocks on the IIe at my local library, and be sneered at by the warez kids because I only had an Atari 400. But I wanted one...)
I don't have a question. I just wanted to thanks. There are plenty of people in this industry whom I can admire for their technical competence, but precious few who have your talent but also your spirit, compassion and sincerity. Woz, you are a true hacker and a good man. Thank you.
--
This is not my sandwich.
One of the joys of the Apple ][ was the fact that you could easily build your own software OR hardware for it, and it seemed to incourage innovation. I'm amazed that a large number of people these days can't even imagine a different way to do things on their computers than the way they're accustomed to. I once heard the comment that the Japanese invented room temperature semiconductors because they hadn't been told that it was impossible :) So, being a teacher, what should change hardware & software wise to allow free thinking?
One of the joys of the Apple ][ was the fact that you could easily build your own software OR hardware for it, and it seemed to encourage innovation. I'm amazed that a large number of people these days can't even imagine a different way to do things on their computers than the way they're accustomed to. I once heard the comment that the Japanese invented room temperature semiconductors because they hadn't been told that it was impossible :) So, being a teacher, what should change hardware & software wise to allow free thinking?
Have you ever seen Nitrozac's web comic After Y2K?
:) . I know Nitrozac is a big fan of Woz, are you by chance a fan of Nitrozac, and what's it like being such an inspiration to other geeks.
Your cartoon duplicate plays a recurring role, and often has the best lines
The word "geek" has become such a positive word lately, I was wondering if you consider yourself one.
In other words, how do you "think" of yourself. Would you say to yourself "I'm a tech guy", or "I'm a administrator", or "I'm an educator guy"?, or "I'm not a geek, I just play one on my WozCam".
:-)
So when are you going to finally sell out?
Dear Woz, Computers keep getting faster, but they aren't getting any more interesting. What do you think it will take to make them fun again?
> I'll lend your arguments more credence
> if you can tell me how to take a standard
> iMac with a 15" monitor and upgrade it to 19".
The same way you put a 10" screen in your PalmPilot, or a 20" screen in your ThinkPad.
Give us a break.
Is it true that you reproggrammed the Apple ][ each mornig, in hex, from memory, before it had storage? If so, how?
HAL 7000, fewer features than the HAL 9000, but just as homicidal!
Even though Sinclair machines are closer to my heart I very much admire your achievments in the 'golden' era of computing. Long live the eighties!
Do you know how to properly pronunce it?
Steve, I consider your greatest characteristic to be your down-to-earth mindset. You had the idea during a time when all big corporations completely failed to understand the needs and potential of the home user marketplace that the key was to cater precisly to that demographic. You took a chance that corporations weren't willing to take because you believed your ideas were right and that you genuinely understood what real people wanted.
It seems that the biggest problem with computers today is with the unreliability of most commercial software. I personally believe that if a company took an entire year of development time to refine and bugfix a product instead of spending that time adding more features then real people would actually be more inclined to buy a reliable product than a bloated buggy one with unnecessary features. However, this is just my personal belief, and it is a big risk that corporations don't seem interested in taking.
Do you believe that there is an unfulfilled yet lucrative opportunity available for software companies to utilize by working on making their software more stable, smaller, and faster, rather than adding more feature? If so, is it just going to take a risk-taking startup venture by a couple people working out of their home to prove to the big corporations that it will work? Or do you think that big corporations will eventually figure this out on their own? What kind of an advertising and marketing strategy do you think would be needed to communicate to real people the fact that your company's product was better due to being more smaller, faster, and more reliable?
- "It's just a matter of opinion!" - PRIMUS
In Triumph of the Nerds, you were referred to as "the Mozart of computer design". First, what to you think of this comparison? Second, who (if anyone) do you consider the "Mozart of software design"?
As a college student, I see many of my peers leaving school to pursue jobs in technology. Even here on Slashdot there has been talk recently of the "Internet Brain Drain."
Are these phenomenons detrimental to the industry and our society or just another phase in their development? If they are detriments, are they self-correcting and how long will it take for the pendelum to swing back to the middle?
ummm.. i cant' decide where to put my money..
so.. who do you bank with? is bank of america a
safe bet?
ERROR: Keyboard not attached. Press F-1 to continue.
SpamMan
Steve-
What role do you expect computers to take in the classroom in the next 10 years? I happen to be fortunate to live in Los Gatos, where every classroom has a computer, but student use is actually very limited. Is this the usage that you envisioned computers to have when you created the Apple I?
-- "Our job is not to make the incredible possible. Our job is to make the impossible credible."- Jerry Olivieri
I was wondering what you see in the future with teaching and computer technology?
Where will we go in the direction of teaching with computer assistance? Thanks!
- don't let the idiots near the system, there far to stupid.
Heehee. How would you feel about mandatory minimum spelling ability before being allowed near a computer?It's clear that the open-source software movement is taking off, Linux is gaining the respect it deserves, and with Darwin, it seems that Apple is starting to realize the benefits of open-source projects. I picture the open-source movement spreading to fields like medicine or engineering. Imagine if big pharmicudical corps. shared their research with each other, who knows what advances in treatment of diseases like cancer or AIDS we might see! Of course free-enterprise would still exsist, the companies that could implement ideas most effectivly would profit, instead of companies that simply sat on their R&D. Where do think open source is headed? -faithful Apple user since age 2.
Good question. I echo the sentiment.
Clinton's pushing for computers in every classroom. I don't think it's necessary. What are first graders going to do with a computer? Run "learn basic addition" games? That can be done just as effectively, and much more cheaply, with flash cards. (Remember those?)
While I think it's becoming more and more important for people to be computer literate, I don't think "throwing money at the problem" will fix it. Kids shouldn't be using a calculator til high school, IMO. Use your head! That's what it's for! There's a discipline developed by actually learning something and internalizing it.
Anyway, I think the money could be better spent by helping smaller schools, rural schools, that don't have all the opportunities and/or funding that urban schools have. Ten years ago my school's computer lab was already outdated, and when I visited for the first couple years out, it hadn't been upgraded. Science in high schools is being ignored and underfunded to the point where they can't even replace essential basic equipment.
This probably sounds like "I didn't have it, so you shouldn't either." It's not. Today's educational system is ignoring the basics and focusing on glitz, tech, and "teaching theories". Get back to teaching math and science.
There's an interesting thought. Would today's kids, without the "leg up" that already having computer gives, be able to bring about the PC revolution that Woz, et al, began back in the 70's?
Constitutionally Correct
I would be interested because I have been fascinated by computer hardware and feel an earlier model would probably be a better place to look and start learning about this stuff.
If the schematics are not available anywhere do you know any place one could look to learn about this without paying thousands of dollars for school? ( I don't really want to make a career out of it, just play around with it abit)
Can't speak for Woz, but I met John last fall when he was returning from India and the man seems to be in a rather sad state. Go figure under the circumstances, but he could certainly take a bit better care of himself. That, and he's a bit zealous about his yoga-type "Energy Excercises" :-)
(The 60's _Has_ ended, man...)
GPL: Free as in will
They are starting to number a bit low, I must admit. He's looking into doing some interesting things though, hopefully he's successful with them. Perhaps that'll prompt the man to get something done about the choppers...
:-)
As an aside, he had ICQ set up on his laptop to play perhaps the most annoying "incoming" sound I've ever heard: the system startup sound (It's one of the thin Mac G3 laptops.) Every time he got a message thru icq, I thought the thing had crashed. What drives people to such madness? And why am I still using a PB1400?
GPL: Free as in will
>When is the Mac OS ever going to live up to the long ago promise of cross-platform binary compatibility
When Bill Gates drops dead. Thanks to pointy headed bosses, and other dittoheads Apple needs Microsoft Office on the Mac. Microsoft dosen't like to be deprived of license fees. The reasons this hasn't happened are political, not technological.
--
--
blinko - "the nail that sticks up gets hammered down"
What do you consider the world's greatest hack, and why? How do you go about the process of solving a problem with an elegant solution?
What speculative technology advance (AI, nanotechnology, mind upload/download, FTL travel, etc) would you most like to see developed in your lifetime? Why?
Thanks and cheers to you for all your good work with kids!
IV
"These laws they're passing won't even compile anymore, let alone execute." - anon
Is it a beast or monster? A vegetable or a mineral? Does it go poo in the morning or bump in the night? Is it mean or is it nice? Does it love both cats and mice? Why won't you tell us, o mighty woz, we want to understand the cause!
does it like open source and linux or does it adore microsoft the whore? would it listen to Vivaldi's Four Seasons or Rage Against the Machine? Is it scared of the snakes or heights or lonely dark nights?
Were you warned that your web page would be slashdotted before you were asked to be interviewed?
joe
I don't think that I'm alone in despising C++ and most other high level languages for the mac. I figure this is because most mac programs were always written in assembly. What do you think of high level languages? Nowadays most programs are written terribly sloppily and cookie cutter and this could be the reason. Do you think that for Yellow Box apple will move more towards languages like C++ and Java in order to attract more third party developers?
First off, I would like to thank you, sir, for changing the way 90% of the world does things. You have made a tremendous impact on everyone on this planet and you continue to do so. I know you flew for while. Do you still fly? Any preferred aircraft you like to pilot? Any that you would like to pilot?
"I'd like to die quietly in my sleep like Grandpa, and not screaming like all the passengers in his bus."
If you had to design (or you just felt like it) a computer again, what hardware would you chose (from whatever's available now; or whatever you designed/will design)? What standards (I/O, networking, memory), if any, would you decide to support?
More important, what OS would you use? Or would you write your own?
q
"PROFANITY is the inevitable literary crutch of the inarticulate MOTHER FUCKER." -- some PC user
- A venture Capitalist you respect says to you:
- Here's a fat but not limitless budget to define and design the personal computer of the future.... and a few cases of anchor steam beer to assist you in contemplating the proposition.
Do youIn Nearly All Paradigms, Shift Happens.
- A Venture Capitalist you respect says to you:
- Accept the project
- Vet the design step by step via the open source community at slash-dot
Several messages hinted at this question, but I didn't see this exact query.- Here's a fat but not limitless budget to define and design the personal computer of the future. The design can build off PC/Mac/SGI or be all new - your call.
Do you:In Nearly All Paradigms, Shift Happens.
The Apple ][ was perhaps the single most revolutionary computer in history. With the recent comeback Apple has made into the consumer PC market, do you see similar innovations in Apple's future? Do you think that Apple currently has the skill and mindset to totally reinvent the personal computer again?
I have a very real question.. Does the Woz Frag, and if so, what game and what servers and what nick.. I think we would all love to have a round of Unreal Tornament with him.. Or what other means of cyber death he plays ;-)
I remember the christmas morning when I, nine years old, found an Apple //c under the christmas tree. Within a few weeks I had joined the local Apple User's Group, and had begun tinkering with AppleSoft Basic and played the occasional game of Lemonade Stand.
For me, as for many other Slashdot readers, the tinkering was the essence of the computer. As a nine year-old, I had no use for any kind of productivity applications. It was just fun to make the computer do things. I ended up writing some simple programs to play sounds, and to draw shapes on the screen.
As computers have become more sophisticated, is there a way we can capture the imagination and creativity of today's youth? Perhaps toys like Lego Mindstorms will be the inspiration for tomorrow's nine-year-old tinkerers.
I'm curious to know your thoughts on the melding of youth, creativity, and programming, and its potential import for the future.
Matt
Amazing magic tricks
At this location (bottom of age), you say that you designed computers just to show people that it could be done and to help people. You also say that it was hard for you to start the company when you heard that money could be made from the formation of it. Has this changed since? Do you ever consider working with the open source community in some respect, whether it be programming or just endorsing?
I'll second the request for a Gassee interview and eagerly await hearing Woz. Go BEOS !!!!
Do you ever run into Steve Jobs or Bill Gates at like the grocery store? That must be surreal.
--
http://gammatron.weblogger.com
If you are entering the home computing processor/motherboard/system vendor market now, what sort of systems would you design and build?
Which OS's would be your primary OS?
Which route would you take for 3D graphics video acceleration : on-chip soft graphics instruction that provides rendering flexibility and minimize bus bottleneck (quantum transmission oooh!) but minimize upgradability/flexibility a la Dolphin/PS2, or off-board graphics acceleration that offers cheap fast and upgradable solutions but will forever(?) bus-bound a la Wintel, or would you develop and build a super bus architecture that has much less bottleneck than our current PCI/AGP/etc nightmares (and what would this architecture be)?
Corrinne Yu
3D Game Engine Programmer
Do believe that moving applications over to the server is the right way to go, or do you think that this would discourage people from really learning about computers by tinkering with things on their own machine?
What do you think about Apple's lack of games?
A majority of us didn't use our first Apple ][ when we were 10 years old to balance the books on our paper route business. Back then, the entertainment of entering line after line of code from "byte" magazine to play a simple Space Invaders game couldn't be topped. The entering and manipulation of those lines of code taught me how these boxes work. The playing of the game was what made it worth it. Today, not only is there a lack of quality games for Apple computers, it seems that they have made it more difficult than it needs to be to produce games for Apples. I had to give up Apple because it just lost its fun. If it's not fun, whats the point? Linux has filled part of this void by giving back thost occasional chills you get when you find something really cool like writing a script that exceeds functionality beyond what it was programmed to do. My winbox is used for pure right-brain entertainment with absolutely insane games, incredibly immersive 3D graphics and sound, can't be topped by anything else. Then there's my Mac, pretty much just sits there, smiling away, seeming to beg, "please play with me, please...".
-Chris
Minneapolis, MN
p.s. Your ideas have put me where I am today, your computer changed our lives, and your pursuit for educating our children has gained my utmost respect and gratitude. Thank you.
why did my apple2e's disk drives go "nnnnngn nnnnngn nnnnnngn"?
(it still does,about twice a year i get it out of the closet and play Taipan and captain goodnight)
well then why do they keep promising that it will happen? Besides, if the mac kernel had GOOD support of windows code, apple wouldn't need M$. People accross the globe would flock to apple, and if Bill Gates wanted to keep making his billions per day, he would give apple whatever they wanted. Plus, we'd see some really great hybrid code, that takes advantages of both Windows and Mac whatever-box API's.
=======
There was never a genius without a tincture of madness.
My primary question:
How much computer do most people need? I don't do that much real-time animation at home, so I have as much computer power as I need with my 68040 Mac and the max upgrade of 36MB.
How well do you think the computer industry in general (this applies to Apple, Microsoft, Dell, Compaq, and everyone else) serves lower-end users like me? I don't see much on the market today that I really need, or even want -- all I really need for now is an upgrade to 7.6.1 and a bigger hard disk. Is the technology mature yet?
73 de N5VB (ex-KD5BIV) AR SK
I am amazed that anyone here is asking whether the ease-of-use and the power-of-technology can be wedded. JUST BE.
...vividly encapsulates that post-Watergate/pre-punk/coked-up moment when you could trust no one, least of all yourself.
Ahhh, Apple Logo 2...my second programming language (after BASIC). I have many fond memories of my old Apple IIc. I spent more time fiddling with Logo than I did with my games, which included Rampage...more fond memories...damn, now I'm in an infinite nostalgia loop!
---
Oper on the Nightstar
1) Steve Jobs is a very good salesman. But old pictures from the Apple I days show him doing tech stuff. In your opinion, how much did he contribute to the technical side of Apple?
2) I've heard lots of incompatible stories about the Apple II Disk system. Who did which parts? Both the hardware and software side of the system.
3) The ROMS on my II's are stamped "(C) Microsoft". Did you think putting MS-BASIC in the system was a good idea? Or would you have rather stayed with your FP BASIC routines?
4) Where can I get a copy of the Red Book? I would really like to see your 11-byte music routine.
Im curious as to what your thoughts are on the Microsoft/Antitrust issue. What is your opinion regarding the governments role in the technical industry? Or any industry for that matter...
// Brought to you by letters Q and E and by the number 7.
Looking at the evolution of computers in the 1980s, it would seem that one company would have come out as a dominate player. Whether it was Microsoft or Apple, what made computers what they are today is the fact that the world standardized on a platform and made a majority of software work on that standard platform. The fact that it was built on Windows instead of MacOS or UNIX was due to careful marketing, and nothing else. Had MacOS or UNIX been properly marketed and tuned to the user group that was exploding, they could have very well become the dominate platform of today. Look at Apple's marketing practices. They were DESIGNED to make apple become a dominate player. Restricting third party development and controlling the operating system puts Apple in a perfect position to become a dominate monopoly. It failed (for all the reasons Woz discusses in "How we failed at apple") but there's no reason to believe had it succeeded it wouldn't take a very dominate position in the software economy. In the 80's/eary 90's there was a gap that needed to be filled - a user friendly operating system. Windows filled that gap (whether it did a good job or not is not the debate) but reguardless of what filled the gap I think the chances that that platform would dominate were pretty high (and Apple and Microsoft knew this.)
Why is the moderation score on this so low? Woz may still be mainly interested in computing but his life and contributions to education are very important. Therefore I think that this question is not only valid, but one that I would like to see an answer on. Basically, what do you think of the education system in which you work.
For the lack of nothing better to say. Have a good day.
If I understand the culture of the early days of Apple Computer correctly, there was very much the feeling among many of the employees that the small company was singlehandedly changing the world. It is clear now that what happened then shaped the personal computer industry for years to come. By comparison, today's computer industry seems dominated by large corporate concerns (e.g. Microsoft, IBM, Compaq, or even the present Apple), and the idea of a plucky little firm causing a revolution anywhere near the scale of Apple's and remaining commercially viable (c.f. Microsoft's war against Netscape) appears somewhat less likely than it used to. Are large corporations, the complexity of computers today, and/or the cost of innovation making it harder for small concerns to make big changes? This concerns me, as sometimes I doubt the ability of big business to do business with the best interests of progress in mind (not that Apple was anywhere near perfect, but...). Do you feel this way? Do you think Open Source may be an answer to this problem?
Second question:
I got into computers a bit too late to have the life-changing Apple ][ experience that so many people here have mentioned. Nevertheless, now that I style myself a "computer historian", I have one of my own and have learned how influential the machine was. During your tenure at Apple Computer, which computer were you most excited to have a hand in creating? If it was an Apple ][, which one? Was it because of how much fun it was to make, or the people you worked with, or how important you'd thought it would be?
Third question:
Did you have any part in the creation of Apple's Lisa computer? (it's my specialty, so I admit I've been curious for a while.)
Thanks,
--Tom
MAN SHOOTS ROVER!
In short, Mr. Wozniak, our school system is not designed with the needs of children in mind, but with the needs of mass-producing "educated" people who will meekly do whatever is asked of them. It's not even good at doing that invisibly -- the system clearly fits neither the younger children whose instincts are to go out and play and explore nor the teenagers who need the freedom to discover their own identities, desires, and places in the world. The school system's role as a driving force towards conformity has become particularly clear in the wake of Columbine, as Jon Katz has already pointed out.
Do you see any solution to this problem? What can be done to give everyone the start they need and deserve in life?
Everything that needs to be said, nothing that doesn't.
Everything that needs to be said, nothing that doesn't.
Steve,
Where can the line be drawn between corporate strategic vision and individual innovation? Where did you draw the line and how did you make the transition/sacrifice from more of one type of mindset to more of another?
-------------------------------------------------
IMHO:
<soapbox>That depends on what you'd like to teach.
Are you familiar with the works of Alan Kay? He was the guy, who led the Learning Group at Xerox PARC, where Steve Jobs got his ideas from.
Kay's primary idea was, that he would never build a computer, which wasn't usable by a child (see: imagination amplifier).
He developed the idea of an imagination amplifier, a device that would be small and cheap enough that every child could wear one and it would provide an incredible tool for your mind.
Kay is now working at WDI (Walt Disney Imagineering) as a VP of research with most of his core Smalltalk team from PARC, which eventually stopped by at Apple and was strongly involved in the design of the MacOS UI.
</soapbox>A GUI is an indespensible tool in teaching children what a computer does, but you do not have to use MacOS, there are as well other possibilities, like Squeak Smalltalk (SqC) or LearningWorks (learningworks.neometron.com) if you want to teach children programming.
Both Squeak and Learning Works are based upon Smalltalk, a language that is among the most powerful (if you know The Tricks), but which was initially designed to teach programming to children.
Howard Rheingold's (BTW fouding editor of Hotwired) book Tools for Thought is a really good ressource on this and is available online at rheingold.com. It tells about Babbage, Boole, Turing, Engelbart, Kay, Nelson and many more. It's a must read for everyone interested in our history.
To pose to Woz: What is the role of the computer in modern education? Has anybody really made effective use of the computer for education yet?
"Linux's Ability to Harness the Power of Technology in its (nearly) Pure Form" by Gilgamesh thats a laugh!
There are a lot of new things on the horizon and a lot of rumors of new things. What do you see as the most exciting developement comming up?
"The avalanch has already started, it is too late for the pebbles to vote." -Kosh
Woz- I remember the early days of personal computing, when there was more of a sense that everyone could participate (and be in control of the technology) because the systems were simpler (yet still very powerful), inexpensive, and not tied to a huge infrastructure. Today, it seems as if you have to study for days or weeks just to learn how to make a "hello world" program because of the huge scale of today's interconnected, interdependent systems. Do you still see (or foresee) a place in high-tech where individuals can help themselves and their friends as effectively as they used to be able to do in personal computers? Or are you actually encouraged by the large machine that has grown from the personal computer "revolution"? -James Merritt Santa Cruz CA
Steve, what was the deal with llamas at Apple a while back? There were llama references everywhere, and I used to email llama@apple.com and get odd responses!
Why do you assume that if Apple succeeded, everything else would have to die? That seems a very odd conclusion to draw, as if you have learned economics solely from watching Microsoft expend huge amounts of effort to scorch the earth of the computer industry. Wouldn't it be more likely that Apple would simply take and hold a decent big percentage, but not a stranglingly huge majority?
Can I touch you? Please? Can I look directly at you and not be blinded? Seriously where would be today if the Apple II didn't sway into giving up my social life and making the big bucks in computer programming? I would probably be a stone carver apprenticed under European masters cutting fine likenesses of famous actresses and tycoons thus winning their respect and they would patronize my work and I would be compared to Michaelangelo swamped with commisions from churches, businesses, governments... my family would see my work and be proud, my many beutiful girlfriends would be fighting my attention and I would render their beauty in hard granite to last an eternity but instead I'm sitting here at this stupid keyboard tapping temporary bits of garbage that will sent of into the void of a digital medium that is overflowing with noise and volatile data that will someday be forgotten and lost.
QUESTION: Do you at all feel a sense of guilt for building the machine that pulled the attention of so many talented young people into the abyss of the digital medium? ...and may I touch you?
Do you, or have you ever used Linux?
If so what distro of Linux have you used?
Do you and Jobs ever talk?
I know there have been some "issues" in the past where Jobs really screwed you over, but are there still some hard feelings?
Also, do you regularly visit/post on Slashdot?
**Also, as a side note I'd like to recommend that Slashdot not allow users to take their +1 bonus on these Q&A sessions, because it gives people an unfair advantage(I am going to voluntarily opt not to take mine)
I recall reading a "where is he now?" article on you a couple of years ago, which described a blue-sky project you were working on to seriously compress digital music- to the point where you could stores thousands of hours of music in a couple of gig of hard disk space. At the time I was skeptical (OK, I'm not always the most clued person on the planet), but every Anonymous Coward now knows about MP-3.
What (if any) was your relation to the MP-3 standard and software? Do you have any general comments on MP-3?
I just got done reading about yet another technology company losing $300 million in 1999 but like the others, its stock price continues to rise. It seems that out of all the technology companies that are out there, only one or two are making money while all the rest are consistantly losing money, yet investor speculation continues to raise their stock higher and higher. Are technology companies really profitable or are we merely seeing a huge amount of credit developed in the early 90's finally being taken out, eventually to be exhausted?
If you have one, look at the schematics for the Apple ][. Essentially every component on the board is an off-the-shelf part. Mind you I am NOT referring to the //e, //c or IIgs, because they have custom ICs (which essentially merged several chips into one). Today's desktop computers use even MORE complex ICs.
Open up a PC. There are very few chips these days: the CPU, the PCI bridge, the "chipset" (read: 440FX or whatever glue chip the CPU connects to the rest of the board with) and the memory SIMMs. Of course you'll find SCSI/16550 UART/Sound/etc chips, but the basic idea is connecting the CPU to your expansion cards with some memory to throw around. These chips, while available off the shelf, are not easy for the hobby-enthusiast to put together on a breadboard and solder together. The Apple ][, on the other hand, was exactly this idea (save ROM code, naturally).
I loved reading the schematics from the technical reference manual from my old Apple ][+. However, it's quite a different time and the detail given for JUST the Apple ][ probably couldn't even match the detail documenting just the PCI controller chip.
Ahh, those were the days...
--
Never hit your grandmother with a shovel, for it leaves a bad impression on her mind...
This may or may not be an answerable question, but... ... would you have still been physically involved in the production of the machines at this point or were you out of the production line loop by then.. just thought it would be cool to know if you 'touched' it - it served us well for years (albeit with many many upgrades and add-ons!).
In 1977 my father and I got one of the orginal Apple II's which had the serial number 0243
Thank you for everything!
HP obviously saw a different future. Was there ever a time you thought "This may not work..."
-- Give him Head? Be a Beacon?
-- Give him Head? Be a Beacon? :P)
(If you can't figure out how to E-Mail me, Don't.
What have been your experiences with educational technology with younger children? Have you found it to be beneficial? Why or why not?
Stupid people will be persecuted to the fullest extent allowed by law.
I am particularly interested in your views on the composition of corporate leadership, if the executives had nothing to do with the original development of the software they are commercializing. Also, I would like to know how you feel about the tendency of the commercial OpenSource companies, like RedHat, to offer stock to key developers before an initial public offering.
Thanks for everything you've done to contribute to the developement of the personal computer industry.
--
Dave Aiello
-- Dave Aiello
Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but as i recall, doesn't Win95 preemptively multitask, as long as you're not using any Win3.1 apps?
Yes, their preemptive multitasking code is non-reentrant, so it sucks, and there's no memory protection to speak of, but they did at least get past cooperative multitasking. I thought.
This is just like television, only you can see much further.
You call THAT memory protection?
"Oh, this program screwed up. We're all going to crash now. Sorry."
Try OS/2 if to you want memory protection. Then it's more like "This ill-behaved program tried to write to a memory space that doesn't belong to it, so i had to kill it. Sorry."
Just go into debug in a dos window and enter "f 0:0 ffff 0" and hit enter. Yeah, all kinds of memory protection.
This is just like television, only you can see much further.
I always thought it was an interesting coincidence that you (?and Jobs) did some work for Atari before you started Apple, and that Atari was able to ship a personal computer shortly after the Apple ][, especially since the Apple and the Atari were fairly similar machines.
I'm curious -- what sort of work did you do for Atari? (I've heard rumors that you designed the Breakout arcade game.) Did you pitch your computer to the management at Atari? If so, what was their reaction? Did they ever give you any legal hassles over including "Breakout" with the Apple?
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Business. Numbers. Money. People. Computer World.
ok. perhaps i was wrong about that. i'm sorry. i had been under the impression win95's multitasking was somewhat broken based on things i had heard. our school has NT, that's my main exposure to MS products, and i don't know that much about win95.
however, in my [admittedly very limited] experience with win95, i have seen programs crash the computer. frequently. That should NOT be possible in an environment with protected memory; that is NOT what i call protected memory. if the memory is protected in some way, the protected memory is fairly broken and, even if much, much better than the mac os, not nearly good enough.
i didn't mean to say that win9x had no protected memory/multitasking at _all_ (although that appears to be what i said), just that they have not yet gotten that protected memory fully working. either way it is totally irrelivant to my point, which is that apple _does_ care deeply about the technical problems at stake even though they have thus far failed to fix them. The win9x comment was just a little side-note i tossed in, and the point of _that_ wasn't even to trash 9x, i just wanted to point out the Apple would be shipping a consumer OS with the BSD kernel before MS ships something for nontechie consumers with the NT kernel.
Irritable, left-wing and possibly humorous bumper stickers and t-shirts
What did you think of the announcements that Steve Jobs made this week?
Has your opinion about Apple changed as a result of anything that Steve said on Wednesday?
(note: As I write this question, it is monday evening, and I have no idea what will be announced, but no matter what it is, this question needs to be asked)
Reality has a liberal bias
Recently, I've read several articles that fondly recall the days of mainframe programs, which tended to be less buggy and more open than programs of today. I recall from documentaries that Jobs had a strong disdain for mainframe programmers, viewing them as uptight and uncreative. Today, MacOS developers are hard at work retrofitting the existing (IMHO, feature-bloated) MacOS to BSD; an open, unsexy operating system built by mainframe programmers. How do you think Jobs' manager-as-cowboy style of software development management has affected the overall computer industry, if at all? And what are some ways that the current preference of glitz over substance in software can be changed? (Yes, this question is framed in a biased way -- that stems from my fond memories of the solid, flexible design of the ][.)
"Whatever happened to fair use?"
-- Duff-Man
I can see it now: "No, Steve Wozniak doesn't know me. He told me so!"
Netscape isn't brining down the OS, the OS is brining itself down.
Or, more likely the 3rd party video driver, wich needs to run outside of Protected memory in order to fuction brought your system down.
what do you think a GPF is anyway?
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
don't let the idiots near the system, there far to stupid.
God forbid they should ever have to learn anything
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
Chinese characters on a PC. (at least to my knowledge) In spite of this view, I still use a Mac as my primary computing device, with a Linux box running a close second.
I havn't had to much trouble entering chinese characters into My PC, check out windowsUpdate if you have win98, and get the Global IME stuff.
you just type the pin-yin into the keyboard (without the tone marks) and the characters show up on the screen. There are other methods to.
You do need to know how to use a standard keybord, and pin-yin. Given the fact that English, and pin-yin are taught in all chinese schools now, I don't really think that's much of an issue.
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
Pin-yin Rominzation, the system used to write the chinese spoken language in roman characters is taught in Chinese schools, and has been for decades. Every one there with an education knows how to do it.
English is also taught.
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
AX, BX, CX, DX, you forgot SP BP CS IP flags and probably more of the orgional 8086 arcitecture. that's nine.
Over time, x86 has grown quite a bit, with floating point/mmx, SSE, 3dnow and a whole slew of other registers for other stuff (and don't forget that the 'X registers can be split into *h and *l).
Still less then PPC, though. The main diffrence is in that on x86 the registers are exsplicetly named, and have diffrend spesific functions (like the acumulater(AX), the coutner(CX), the stack pointer(SP), the code Segment(CS), etc)whereas RISC systems have numbered registers that can be used for anything.
But, this guy obviously didn't know what he's talking about at all
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
I don't like apple at all, but Jobs actualy knows what hes doing. He may have alienated a lot of the mac-arati, but then he is selling a lot more boxes, and the company is making a lot more money.
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
I don't think woz has had much of anything to do with the design of the Mac.
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
people all over the world have been calling woz a god, and he's probably started to belive it.
and he would be right. Woz Is a god, and he can say whatever he damn-well pleases
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
I don't like apple at all, but Jobs actualy knows what hes doing. He may have alienated a lot of the mac-arati, but then he is selling a lot more boxes, and the company is making a lot more money...
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
All simiconductors function, and have always functioned at room temprature, what do you think is running the PC your using?
and if your talking about superconductors, No one ever said that it was imposible, and I really doubt that someone with enough know-how to build a room-temprature one (witch I doubt has happend, btw) wouldn't know about its potential limitations
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
you stated that Windows 9x was just a shell for MS-DOS, with absolutly no resoning. When I corrected you, you posted this:
>And thank you for that one sentence post. That's what the "No Score +1 Bonus" radio >button is for.
>The point here is that I fail to see how Windows9x is not merely a graphical shell for >DOS. Now, I don't have much of a conception of the way WIN.COM works, but I'm >curious. It seems that I can still prevent Windows from loading by setting BootGUI=1 in >my MSDOS.SYS file. Obviously, something does some pretty crazy stuff to make the >graphical part Windows. Isn't this just a shell? If not, what is your definition of a shell, >and how does it differ from WIN.COM (or whatever)? Forgive me for my lack of >knowledge on this subject; I'm merely curious.
The reason you fail to see it, I'm assuming is beacuse you don't know how Operating systems work, what exactly they do, or even what they really are. Yes, you can stop windows from booting by holding the f8 key, or setting BootGUI to one. But you can also prevent it from starting by not turning on the computer. Does this make windows a graphical shell for the power button as well?
If I wanted to, I could download and install VMare for windows NT and run Linux from there. Would that make Linux a UNIX shell for windows NT? no, it wouldn't.
The reason is, an opperating system isn't defined by how it *starts* but by what it *does*. A shell is a simple program that exsposes the user to the operating system, in this way, command.com is a shell for DOS, it lets you move files around and run programs, basicaly the only thing dos can do.
For Unix and Linux you have things like bash, the bourn again shell, that exsposes the system's functionality to the user. This is what the defintion of a shell is, a program that alows the user to access the Operating System's functions.
Windows9x is an operating system, when it loads the DOS underneth it dissapears. The reason DOS is still there is to provide compatibility for older games/apps that won't run in a windows DOS box (if they use there own protected memory modes or somthing, I think).
Win.com dosn't do much of anything, actualy other then call a few other applications that actualy start windows. The main functionality of witch is in vmm32.vxd, I think.
The main reason that windows is not a "Shell" is beacuse it can do things that DOS cannot. Windows has protected memory, TCP/IP, premtive multitasking and multithreading, and advanced graphics systems. DOS has none of these things.
Windows uses it's own procedures to start applications, having nothing to do with DOS, even DOS apps are started by windows in there own little DOS 'boxes' emulations of entire DOS systems that they can play around in.
Just beacuse DOS is there before windows Boots, does not make it a shell for DOS anymore then DOS is a shell for the ROM-BIOS.
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
Um, GPFs don't cause the entire system to go down, you're thinking of the MAC. What you've discribed for OS2 has been my experience with windows 98.
Windows 95/98 does have memory protection, but it also has bugs.
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
well, we wouldn't be complaining today if they had actualy put that OS on there MACs. But they didn't, and so, we complain.
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
Thank you for that one sentace AC post.
While you are free to think that, you will be wrong as long as you do.
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
And thta one crucial shift--preemptive multitasking/protected memory-- is something Microsoft hasn't managed to do yet.
What the hell kind of crack are you smoking? What the hell do you think a GPF error (witch you mac-heads love to talk about) Is?
General Protection Fault. Windows has had memory protection since at least 3.1 (what was that 1993?).
Win 3.1 also had premtive multitasking of MS-DOS box apps, but this was pretty lame.
Windows 95 has fully premtive multitasking, for all applications (and much better compatiblity for old DOS apps).
You can say that these things are not true, but you would be wrong, and prove yourself to be completly ignorent of what Windows is.
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
Win3.1 and higher have memory protection. I don't know about earlyer versions, but I would assume that 3.0, and '386' or whatever did as well.
Just what do you think a GPF is?
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
when you're using a computer, nowadays, you are probably going to be using more then one program.
:(
Would you like it if one of the programs you were using was able to crash the entire computer? Well, if you answered no, then you probably want to be running with Memory protection, since that's what it does. While Average Joe User probably dosn't really know what Memory Protection is, they probably dislike system crashes as much programers, I would think.
Premtive Multitasking makes it imposible for one application to freez the computer.
Memory protection and Multitasking arn't just toys for programers, they offer real improvements for users.
Now, applications Can crash windows 9x, by calling buggy OS functions. But these are due to bugs, not design failure. Windows NT, witch is much less buggy then 9x (but I likes my backwards compatiblity with dos, thank you) Can stay up for months or even years under normal single user loads.
I've used Macs at my highschool (graduated last year), and I can tell you from personal exsperance that I would have loved it if those things had protected memory.
btw, sorry for all the spelling errors, I'm away from a spellchecker right now
"Suble Mind control? why do html buttons say submit?",
ReadThe ReflectionEngine, a cyberpunk style n
Hey, Now there's a good argument.
IMHO, as per
J:)
Oh well, no point in steering now.
Apple has always seemed to position itself as the revolutionary or the innovator. But the design of Apple products seem to push a conformist mode of thinking: closed case and difficult customizability.
How do you reconcile these two ideas? Do you think they need to be reconciled?
J:)
Oh well, no point in steering now.
My neighbor is a huge Apple fan. He has been with Apple for many years and still is very loyal to them. However, he said that he thinks someone else should take the helm instead of Jobs. He feels that he has done a great job of innovating and getting Apple back on its feet. However, he doesn't feel that Jobs is the best leader for the future. I have heard this from numerous people. Do you believe that Jobs should step down and let someone else take the helm? If so, who do you feel is the best choice for his replacement?
Hello. I have a rather simple question. Do you believe that there is still room for two guys in a garage to revolutionize the world?
...si hoc legere nimium eruditionis habes...
LouZiffer
LouZiffer
Hey Woz, I've always wanted to ask you, what's with all those Macs under your harth (as viewed from the WOZCam)??
If you lika me like I lika you...
Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. For including schematics, for the built-in disassembler, for CALL -151, for documenting it all, and for including it in the ROMs you got from the factory.
And thank you for - 20 years later - the fact that I'm getting paid to do what I'd be doing anyways.
Last year, I found an original Apple ][ motherboard at a surplus store, stripped of its TTL but still containing its masked PROMs. My project for this summer will mark the 20th anniversary of my "first experience" with an Apple computer. As you've no doubt already guessed, it involves a power supply, a TV set, this board, and a large antistatic foam pad full of spare TTL and RAM chips.
How to solve most of our problems: 1.Lots of nuclear plants. 2.Cure aging.
What can we in the linux community do to make Linux more accessible and available to kids in schools?
Steve,
How much partying, boozing, and drugs did you do before that fateful crash? Do you have a message for today's insta-rich IPO CEOs about how their lifestyle is going to change, groupies, and the best way to keep it, as urban-folk say, real?
I believe that question is for the Woz to answer , thank you very much.
Sheez.
He answers these questions (including the one below this)on his web site.
If I remember correctly: He tends to avoid talking about Steve Jobs as much as possible. They continue to be friends, and he was happy to see he was running Apple again. He does acknowledge that Steve can be an ass (well maybe not those words), and that he himself would do many things a bit diferent... but he also states that Steve is great at running a company, something he would never be able to (or want to) do.
As far as his potrayel in the Pirates of Silicon Valley? The Woz was tinkled pink by his potrayel... he was amazed at some of the anecdotes they were able to dig up on him from the early days.
Read some of the question and answers he provides on his website... they are extremely informative.
In the Apple II+ days (~1979), when I was in 5th grade, Apple donated 20-ish Apple II's to the elementary school in my small (Like many Slashdotter's, when I was a kid, I was extremely bored with the unchallenging, crappy cirruculum available at most public schools and was written off by administrators and teachers as 'lazy and unmotivated'. The Apple II+ changed my life... literally.
Woz,
I don't want to miss the opportunity to say Thank You for the Apple ][ either. My Apple ][+ without a doubt changed my life as well. Although I never had access to a decent computer at school until my senior year ('89), my parents bought an Apple ][+ in 1980.
Despite poor grades and other problems at school, at home I quickly learned Applesoft BASIC and 6502 Assembly Language. My academic career was pretty much a failure, but what I was able to teach myself at home became a strong foundation for a real career with nearly endless possibilities.
I can honestly say I learned more from my Apple ][, the incredibly detailed manuals that came with it, and many text files written by true hackers than I learned from all of my high school teachers put together.
At school I felt constantly frustrated and was always accused of being lazy and not caring about my future. With my Apple I felt intelligent, empowered, and had almost unlimited energy. I hope you understand what a difference having this balance made in my life.
ObQuestion: I've often wondered how hard it would be to write an educational game that would be fun--specifically a game that teaches object-oriented programming. Obviously it would have to be educational, fun, and interesting to a pretty wide range of ages. What other elements are important? What do you see as some of the not-so-obvious turn-offs that students face while learning? Where are other educational software packages lacking? Is anyone working on a project like this yet? Any other ideas?
Sincerely,
numb - former SysOp, Hard Rock Cafe ][ BBS/AE
You and Steve are obviously the biggest names that came out of the early Apple days, and for good reason.
Still, with projects like the Apple, Apple ][ and the Mac, the team assembled is at least as important as the leaders pushing them forward.
I work for a small software company founded by a former Apple exec, and we've got quite the atmosphere here, with loads of hard work and loads of just bizarro, freak-out time as well, and I'd imagine that the whole "Apple Gestalt" continues to drive a lot of innovation in the industry. Who else came out of those early days and continued to affect the industry?
I guess what I'm asking you is, "As for the spiritual aspects of the company that birthed the Apples and Macintoshes, where do you see that spirit carrying on today, and who do you think the 'spiritual leaders' are?"
Woz, what was your final gameboy tetris high score. You bumped me off the Nintendo Power list with some pseudonym, so I'm just wondering what to aim for.
bugger.net | MunkAndPhyber.com
You left Apple when working for money was no longer an issue, founded your own new ventures, and became a philanthropist -- I immensely respect that on several levels.
How do you feel about comparisons between you and Paul Allen, who did much the same thing?
(BTW, Woz, you are the coolest guy in computing. JWZ, RMS, ESR, and Torvalds can't even hope to know and do as much as you have!)
--
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E2 IN2 IE?
Hi Woz, I know that you've done a great deal with teaching youngsters about technology. I volunteer teaching 3rd and 4th graders, and often wonder if I'm going about it the best way. What would you recommend is the best approach to teaching children how to use technology and retain that information?
Many thanks
"In individuals, insanity is rare, but in groups, parties, nations, and epochs it is the rule." -Nietzsche
Given the technical acumen you have shown in the past (the funky graphics mode on the Apple ][ as the result of a gate saving design change, the mouse re-design to save silicon, etc) and your present place in life, will we see you re-invent yourself and return to doing great hardware? Or, is that part of your life, hacking great hardware for us consumers, over.
Do you see Apple's abandonment of the PDA as a long term blunder, given the money to be made in developing and deploying embedded platforms?
Do you see parallels in the Apple Red Book/Interger BASIC source/Schematics (how open Apple hardware once was) and the OpenSource Movement?
As others are asking about GNU/Linux and if you have used it....how about BSD?
Any comments about BSD as a sourcecode base for Mac OS X?
If it was said on slashdot, it MUST be true!
About a year ago, I was asked by a random person who my hero was. I had to think for a minute before responding "Woz". After seeing the confusion on the pollster's face, I had explain how Woz made his millions, left, and is now teaching Kindergarten (is he still?). Not out
trying to make more millions, not trying to keep his name in lights, just out doing what he likes to do. I'd like to think I could do the same if I were in his situation, but I'm not sure.
Anyway, on to my question:
What got you interested in computers in the first place?
-- Ever notice that fast-burning fuse looks exactly the same as slow-burning fuse? I didn't... (Edgar Montrose)
I realize that 80% of the slashdot questions have been asked at woz.org in one way or another. There are so many projects and technologies out there to get your fingers into.
1) If you had the freetime what project/technology would you like to get involved with? And why?
2) You're listed as a board member of EFF. Do you have any active involvement with them?
Woz, You've taken part in the revolution and now you're actively involved in educating young people to use technology. Do you think technology has improved our world? Does improved technology lead to an improvement in our world, or does it need something else added to it in order to it in order to be a good thing?
_____________
I'll bet / with my Net / I can get / those things yet.
_____________
I'll bet / with my Net / I can get / those things yet.
--Dr. Seuss
When is the Mac OS ever going to live up to the long ago promise of cross-platform binary compatibility? I remember that in an ancient edition of Macworld, they had an interview with Jobs regarding the then indevelopment os9, and it's special features. The one that caught my eye was he claimed that it would run windows 9x apps. It was enough to make me drool. I love the apple hardware, but I need to run PC apps (and well, games too). I was ready to go out and buy a new mac just to put that OS on it. Now, OS9 is old news, it doesnt run windows code, it still has trouble with mac code, and OSX info points that it wont run cross platform either. Whats going on in apple???
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There was never a genius without a tincture of madness.
Steve,
How do you see how Open Source technologies may effect Apple? With the fiasco of the announcement that Apple will be realeasing OS X as 'Open Source' they really havn't embraced or been embraced by the community. Whereas SGI (very similar to Apple in many respects--stuggling for market share, specialized market dominance, high-end focus, etc.) has been actually giving a lot back to the community (their journalling file system, etc.) and is being embraced. Is Apple going about things incorrectly?
Also, another question would be:
Do you think that Apple should abandon Mac OS in favor of a Linux-based OS and focus on building and branding their INTERFACE?
Do you ever think that hardware companies will open up their board specs again, in the way you were free with the early Apple computers?
Or, with the increasing silicon integration, is it more important for hardware manufacturers just to write open source drivers?
very, very simple answer, and obvious to anyone who knows anything on the subject.
apple's whole preemptive multitasking/protected memory/etc. issue, and the fact they are not there in OS 9, has nothing to do with a "focus on interface issues". It is because, quite simply, of compatibility. Apple has been working their asses off in the software department for YEARS to solve this problem.
The problem stems from the fact that the mac os began as a single-program OS-- which, you may note, it's competitor (DOS) at the time was. The ability to run more than one program at once was retrofitted in later, through multifinder, switcher, System 6, etc. As a result, the methods of coopertaive multitasking, etc., were adopted.
It turns out that it is extremely difficult to change these methods without breaking every program ever written.
Remember the mac os's biggest problem: software support. isn't a lot of software support out there; apple has a lot of trouble attracting developers. totally destroying all existing software is osmething it's difficult for them to do. Microsoft can do that, since the developers need MS [and, thus, access to 90% of the market] and not the other way around.
Ever heard of copland? Apple had a working next-gen (technically up there with the Unices) OS at about the time of the birth of BeOS and the time Mike Spindler (also known as the Source of All Evil in the Universe) was fired. apple got this OS to a usable point, and proceeded to spend at least a year working on making it compatible with the earlier Mac OSes. They failed miserably.
In the meantime of this, apple released a number of things which, in a technical sense, were truly revoloutionary. Opendoc, cyberdog, Quickdraw 3D, Quickdraw GX. These things all failed miserably, and this is not because apple "failed to keep up on technical issues". They failed merely because of marketing problems, and apple's bad habit from the time of releasing software before it's ready, then hyping it a LOT, then getting everyone exposed to a non-working 1.0 version, then after everyone's soured to it and started totally ignoring it, THEN they release a working version. And once the working version comes along, apple marketing would simply ignore it, assuming people didn't care anymore. this is, btw, basically what killed the newton. If OpenDoc had succeeded, the world would be a very different place now.
Eventually Apple scrapped Copland and started over with Rhapsody/Mac OS X. Apple has been working nonstop on this in the software department since Steve Jobs came. They have been doing almost nothing else; they have been performing miracles. What the result of this is is that in a couple of months, apple is going to release an OS with NO INTERFACE IMPROVEMENTS. (unless you count the fact it will be possible to add on a BSD command line interface and run the GNU tools..) The change from OS 9 to OS X will have _nothing_ to do with "interface issues". Technical issues are the ONLY point of this upgrade, and this is the upgrade apple has been working toward with all their resources for about four or five years now. Doesn't sound like they've more focused on "pretty boxes" to me.
And as to compatibility, note that apple _gave up_. The reason that OS X will be compatible with pre-OS-X software is that apple has wound up writing a hardware abstraction layer type thing, more or less the same thing as WINE. ("emulator" is the wrong word)
Note that in the meantime Apple has "technically" improved the Mac OS in every way possible without making that crucial shift into preemptive multitasking and protected memory. They've made the Finder (mac file manager) threaded; they've rewritten Appletalk to work as TCP/IP; and so on.
And thta one crucial shift--preemptive multitasking/protected memory-- is something Microsoft hasn't managed to do yet. When OS X comes out, microsoft will have yet to have released a "modern" consumer OS. They will have windows 2000, yes, but last i heard it will not be targeted at consumers-- it will be targeted at everyone who was buying NT before. It will be targeted as a server, and for businesses, and for the kind of people who read Slashdot. Meanwhile the consumers will be fed "widnows millenium", or something. whatever it is it will still have teh 9x kernel.
As for "pretty boxes"-- i assume you mean the imac-- note that pretty boxes are the only strategy apple's located that works. Apple has been producing technically superior hardware for years, and what was it that finally started selling this hardware? Certainly not the technical aspects of the hardware. The G3 is amazing for its time, but so was the 604e. No, the pretty boxes are what is making ALL of apple's money, not the highly advanced state of the inside of the case. That and advertising. It's like Prodigy; they release a very good, revoloutionary techno album, and nobody buys it; then Keith Flint gets a bad haircut and starts wearing eyeshadow for the second very good, revoloutionary techno album, and they get on MTV and sell a quadrillion records. If "pretty boxes" are the only things making apple money, you should be amazed they're paying attention to technical issues at all.
I don't know where this viewpoint comes from that because apple pays attention to interface issues and strives to create a consistent, usable user interface, that means that they don't care about technical issues. Apple _does_ work on the technical underpinnings, and if the only thing you see is the GUI, well, that's because the GUI is all you're willing to look at.
-mcc-baka
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY IS TEHFT
Irritable, left-wing and possibly humorous bumper stickers and t-shirts
Woz-
Where do you think the future of computing is heading (ie. Thin clients run from ISP's over high speed internet connections, or the way it is heading now with bigger, faster, and more expensive computers)
Having worked in education for years, I've seen one fourth grade classroom with a teacher into technology integrate it into the daily curriculum while across the hall, another teacher refuses to even turn on the machines in their room because they don't know (and don't *want* to know) how to use them.
How can we address the wild variations in technology knowledge among K-12 teachers?
Throughout the book, little bits and pieces of your personality were described. I found this incredibly entertaining, because your high school years sound very similar to what my high school life is like. (I'm a Senior this year.) Everything from your pranks to your apathy about unimportant things, to your zeal for geeky things is me. I was greatly encouraged by your early-life story. Question: Also in this book, I recall that it said you've always liked to have the hardware of a system exposed for viewing, somewhat similar to an art display. I recall that you were obstinate when Apple started putting cases on your computers. Are you still of this opinion, that hardware is better viewed for this reason? Do you think that your preferance may have somehow survived and made it's way into the design for the iMac?
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CAIMLAS
~/ssh slashdot.org ssh: connect to host slashdot.org port 22: too many beers
Steve,
You've been involved with computers in the class room and bringing computer-related technologies to schools long enough now to seem some of the first students you worked with graduate and go on to college and careers.
How much of a difference do you think technology learning has made for these kids?
What have *you* learned about teaching technology to kids as a result of fostering this process that hasn't yet clicked with mainstream educators?
How do you see current schools and administrations bridging the technology gap between traditional (low tech) classes and curricula and where you'd like to see things?
Shut up and eat your vegetables!!!
I'll never forget my first encounter with the Apple ][ computer. In 1979, as a college sophomore working at a summer job for NASA, I adapted a $4,000 Apple ][ to control a Varian Auger spectrometer, creating the very first scanning Auger spectrometer. My idea of grafting an inexpensive personal computer into a $500,000 piece of equipment that took up half of a room was greeted with some trepidation by the scientists, but I convinced them that we could switch my interface off and return the equipment to normal if it didn't work. Fortunately, the contraption did work (though all of the software wasn't finished by the end of the summer), and we had a true technological advance which is still a useful analytical tool today.
Anyway, in the course of my labors, I ran into a technical glitch and called Apple for help. Dan Kottke answered the phone, and I told him that I thought I'd found a bug in the ROM. (Note: The Apple ][, for those who never saw the manuals, came with complete, commented source code for the internal ROMs. The code wasn't free for anyone to use, and justifiably so; they were the product of a brilliant mind and who knows how many hours of work. However, the source made a great reference for me and many others.)
"Yes, Woz was just talking about that," Dan replied.
"What was?" I asked innocently.
"Woz was," said Dan.
"Oh," I replied. (After mentally trying several different parsings of this last statement I finally realized that "Woz" must be someone's name.... The modest Mr. Wozniak had only put his name in a few places in the assembly language code, so I didn't spot it there until later.)
We went on to discuss how to work around the bug. I was very impressed by this.... Today, the notion of being able to get someone who's technically knowledgeable about a product -- especially at the assembly language level -- on the phone is almost unbelievable.
But those were the days of what I consider to be "true hacking" -- sweating for hours to implement one's ideas in the smallest possible number of logic gates or opcodes. I was very impressed by the small number of gates in the disk drive's group encoder and the subtle software that made it work.
Which brings me to my question. Nowadays, few people -- even those who call themselves "hackers" -- are capable of hacking on that level. "Hello world" programs take up hundreds of thousands of bytes... and if a project requires analog circuit design -- as a blue box did -- forget it!
Do you think there's still a place in the world for the old school hacker who can make a silk purse out of a sow's ear? For the assembly language programmer who can do in 100 bytes what others do in 100,000? Or are those days of true craftsmanship gone forever?
--Brett Glass
Steve,
Two questions for you (I've been dying to ask these for a while.)
First, in the Newsweek article "How we Failed at Apple" you said the following:
"The company's strategy was. Apple saw itself as a hardware company; in order to protect our hardware profits, we didn't license our operating system. We had the most beautiful operating system, but to get it you had to buy our hardware at twice the price."
Apple still today holds very very tight restrictions third party producers yet is succeeding - partially because prices for Apple systems is now much cheaper relative to market cost. In general though Apple as a company still behaves much the same as it did in 1984. Do you believe Apples continued restrictions on third party use of MacOS will spell trouble long term for Apple?
Secondly, when Microsoft was declared a monopoly a few months ago you had a posting to your website that included an analogy between car companies and Monopoly power. If I remember correctly the analogy basically came down to the idea of car companies owning the gasoline companies and requiring drivers to buy gas from only them - hence they could set the price on the gas.
This however is also a perfect analogy for how Apple behaves with respect to their hardware and software. If Apple had succeeded, today we would be in a world where we would have absolutly no choices in reguards to what hardware we purchaced (much like now we have little choice as to what operating system software is bundeled with our hardware.) If/when Apple becomes a very dominate player in the computer industry, how would you justify Apples continued control on hardware before the DOJ?
Thanks!
j
There's a lot of polarity in technology today. One can almost summarize this as Mac's Ease of Use vs. Linux's Ability to Harness the Power of Technology in its (nearly) Pure Form. Where do you see this polarization heading. Can the two ever be wedded together (i.e. can Linux ever be made user-friendly enough for the masses or the can the Mac overcome its legacy architecture and step ahead of the pack technologically?)
In your experience, has this polarity always existed or is it a more recent phenomenon? As one of the founders of what was to become the premier company specializing in one end of this extreme, I'd like to hear your thought on this. Also, can this polarity ultimately help innovation or hurt it?
--- Journals are boring; Go to my web page instead
Woz -
I remember seeing you talk at the Colorado School of Mines back in the old Apple II+ days. I was about 10 years old then and I had you autograph my Apple II+ lid. I still have it and I don't plan on selling it any time soon.
I consider you one of the most honorable and innovative people in the computer industry. Your whole philosophy made a huge impression on me since I could type. You're not after the allmighty dollar like Jobs and Gates - you're out there for the fun of it and that's what really counts to me.
Q: I can think of only a handful of people who are unsung heros like you (the original xerox parc engineers being one example) - you know, the people who did all of the really *GOOD* work and are not millionaires and go rather unsung in the computer industry. Who do you respect in this way? Are there other people out there that deserve recognition that aren't getting it?
NOTE: All I can say is "Thanks" for all you've contributed to the computer industry. The first Apple-related memories that I have are figuring out how to do shape tables in Apple Basic. 8)
--
Steven Webb
System Administrator II - Juneau and TECOM projects
NCAR - Research Applications Program
You've dedicated the recent years of your life to education, and I'd like to hear (a lot) from you about the appropriate use of technology in education. Specifically, pioneering schools (including my sons') are requiring the use of laptop computers; in our case, starting in seventh grade, all students are required to carry a laptop all the time. I'm not convinced that laptops even belong in a classroom, much less in the hands of a seventh graders, and would like your take on these points:
1) Student maturity - at what point are students mature enough to carry a computer around without wasting endless hours on desktop frills, games, and chat? Seventh grade seems too early to me.
2) Faculty training - excellent schools have excellent teachers with many years of teaching experience; most of them don't have a clue about computers. How do we retain and retrain our great teachers while introducing technology into our students' academic lives?
3) What is an appropriate level of computer science to introduce into junior high? high school? What languages have been successful in this age group? I've had great experiences building website with fifth and sixth graders through the Thinkquest Junior organization. What other activities are age appropriate?
Best wishes and many thanks for all your contributions,
Rich Ackerman
Apple is responsible for two of the biggest products in computer lore, the Apple II and the Macintosh. Do you think Apple can change computing in such a dramatic way again, and what do you envision such a product to be?
I use Macs for work, Linux for education, and Windows for cardplaying.
First of all, thank you for your part in creating one of the best computer companies on the planet. Now, on to the question:
Taking a look at things right now, it seems there hasn't been a major change in the way computer operating systems work in over 30 years. Every major operating system to be released this year is, directly or in concept, based on Unix. And while Unix is a great system, it's still incredibly old when you consider that computers only a year old are considered 'slow' by some, and machines 5 years old typically can't run current edition OSes. Other than the invention/adoption of the GUI, no radical changes have occured in the basic OS.
So, my question is, what do you consider the biggest obstacle in designing the next Big Thing in operating systems? Why are 30 year old ideas just now being accepted in the mainstream, and why haven't other concepts taken root during that time? Or is this as good as it gets with the current computing mindset?
How do you feel about Steve Jobs running Apple again (interim or not), and do you agree with the direction he is taking with the company?
Its karma, Kramer.
Its karma, Kramer.
Hey Steve! I did my first programming in second grade with Logo on the classic Apple II. It was pure joy and I consider it a good day now if I feel as satisfied after a day of programming. What do you think is a good language or computing environment to get kids interested in programming today? Are people still using Logo to introduce kids to programming? Do you think it is more or less important in the world today to introduce kids not just to computers but to programming? Thanks and keep up the good work! Alex
Is the US public (primary) education system as screwed-up as some people say? Worse than it used to be? If so, what is to be done?
What advice can you give the new innovators? As someone who would like to start a company, I can't help but notice that most truly innovative companies tend to boom then bust, either fading slowly into obscurity or being assimilated by some larger company.
Do you have any ideas for avoiding this fate? Is the only alternative to make some money and become a predatory company yourself? Or, alternatively, is this the eventual unavoidable fate of all idea-driven companies (Netscape, SGI, Apple, etc)?
Or, to sum up the question: Can an Apple ever defeat a Microsoft?
----
Every year during my review, I just pray the words "slashdot.org" aren't mentioned.
Today, do you feel that garage development still has a place in Computing? And, if so, would it be in software, hardware or both?
It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
From what I've read, you are very involved with children and their education and technology seems to play a major role in the basis of that education. Personally, I think that next to being loved adaquately, education is the most important factor in a developing child's life. In America we seem to take education for granted and are very far behind other countries in regard to the quality of the education that our children receive. Technology in general and more specifically, computers and the Internet, are fantastic tools with a great potential for drastically improving education.
My question: How do you see education making better use of technology and technology making education better?
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"Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds." - Albert Einstein
Co-founder and designer at Music Nearby: http://musicnearby.com
Steve,
If you could be freed from any management influences and had the desire to design a new machine, what would the features be? I'm not interested in processor speeds or scads of memory and whatnot, but more in what innovations you'd like to see.
In the days of the Apple ][, did you believe the average American household needed a personal computer? I remember being told that computers could balance your checkbook, keep your schedule and store your recipes and wondering if that was a cost-effective solution for people, or just an expensive, if fascinating toy. It's my impression that it's only now with consumer Internet access that a home computer provides value for most people.
What do you think?
What I'm listening to now on Pandora...
My name is Geoff Wozniak. I am a computer science student and general all-round electronics tinkerer (a rookie, really). I have been in a record production program as well and my nickname is indeed "Woz". No matter where I go (including the record program, 'cause we used Macs), people seem to think that we are directly related in some way. I admire all that you have done, but could you please go on record as saying we are not related and that I do not know you personally? Just want something to cite when I get asked again. Thanks!
Geoff Wozniak
Hi Steve,
The Apple II was the original "geek dream machine." I mean, the Apple ][+ we got back in 1982 or so came with schematics! Talk about an open system!
Pretend that Apple (or some other company) came to you and asked you to design a PC that would "fill the shoes" of the Apple II line. What do you think you'd put in it?
From reading your website, I know you're pretty pro-Macintosh... is that the ultimate in what you'd want to see in a personal computer, or would you do some things differently? Where, do you think, that current PC's (not meaning just WinTel machines) reflect the philosophy of the Apple II, and what do you think they have missed?
I have always been facinated by the history of the early personal computer, especially during the period in which you developed the Apple I (The Homebrew Computer Club days.)
As someone from the generation in which computers have always been available on the mass market, I would love to build my own, simple, homebrew computer as a hobbie. Do you have any suggestions on how I might get started on such a project?
Brought to you by Frobozz Magic Penguin Fodder.
In the Apple II+ days (~1979), when I was in 5th grade, Apple donated 20-ish Apple II's to the elementary school in my small (Like many Slashdotter's, when I was a kid, I was extremely bored with the unchallenging, crappy cirruculum available at most public schools and was written off by administrators and teachers as 'lazy and unmotivated'. The Apple II+ changed my life... literally.
I started programming all those years ago in Logo and Basic on the II+, and spent many an hour after school as the lone kid on the computer, so much so, that I was allowed to be the last person in the school building and trusted to make sure the door was locked, sometimes going home as late as 8 or 9 PM after a full day of school.
By 8th grade, I was a teachers aide for the several computer classes, by high school, a general consultant for the school system there, etc. etc. etc. Since college, I've worked for Intel, HP and currently work developing CAD software for a small CPU design center in Austin, TX.
Anyway, I've gotten to work on projects and with technology (Pentium, Pentium III, iA64, other x86 CPU's, Mac consulting, etc) that I could've never dreamed of as a wee kid busting keys on the Apple II+ 20 years ago. All I can say, Steve, is thank you for your -true- innovation to the world of computing, and thank you for your early influence at Apple for supporting education. The difference you have made in my life is greater than I think either of us could imagine.
Now, for my question: While Apple's MacOS is (generally) recognized as the model of 'ease of use', most GUI based/interfaced OS's are still WAY too complex for the masses, not only in configuration complexity, but also in the fact that they are generally American/European-ly ethnocentric. For example, no ones come up with a really good way to input/output Chinese characters on a PC. (at least to my knowledge) In spite of this view, I still use a Mac as my primary computing device, with a Linux box running a close second.
My question to you is: What technology do you see breaking genral computing open to the masses in terms of humanistic ease of use and cutting down the barrier of Roman alphanumeric and English language centricity?
Bonus Question: What is your preferred development language? (I know you -still- code!)
Much Respect,
Toby Sanchez
What's your take on the use of LinuxPPC vs. the MacOS? Many people say that Mac hardware is (and always has been) better than x86, but it's been held back by the OS. Do you think that LinuxPPC can change that?
Juiced? Or Not?
Steve,
;>) could provide some insight and advice.
I remember seeing at one point that you run a day camp or what not to help children get accustomed to using computers and what not. (I can't find any references to that at this point).
My question is this:
Do you feel that operating systems such as Linux/*BSD are a viable option for teaching those children who have no previous experience with a computer? Certainly the cost factor would be a great motivation for choosing these over other operating systems. It seems to me that it is more difficult to train those who are set in one GUI than those who have no previous experience whatsoever. I really have an intrest in this kind of community service and felt that someone like you with experience (and albeit alot more money
"Fighting the underpants gnomes since 1998!" "Bruce Schneier knows the state of schroedinger's cat"
You are a technical person (to some, THE technical person). You helped start a revolution by putting computing power into the hands of many.
How do you feel about Apple's failure to keep up on technical issues (pre-emptive multi-tasking, etc) because of it's focus on interface issues (GUI, colored plastic boxes, etc)?
---
Linux MAPI Server!
http://www.openone.com/software/MailOne/
(Exchange Migration HOWTO coming soon)
Apple has long been noted for having the most (or among the most) user friendly stuff around. What do you think of the trade off between ease of use and level of control? Is there a trade off?
J:)
Oh well, no point in steering now.
First: Thanks, Mr. Wozniac, for Apples of various generations. Probably many of the readers of this forum have happy memories of Oregon Trail and Logo thanks to the Apple 2, and I remember my first look at the Mac, right when it came out ... boy! Though I've jumped to Linux on IBM-compatible PCs now except for one decrepit Duo 230, I've gone through many Macs to get there.
... then it died for it. Is *this* forever as well? Once OS X is out, and based on BSD, will the Mac OS again perhaps be portable in the future to Intel-type machines?
Now, my questions:
1) How would you like to have seen the issues of cloning Mac hardware handled? It seemed like a great idea to anyone who bought a Power Computing MacOS computer, and a good way to put the Mac OS into what were in many cases specialized workstations for video, audio or other uses. But then Apple pulled the plug. Is this forever?
2) The other side of that coin: How would you like to have seen non-Apple-hardware OS issues handled? It seemed like MacOS on Intel was about to rock the world
3) In the old Apple is a Hardware Company vs. Apple is a Software Company debate, where do you think the truth lies? To put the question differently, if in a crazy universe, the company had to give up one of these lines, which would make sense and why?
Thanks for reading, have a good day!
timothy
jrnl: http://tinyurl.com/c2l8yr / foes: http://tinyurl.com/ckjno5
Do you think open-source and free software is really a revolution or only a hype? How do you think things will become in the software industry in the future with open-source variable inserted in their middle? And do you think this model could lead to a more competitive and less monopolistic market?
"Learning, learning, learning - that is the secret of jewish survival" -- Ahad A'Ham
Have you ever had a chance to play around with the Be operating system? Since its developers were part of the Apple culture, I thought I might find a blurb or two on your page. What sort of advice would you offer Gassee? Is the proprietary aspect an albatross (should they opensource the OS and concentrate on apps)? Are they trying to get into the game too late?
(Just for the record, I have it on a spare partition and like it very much; I'm rooting for its success, but I'm dubious of its future).
Also
NOTE TO SLASHDOT POWERS-THAT-BE: How's 'bout a Gassee interview, eh?
Do you ever look at the industry and get depressed over what's it's become with companies with virtually no product and running deep in the red but who have "e-" or "dot-com" in their names pulling off ridiculously huge IPOs, companies patenting obviously unpatentable concepts and ideas apparently for the express purpose of suing the pants off of competitors instead of competing with the quality of their products, companies like Microsoft going beyond the boundaries of the law and way, way beyond the boundaries of ethical behaviour to get a step up on the competition, the industry lobbying government to pass laws that would create an entirely unregulated industry, including things like legislation that would legally disavow software companies of any responsibility for creating shoddy products that don't even do what the box says they will do, employees floating with a company just long enough to vest and then bailing out without a backwards glance so they can go to The Next Big IPO, etc, etc, etc.
What do you look at in this industry to remind yourself that computers and the computer industry can actually help make the world a better place?
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My mom's going to kick you in the face!