Apple Core

Graham Bower and Charlie Sorrel
Apple Core

A podcast about the history of Apple. In each episode, hosts Graham Bower and Charlie Sorrel explore the story behind a different Apple product, and consider what it tells us about the company’s game plan and where it might be heading next.

  1. iOS 7 - the battle for the future of software design

    19 JUN

    iOS 7 - the battle for the future of software design

    In 2013, Apple launched a radical redesign of the iPhone’s user interface. iOS 7 represented more than just a fresh new look. It marked a major shift in Cupertino’s design philosophy, which arose from a bitter boardroom bust-up between two of Steve Jobs’ most trusted lieutenants. Since the launch of the Macintosh in 1984, Jobs had pioneered the use of skeuomorphism, a design motif where apps adopt visual cues from real world objects. Jobs shared this philosophy with tech genius Scott Forstall, who worked on the Aqua interface for Mac OS X, and subsequently led the development of iOS. In the power vacuum after Steve Jobs’ passing, Ive and Forstall became locked in a battle for the company’s future. When Ive won, he wasted no time in scrapping Forstall’s cherished skeuomorphism. In a matter of months his team had developed a radical new user interface design. iOS 7’s minimalistic style was quintessentially Jony Ive, and it established a visual language that continues to influence Apple to this day. APPLE CORE MERCH Check out our new merch store on Teepublic, featuring t-shirts, hoodies, sweatshirts, mugs, stickers, and more in retro-geek designs:  https://applecore.dashery.com LINKS Video of WWDC 2013, where iOS 7 was launched: https://youtu.be/hIigp_bxUcQ?si=41rq99ofJLeaG9pl Nicholas Carlson for Business Insider in 2014 on Steve Jobs and Quicktime’s brushed metal: https://www.businessinsider.com/steve-jobss-signature-design-style-2014-10 Buster Hein for Cult of Mac on the Passbook shredder: https://www.cultofmac.com/news/ios-7-passbook-ditches-forstalls-dumb-paper-shredder-animation The Verge on apps that influenced the design of iOS 7: https://www.theverge.com/2013/10/9/4817146/taskmasters-how-israeli-intelligence-officers-helped-inspire-the-look-of-ios-7 Joshua Topolsky’s hot take on iOS 7 for The Verge: https://www.theverge.com/apple/2013/6/10/4416726/the-design-of-ios-7-simply-confusing Jony Ive designs things: https://www.tumblr.com/jonyiveredesignsthings Griffin’s website: https://www.dgriffinjones.com/

    1h 1m
  2. Sherlock - the mysterious case of how sherlocking became a thing

    5 APR

    Sherlock - the mysterious case of how sherlocking became a thing

    Sherlock was introduced in 1998, as a tool for finding files on Mac OS 8.5. It used advanced search technology harvested from the carcass of Apple’s failed next generation operation system, Copeland. Sherlock revolutionized search on the Mac, enabling users to search within files for the first time. But its file searching prowess is not the reason Sherlock is remembered today. By competing with a similar third-party app called Watson, Apple was accused of putting an indie developer out of business, which coined the term “sherlocking.”  Sherlock was a technical marvel, featuring a breakthrough user interface that continues to influence how we use the Internet to this day. But its reign was short-lived. Just seven years after its launch, Sherlock was replaced by Spotlight. APPLE CORE MERCH Check out our new merch store on Teepublic, featuring t-shirts, hoodies, sweatshirts, mugs, stickers, and more in retro-geek designs: LINKS Original Sherlock page on Apple.com via WayBack Machine (you might need to scroll down to see it) Phil Schiller demos Sherlock 2 at WWDC 1999 (at 59:28) Sherlock 3 page on Appe.com, via WayBack Machine (you might need to scroll down to see it) Steve Jobs demos Sherlock 3 at Macworld New York 2002 (25:08) Karelia Software’s Watson website

    48 min
  3. Apple Park - a boondoggle or the greatest office ever built?

    27 FEB

    Apple Park - a boondoggle or the greatest office ever built?

    In 2011, Steve Jobs made his final public appearance, presenting his plans for a second Apple campus to Cupertino City Council. He proposed a circular building, one mile in diameter, surrounded by beautifully landscaped grounds that concealed a subterranean parking garage.  With a whopping $5 billion budget and a prestigious international architect attached to the project, Jobs’ ambition was to build “the best office building in the world.” Drawing on his learnings from Pixar’s headquarters, Jobs believed the “donut-shaped” design would result in to unexpected encounters that prompted innovation. Completed in 2017, Apple Park quickly an iconic part of the brand, featured in every product launch video. But the building’s Pentagon-style “groundscraper” design epitomizes car-dependent suburban bureaucracy rather than innovation, and with the rise of post-COVID home working, large campus sites have become less relevant. So, in this episode, we explore the history of Silicon Valley office parks and consider if Jobs achieved his goal of building the world’s best office. MERCH STORE Check out our merch store on Teepublic for retro-geek t-shirts, hoodies, sweatshirts, mugs, stickers, and more:  https://www.teepublic.com/stores/apple-core-podcast LINKS: Video of Steve Jobs’ presentation to Cupertino City Council  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtuz5OmOh_M The Glendenning Barn  https://finance.yahoo.com/news/story-behind-random-century-old-162804565.html History of the Apple Park site  https://s3.amazonaws.com/Apple-Campus2-DEIR/Apple_Campus_2_Project_EIR_Public_Review_5e-Cultural.pdf Hewlett Packard’s Garage on Apple Maps  https://maps.apple.com/?address=367%20Addison%20Ave,%20Palo%20Alto,%20CA%20%2094301,%20United%20States&ll=37.443018,-122.154640&q=367%20Addison%20Ave Steve Jobs’s parents’ garage on Apple Maps  https://maps.apple.com/?address=2066%20Crist%20Dr,%20Los%20Altos,%20CA%20%2094024,%20United%20States&ll=37.340323,-122.068897&q=2066%20Crist%20Dr&t=h The A1844 Door Assembly With Reader  https://www.businessinsider.com/apple-mystery-device-a1844-photos-user-manual-2017-3 Satellite image of Apple Park by Apple Maps.

    57 min
  4. Leander Kahney - biographer of Tim Cook and Jony Ive

    27 JAN

    Leander Kahney - biographer of Tim Cook and Jony Ive

    In this special episode we interview Leander Kahney, editor of Cult of Mac, and author of New York Times best-selling biographies of Tim Cook and Jony Ive. During his three-decade career, working first at MacWEEK, then Wired News, and now as the editor of his own tech news website, Cult of Mac, Leander attended all the legendary Steve Jobs keynotes and interviewed some of Apple’s most senior executives.  Leander regales us with a wealth of fascinating Apple insights and anecdotes. He also shares his origin story as a war correspondent. Plus we learn how Cult of Mac became a thing… And why he wishes he’d never called it that. MERCH STORE Check out our merch store on Teepublic for retro-geek t-shirts, hoodies, sweatshirts, mugs, stickers, and more:  https://www.teepublic.com/stores/apple-core-podcast LINKS: Subscribe to Leander’s Cult of Mac Newsletter:  https://newsletters.cultofmac.com And check out Leander’s books: The Cult of Mac  https://www.amazon.com/Cult-Mac-Leander-Kahney/dp/1593271220/ The Cult of iPod  https://www.amazon.com/Cult-iPod-Leander-Kahney/dp/1593270666/ Inside Steve’s Brain  https://www.amazon.com/Inside-Steves-Brain-Leander-Kahney/dp/1591845513/ Jony Ive: The Genius Behind Apple's Greatest Products  https://www.amazon.com/dp/1591847060/ Tim Cook: The Genius Who Took Apple to the Next Level  https://www.amazon.com/dp/0525537600/ The Cult of Mac, 2nd Edition  https://www.amazon.com/Cult-Mac-2nd-Leander-Kahney/dp/1593279140/

    1h 3m
  5. Apple Maps - the unnecessary apology

    18/12/2024

    Apple Maps - the unnecessary apology

    Apple Maps launched alongside the original iPhone in 2007. Initially, it relied on map data from Google. But in 2012, when the two companies became smartphone rivals, Apple was forced to find an alternative data source. Opting to build its own map platform in-house, Apple attempted to replicate a product Google had developed over many years in a matter of months. Unsurprisingly, the results were not perfect. Users around the world reported bad directions, missing landmarks, and bizarre visual glitches. The fallout from the Apple Maps launch led to a rare apology from Tim Cook, and the departure of one of Apple’s most indispensable software engineers. But with the benefit of hindsight, the wisdom of Apple’s move into mapping has become clear. It enabled Apple to compete head-on with Android, and kickstarted Cupertino’s move into services. MERCH STORE Check out our merch store on Teepublic for retro-geek design t-shirts, hoodies, sweatshirts, mugs, stickers, and more:  https://www.teepublic.com/stores/apple-core-podcast LINKS The Verge report stating Apple’s deal with Google still had a year to run when Apple scrapped it:  https://www.theverge.com/2012/9/25/3407614/apple-over-a-year-left-on-google-maps-contract-google-maps-ios-app Tim Cook’s apology letter (via the Internet Archive):  https://web.archive.org/web/20121001005112/http://www.apple.com/letter-from-tim-cook-on-maps/ New York Times article on the brawl between Apple and Google in 2010:  https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/2010/03/14/technology/14brawl.html Wall Street Journal report on Apple’s acquisition of C3 Technologies from Saab:  https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304543904577398502695522974 Cult of Mac on firing of Richard Williamson:  https://www.cultofmac.com/apple-history/apple-maps-launch-disaster Scott Forstall tells the story of his interview with Steve Jobs at NeXT:  https://macdailynews.com/2020/05/22/scott-forstall-reveals-how-his-interview-with-steve-jobs-went/ Adam Lashinsky’s Inside Apple:  https://www.amazon.com/Inside-Apple-Americas-Admired-Secretive-Company/dp/1455512168/

    57 min
  6. Mac OS X - how Steve Jobs saved Apple’s crown jewel

    02/12/2024

    Mac OS X - how Steve Jobs saved Apple’s crown jewel

    In 1996, Apple was in serious trouble. The Mac was almost obsolete. Its multitasking was flaky, it couldn’t handle multiple processors, and it kept crashing. Sales were tanking as users switched to Windows NT in droves. Apple appointed a new CEO, Gil Amelio, to turn things around. He tried to replace the Mac’s System 7 with a new modern operating system he called Rhapsody. Amelio’s strategy wasn’t bad, but he failed to anticipate how difficult it would be to persuade Mac users and developers to switch platforms. Fortunately, Amelio selected NeXTSTEP as the core foundation of Rhapsody, and the acquisition of NeXT led to the fateful return of Steve Jobs. Over the following two years, Jobs ousted Amelio, fixed his flawed Rhapsody strategy, added a shiny UI that looked so good you could lick it, and rename the whole thing Mac OS X. LINKS Gil Amelio’s book: On the Firing Line: My 500 Days at Apple  https://www.amazon.com/Firing-Line-500-Days-Apple/dp/0887309186/ MacWorld Expo San Francisco January 7 1997 - Steve Jobs first keynote after his return to Apple:  https://youtu.be/QhhFQ-3w5tE?si=f0IIUmN-s_Ff0n0I WWDC, May 1998 at the San Jose Convention Center - Steve Jobs and Avi Tevanian introduce Mac OS X and Carbon:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03kTC0Sm7wc Macworld San Francisco January 2000 - Steve Jobs announces Aqua:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ko4V3G4NqII Screenshot of iMovie running on Mac OS 9 with Aqua controls, before Aqua was announced for Mac OS X:  https://x.com/mac_os_9/status/1080826112408662017 Interesting article about Steve Jobs and object oriented programming:  https://computerhistory.org/blog/the-deep-history-of-your-apps-steve-jobs-nextstep-and-early-object-oriented-programming/

    59 min
  7. NeXT - the secret to Apple’s salvation and success

    15/11/2024

    NeXT - the secret to Apple’s salvation and success

    The iPhone in your pocket, the Mac on your desk, and even the watch on your wrist are all based on NeXTSTEP, an operating system developed by a long forgotten computer maker called NeXT. Steve Jobs founded NeXT in 1985, just months after his humiliating departure from Apple. Jobs was determined to beat Apple at its own game by proving his new company was the next big thing in computing. But it didn’t work out that way. While NeXT’s iconic cube-shaped workstations gained a loyal following, they never sold in large numbers.  Despite many setbacks and failures, Jobs’ wilderness years at NeXT laid the foundation for decades of success that would follow. Apple’s acquisition of NeXT in 1997 proved to be one of the greatest mergers in business history. During his second tenure at Apple, Jobs oversaw the migration of the Mac onto his NeXTSTEP platform. Many of its quirky features, like the spinning beachball of death, are still recognizable in MacOS to this day. LINKS The full story of how Steve Jobs learned about 3M computers on a trip to Brown University - “What’s a megaflop?”:  https://www.folklore.org/Whats_A_Megaflop.html The NeXT logo, designed by Paul Rand:  https://www.logodesignlove.com/next-logo-paul-rand Try NeXTSTEP out for yourself on Infinite Mac:  https://infinitemac.org The NeXT Computer Tim Berners-Lee used to develop the world’s first Web browser at the Science Museum in London:  https://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/objects-and-stories/world-wide-web-global-information-space Check out these pics of NeXT’s HQ and *that* staircase:  https://allaboutstevejobs.com/pics/pics_places/next/next_hq NeXT cube Photograph by Rama, Wikimedia Commons, Cc-by-sa-2.0-fr  © Rama, Cc-by-sa-2.0-fr  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NeXT#/media/File:NEXT_Cube-IMG_7151.jpg Thanks to our sound engineer, Martin Algesten, for making us sound fabulous.

    57 min
  8. Apple Watch - what Tim Cook’s first product launch tells us about the future of Vision Pro

    28/10/2024

    Apple Watch - what Tim Cook’s first product launch tells us about the future of Vision Pro

    These days, Cupertino describes Apple Watch as “the ultimate device for a healthy life.” But it didn’t start out that way. When Tim Cook originally launched the product in 2014, he positioned it as an “intimate way to connect and communicate.” Over its ten year history, Apple Watch has pivoted more radically than any previous Apple product. The user interface has transformed to such an extent that even the Digital Crown and side button no longer perform their original functions. The story of how and why this happened reveals a deeper truth about Apple’s evolution. Under Steve Jobs, the company toiled for years in secret to develop perfectly conceived products. Whereas, under Tim Cook, Apple has released products earlier and learned from consumer reaction. This approach could have profound implications for the future of Vision Pro. Featuring special guest D. Griffin Jones from The CultCast and Cult of Mac. Sound engineering by Martin Algesten. LINKS Griffin mentioned this book - The Apple II Age: How the Computer Became Personal by Laine Nooney: https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/A/bo195231688.html Jony Ive and the battle of the big tent: https://www.macworld.com/article/696590/apple-expose-jony-ive-departure-apple-watch-tent.html Apple Event September 2014 “Wish we could say more”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38IqQpwPe7s Apple Event March 2015 “Spring forward”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2dVrpUxUhM Graham wrote an article about the evolution of watchOS: https://www.cultofmac.com/news/radical-evolution-of-watchos Griffin’s YouTube video about how he uses Vision Pro: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=im3_yq-LxMQ

    1h 1m
See All (15)

5
out of 5
7 Ratings

About

A podcast about the history of Apple. In each episode, hosts Graham Bower and Charlie Sorrel explore the story behind a different Apple product, and consider what it tells us about the company’s game plan and where it might be heading next.

Information

  • Creator
    Graham Bower and Charlie Sorrel
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2025
  • Episodes
    15
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2025 Apple Core
  • Show Website
    Apple Core

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