Analysis: How the Mac changed personal computing

The Mac was revolutionary when it first launched

Whatever your opinion of Apple and its Mac computers, few would dispute that they have been the most visible rival to the PC platform and the Windows operating system for almost as long as either has existed.

The Mac has had an enormous influence over the IT industry in general. While Apple did not invent either the graphical user interface (GUI) or the mouse input device, it was the first company to successfully combine these two concepts into a computer aimed at the mass market.

Apple's first attempt produced the Lisa. Shipping in 1983, this was a technical marvel but far too costly for the vast majority of buyers. A parallel project led to the introduction of the first Macintosh in 1984, which was simpler and cheaper, but still revolutionary compared with other commercially available computers at the time.

It's hard nowadays to realise just how different the Mac was when it launched. Most PCs of the same era came with text-only green or amber screens that were incapable of displaying graphics, and an operating system that required users to launch applications or copy files by keying in strings of commands.

In contrast, the Mac featured a desktop environment that would be familiar to today's computer users, enabling documents to be opened by double-clicking on the icon representing the relevant file, or moved by dragging with the mouse. Arguably, the PC did not approach the same level of ease of use until the launch of Windows 95, more than a decade later.

The Mac soon divided opinion between those who saw it as a mere toy, and those who welcomed the fact that it enabled non-technical users to start working with computers. But the Mac platform soon led to the appearance of other GUI systems such as Microsoft Windows, and the X Window protocol that forms the basis of most user interfaces used by Linux and Unix systems today.

Because of its graphics-driven user interface and built-in support for features like proportional fonts, the Mac also soon found a home in the creative industry and became the platform of choice for art packages and desktop publishing. This trend continues to this day, with many publishing companies using Macs on their production desk, even if the rest of the company runs Windows.

Apple remains one of the few computer vendors that develops both the hardware and software that goes into its systems. For Mac customers, this has had good and bad implications.

By retaining tight control over its products, the company has in the past been able to support useful technologies more quickly than PC makers, which have often had to wait for Microsoft to build support into Windows.

For example, early Macs made the SCSI interface a standard feature, which made it easy to connect a range of hardware such as external hard drives, scanners and printers. Later Macs supported the IEEE.1394 FireWire interface as standard, which cemented the Mac as the platform of choice for digital audio and video work.

However, Apple has been criticised for not opening up its operating system to third-party vendors (except very briefly in the mid-1990s), in order to create a larger mass market akin to that of Windows PCs.

The implication was that Apple had created a cosy lock-in for itself, where it could dictate the price buyers pay, while PC vendors competed with each other to deliver the best customer value. In the UK at least, Mac models were often pricey compared with PCs of a similar specification.

As the Mac passes its 25th anniversary, it bears little resemblance to the original save perhaps for the concept of a computer easy enough for almost anyone to use. Current Macs are now based on the same Intel processor chips as the rival PC platform, while the Mac operating system is now built on solid Unix foundations.

Although representing only a fraction of the overall personal computer market, sales of Macs are higher than ever. This can perhaps be attributed in part to the so-called 'halo' effect from consumers happy with their iPod, while cynics might also point to the dismal reception that buyers gave to Windows Vista.

Whichever reason you believe, the future of the Mac seems reasonably secure, at least for the near term.