Capítulo 229: Chapter 229: Apple's Self-Destructive Path
"Sir, the Apple III is out, but it's way more expensive."
"Yeah, have they changed the system?"
"Not much of a change."
"So, no distinguishing features? If it doesn't stand out, it's just mediocre."
"Yeah, kind of neither here nor there. For this price, I'd rather spend a bit more and get a Lisa."
William White could only shake his head with a wry smile. Back in that other timeline, both Lisa and Apple III failed miserably. It couldn't have been worse.
Unexpectedly, even with William White's support, they still went on their own merry way, stubbornly sticking to their self-destructive path without knowing what made it special.
"Filson, this is William White. Go ahead and sell all our Apple stock, and use the proceeds to buy Intel."
"Okay, boss. I'll take care of it right away."
William White had been gradually reducing his Apple holdings, but this time, he decided to clear it out entirely. It seemed like Steve Jobs needed to fall once to truly shine later.
It's quite amusing when you think about it -- Apple's most profitable product was still the Apple II. Despite numerous modifications, none were as popular as the second version.
...
Steve Jobs planned to discontinue the Apple II, and the consequences were evident. Even internally, it was an unresolved issue.
"Markkula, this Apple II severely impacts our follow-up products. If we can't stop selling it, both the Apple III and Lisa projects will be affected."
"Steve, don't be like this. You need to control your emotions. This decision was made out of necessity, and the shareholders demand these sales figures. We can't guarantee the Apple III will replace the Apple II."
"Damn it, I shouldn't have listened to William White back then. That minor tweak was unnecessary."
Watching Steve Jobs snapping at everyone, Markkula felt speechless. William White's idea back then was undeniably worth millions. Not being grateful was one thing, but blaming him was another.
Markkula knew that ever since they refused to open up the system, White Software had taken a different path. The current situation was one of restraint from both sides.
Markkula had to admit that IBM indeed had the potential to surpass them completely. In fact, without the Apple II, they would have dropped to third place long ago.
It wasn't just IBM. A bunch of companies under the banner of compatible machines were gaining ground rapidly. If they discontinued their most popular product now, even a dog would laugh.
He truly didn't understand how, after this guy became a centimillionaire, he could turn into such a pretentious fool. Wasn't he just an impoverished scholar? Why pretend to be a hip intellectual? Look at William White; he's still the same as a few years ago, a shrewd businessman.
...
From this moment on, Apple entered a turbulent period. Unfortunately, Steve Jobs was Apple's icon, their figurehead.
I must say, Jobs was truly talented. After visiting Xerox, the graphical user interface concept was constantly on his mind. To him, current computers were all trash, and once he developed a GUI system, he believed he could rule the world.
Indeed, he was exceptionally keen on technology. Xerox had worked on graphical interfaces for years, and nobody paid much attention.
This was something William White couldn't comprehend. Bell Labs and Xerox PARC weren't isolated cases. They researched many incredible things, but it was a shame the inventors didn't gain much profit.
Even now, William White couldn't understand why they wouldn't take their ideas outside. Look at William White's adapter cards; they were making money hand over fist. Couldn't they be a bit more imaginative?
Well, perhaps William White was too pragmatic. Those who invented the mouse, the internet, all relinquished their patents just like Carl Benz did with the automobile patent. They were thinking of benefiting humanity.
Clearly, William White wasn't concerned with the happiness of humanity. He focused on maximizing profit. As for those great men, he really admired them, but as for following in their footsteps, he could only laugh.
With the unresponsive mouse in hand, William White felt exasperated. Its sensitivity was just absurd. How could it be so unresponsive?
Looking at the latest Lisa computer on his desk, a sense of powerlessness washed over him. Were they really targeting mini-computers?
As an icon of counterculture, Steve Jobs aimed to break IBM's monopoly. All the rules IBM followed were meant to be shattered by him.
IBM deliberately postponed the release of the 32-bit processor for PCs.
The reasons were many, like cost and actual user demand. But to Jobs, the Big Blue became evil.
In fact, the Lisa computer would have been fine with a 6700 processor, and it wouldn't have been too expensive. At least it wouldn't have needed a $10,000 price tag.
Looking at the nearly $10,000 computer on his desk, William White completely gave up on Apple. Probably like before, that bitten apple would turn into a poison apple, and in a few years, he could easily acquire this company.
Yeah, and then have Steve Jobs come work for him. If he misbehaved, he'd dock his pay.
William White didn't hold much stock, so the market reaction was subdued, without dramatic ups and downs. But Jobs was certainly mad at this bastard.
This stubborn guy only saw things in black and white. William White's actions seemed like treachery to him, completely disrespecting him.
Although William White never thought of it that way, the proud and arrogant Steve Jobs couldn't stand it. Consequently, relations between the two deteriorated rapidly.
"Tom, don't worry about Steve. This is just business. Just announce that development slowed due to significant database costs, and ignore the other criticisms."
"Okay, sir. They have a Macintosh coming; what about that?"
"Well, see what they want. If they need help, we can support them. If not, it's up to them."
William White knew that the Macintosh was a groundbreaking product, but unfortunately, it was only half-baked.
Every time people use computers in the future, they should be thankful to Jobs. The Macintosh was the true predecessor of the personal PC, unlike those 286 machines.
But couldn't he release it later?
This inherently flawed product was truly short-lived. Eventually, they could only remodel it as the Lisa.
The world's first genuine graphical operating system, such a milestone computer, ended up being considered useless junk.
*****
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