Apple's History - part three.
Against the tied. 

1990
Apple sits and watches an over washed computer market slip from their grasp.   Apple could have made the decision to licensee their operating system to other vendors, the window was open but the board dismissed the idea and therefore another chapter in the ‘how not to do business’ was written.
 
Updates were released to the growing and popular ranges Apple had on offer. Debuts for the cheap and simple Mac LC and the traditional one piece Classic.
 
1991
The year of concession and partnership.  1,500 employees are given their marching orders.

 Apple signs a deal with IBM.  The much talked about deal would help secure Apple's future. The deal in time would produce the PPC and G3 chips the company so badly needed.
 
The PowerBooks 100 and 140 rolled off the development line, to great public demand. 
 
1992
The Much hyped Microsoft case came to an end, Apple the losers.  Apple in the 80's made Bill Gates sign a document in so many words stated that Windows 1.0 would not use Mac graphical look and feel, only problem was the deal only covered Win1.0 and Gates swiftly moved on and up the upgrades.  The Apple Lawyers always came to sticky ends when Microsoft would wave the document in court. 
 
The first tentative steps to a new technology were a foot.  PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) still in beta but nearly ready for release, but plagued with problems the new idea was destined to flop.
 
The First Performa computers went on sale.
 
1993 
The New PDA called Newton went on sale and instantly nose dived. A bad year all round, 2,400 employees were given the axe and a posted second quarter loss of just over £120 million.

 











Michael Spindler replaces Sculley as CEO. Later this year Sculley called it a day and left the company after 10 years of guiding the Silicon Valley boys.
 
This year did however see a large number of Macs make the shelves.  The Mac Color Classic, Mac LCIII, Mac LC475,520. 
Mac Performa 250,275,405,410,430,450,460,466,475,520. 
Mac Quadra/Centris 605,610,650,660AV,840AV.
PowerBook 145B,165,165c,180c and DUO 250,270c.

 









 

This list is all the more confusing when you add the name changes and similarities between models. The LC475 became Performa 475's and essentially the Quadra's and the Centris systems were the same. 
 
The Apple II was finally laid to rest. Apple's longest running produced machine.
 
1994
The first fruits of the IBM and Motorola links lead to the first PowerPC chipped Macs, these 6100's, 7100's and 8100's were just the beginning of a new platform that eventually would mark the end of the road for 68k Macs in four years time.
 
The new chips set new bench marks for speedy Macs.  Intel's chips were fast but the PPC was getting stronger with each new release.
 
IBM agreed to build computers able to run each other's operating systems. This was destined to fail. Apple owned their OS, IBM was relying on Microsoft. One outcome was Apple entered talks with other companies interested in building 100% compatible Mac computers by licensing it's OS, the clones were just around the corner. Some said ten years to late, others it should never have happened.
 
1995
An absolute badly managed year for Apple. This could have been their year but once again mistakes were made. The first clones go on sale by Power Computing and Apple too could have cashed in, poor forecasting lead this year to build up over $1 billion dollars of backorders.

 






Customers left waiting, boardroom dramas, slumps in profits and all this while Microsoft released Win95 in the background. Apple could not supply the computers that were superior to PC manufactures, so Microsoft simply made those PC machines easier to use.
 
1996
An awful start to the year.  US posted losses of nearly $740 million and speculation that IBM or Sun Microsystems wanted to take over the company were the main headlines. Neither did thankfully. Gil Amelio of National Semiconductor became the new CEO, Spindler is given his marching orders.

Amelio never seemed to be out of the news, his foundations were to prepare the ground work for a stronger financially challenging Apple with cash to spare. He restructured the corporate boardroom and cut 1,000 jobs to slim the company down and reduce the ever mounting losses

Apple bought out NeXT computers for over $400 million, Steve Jobs was part of the deal. Apple now has something to work on with NeXTs capabilities and Jobs vision in an ‘advisory’ position.

Toward the end of the year Apple releases the dubbed ‘fastMac’ the PowerPC 9500, the first time a Mac blazed through the 200Mhz barrier and there was more to come from the PPC chips.

Due to the spending spree the year ends with a four quarter loss again

Next month the final installment from 1997 to the present day iMac, burnt toast and all.