The Man With The Original Idea Was…
You think that Bill Gates was the one with the idea behind Windows software? Better think again. Read on further and you’ll see who had the real brains behind it all. You’ll be surprised. Very surprised.
All through the years we bought the computer, surfed the internet, grabbed a virus, and then got the computer fixed. Then we surfed the internet all over again, using Windows software. Well, most of us at least. Have you ever give it a thought how Windows started up?
On August 24, 1995 in Seattle, Washington, a rare event was about to take place. The biggest launch of the history of the computer was going underway. Bill Gates was about to announce the start of Windows 95. It was Bill Gates behind the idea that everyone should have there own personal PC, using Windows software of course. This was going to take the industry to a whole new level. Right?
Believe it or not Bill Gates did not just pop up in a garage one day and say — here’s Windows, let’s do it guys. Oh but no, technology and the power of inventing is always much more complicated than this.
The Windows software system had been in the making for years, but it wasn’t until 1990 when Microsoft came up with something that would actually work. Where did they come up with this grand idea? Microsoft, uhhh no. You ready for this?
It has been said that the software was in the development stage 20 years before Windows was even heard of.
The guy that shared the vision of making a home computer for the masses was called Steve. You know, the other computer geek, Steve Jobs. The guy that wanted to change the world, and eventually would.
Steve Jobs cofounded Apple on April 1, 1976. The “other guys” were Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne. Ron Wayne would soon leave the company. In July they sold the Apple I for $666.66. It was the Apple II that would propel them forward.
In December of 1979, Steve Jobs was going to walk through another gamechanger. He would visit a another huge, successful company called Xerox. The folks at Xerox PARC were working with some fine software of their own.
And Steve Jobs was going to be very interested in that software system. It’s numbing to believe that Xerox would release their prize software. Just imagine if they would have kept it. (Steve would later give more details in his biography — Steve Jobs. Awesome book by the way.)
At that turning point, Steve Jobs knew that he liked what he saw at Xerox. But would the executives at Xerox give away a demo of their allstar software? Could Steve Jobs and his team walk away with software he could use in his operator friendly Apple computer? Short answer is yes.
Steve Job’s computer that would change the world was going to use the software which came from Xerox.
Apple wanted to make the first user friendly PC. Just like rivals had set out to do. IBM was one of the rivals that Apple was to compete with. But lurking behind door number one was Steve’s biggest rival — Bill Gates.
Little did Steve Jobs know that it was going to be Bill Gates that would steal the idea, the moment, and the show. Steve Jobs would eventually get to know Gates even better. Gates would soon develop the GUI (graphic user interface) for himself.
In 1982, Microsoft would soon start the software that would go in Apple’s Macintosh. Yet in another twist, Steve signed a deal with Microsoft. Steve Jobs claims that until work on the Mac, Microsoft was dominated by Lotus.
In 1984, Apple made a famous TV commercial. The commercial was called “1984” and it costed the company $1.5 million to make it. It aired during the third quarter of SuperBowl XVIII on Jan. 22, 1984. It was a stinging success for Apple. This was the launching of the Macintosh.
Over the next few decades Steve Jobs would endure many ups and down. Steve would even get fired by the company he started – Apple. Apple would sue Microsoft and lose the battle. Bill Gates would soon become a household name. However, the first real computer that started the revolution had Steve Job’s name written all over it. Watch the videos to catch the drama.
Sources:
YouTube Video 1 – Link
YouTube Video 2 – Link
Image Credit:
Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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