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Jordaan Ramirez-Jennings
Leslie Drake
Research Techniques
3/28/16
How Has the Evolution of Apple Changed the World?
Abstract
This paper discusses how Apple has impacted the world. Not just with technology, but as well as
people. The focus of the paper will be on six different topics. That has truly impacted the world
and the people. Those six topics are: the evolution of the brand, the Macintosh, the operation
system, the iPod, the iPhone, and the death of Steve Jobs. All of these have been extremely
helpful in the evolution of Apple and how they have impacted the world. The six items will be
discussed in the order they happened. The purpose of this paper will be to inform the reader that
Apple is not just a computer company. To show that they have had success that has really
changed the scope of things. As well as how people connected with Apple and how the death of
the face of Apple Steve Jobs really affected people. The majority of the information in this paper
will be from scholarly articles, with firm evidence supporting them.
Introduction
Since Jobs and Wozniak first started Apple, they liked to proclaim they were inventing
the future with products that would change the world. Even when co-founder Steve Jobs left
Apple, that attitude still stayed with the company. With many experts that visionary impulse
came across as stubbornness, with Apple ignoring what the experts say. Although no computer
based company in the past few decades has been nearly as innovated as Apple. Even when it

doesn't win the market, Apple defines the market time and again. It is all because several things,
the brand, the Macintosh, OS-X, the iPod, the iPhone, and Steve Jobs.
The Evolution of the Brand
The brand of Apple was not always so simple, with the little apple with a bite taken out of
it. Although the current logo the company has is easily recognized today. Apple has had tons of
success, but often lost in the success story is that Apples brand has made two deliberate shifts in
its strategy that helped it sustain its tremendous growth (D. Taylor). According to David Taylor
Apples first logo looked more like an elaborate woodcut image from the 18th century. Apple
made a very smart move though and changed this 18th century logo to something that was more
familiar with the times. As soon as Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak began to produce
commercially viable computers, they switched to the now-familiar apple shape but with rainbow
coloring and began crafting a brand, which was clearly innovative (D. Taylor).
As time went on Apple changed its brand logo again. Apples new product concepts
promised to revolutionize the world of music and communications, so in 2007, it moved its
brand up another level, this time dropping the word computer from its name and becoming
simply Apple. The new brand modernized the apple icon without changing its shape and moved
to a much-imitated clean, white look that can be seen in Apples packaging, advertising and now
in its incredibly successful retail stores (D. Taylor). To David Taylor one key to Apples
successful brand evolution was what he calls strategic harmony. Apple has always had
innovation at the core of its brand concept, but it has found different ways to position it,
depending on the strategy of the company.
The source used above comes from the article A complete brand evolution: Apple goes
from David to Goliath by David Taylor, published in 2013. It focuses on how the evolution of

the brand really helped push apple. The articles intended audience would be scholarly. David
Taylor is the author of this source, he is president of Lancaster based Taylor Brand Group, which
specializes in brand development and marketing technology. The purpose of this article would be
to inform readers on how Apple went from a simple two-man start-up company, to Goliath.
Macintosh Effect
The article Heres how Apple products have evolved over the years (Colt, 2014)
focuses on several things Apple did to change the world. This website article was posted the 18th
of August 2014. The intended audience of the site is general readers. The author of this source is
Sam Colt; his credentials are he formerly covered Apple for Business Insider. He is also
previously written for Patch, Mic, BI, and others. This article is important because it covers a
wide range of products, all the way from the beginning of Apple to 2014.
The second source used was 10 ways Apple really has changed the (tech) world
published on the 9th of September in 2014. It was written by Galen Gruman, who is an executive
editor for InfoWorld. He analyzes the latest issues in mobile technology, the changing role of IT,
and user-facing technology according to InfoWorld. The audience of this source would be
general readers, because it is not a scholarly article. This article is important to the research
because it would help with defining key points in Apples impact.
In 1984, Apple released its first personal computer, the Macintosh. This is where Apple's
success in consumer hardware really began (S. Colt). The Macintosh was the computer that
defined all other computers. When people think about the Macintosh a great majority think Steve
Jobs created it. Although Steve Jobs didn't create the Mac, but he did create the mythos around it
and recognized that it foreshowed a new, better way to use computers. Ironically, even with Mac
being horribly expensive it became the symbol of computing for everyone, a device for real

people who only saw computers as tools used only by engineers and scientists (G. Gruman,
Pg.2). Microsoft took the core principles of the Mac's graphical, direct-manipulation interface,
itself inspired by work at Xerox PARC, and brought them to Windows, delivering the promise of
the Mac to the masses for real (G. Gruman, Pg.2). Today, the approach pioneered by the Mac is
simply how computers work.
The third source used to cover the Macintosh effect is 5 ways the Macintosh changed
creativity forever, published on the 30th of January, 2014. The intended audience would be
general readers, who enjoy reading about creativity and art. The author of this source is Luke
Dormehl, a journalist and award-winning documentary filmmaker. This article is important to the
research because it helps talk about a key aspect of the Macintosh.
One way the Macintosh impacted the world, was its creativity side. The Mac turned
computers into tools for creating art. Just a few decades before the Macintosh, computers filled
entire rooms, weighed a ridiculous amount, and did not have a signal monitor. After the
Macintosh, computers were opened up to group of people. For example: writers, artists,
musicians and designers, who had previously had no use for them (L. Dormehl). Bill Atkinson a
computer engineer who worked on the Mac had this to say "We were trying to make a machine
that a person with an artists or a musicians sensibilities would want to use (L. Dormehl). He
continued saying "Its not a matter of could they use it; we wanted to create something they
would enjoy using" (L. Dormehl). Atkinsons chief contribution to the Macintosh was the
creation of MacPaint, "Nobody signed me up to create it," he says, "I did it because I wanted to"
(L. Dormehl).

OS X Operating System
Another one of Apples key to their accomplishments and impact was the thing that
makes the computers run the way they do. That would be the OS X operating system. According
to Galen Gruman no operating system does it best. For Apple today this is the core of the Mac,
Apple's Unix-based operating system that remains the leader in understanding and ease of use,
yet offers high-level capabilities from data detectors to malware detection that actually work.
The tight incorporation and intentionality of the OS and Apple's bundled apps create a superior
experience, even if many users don't access much of what they could (G. Gruman, Pg.3). In its
15 years of existence, OS X has pulled off the neat trick of evolving significantly while working,
as you'd expect. Each version arrives fresh and familiar, says Galen Gruman. Microsoft
certainly hasn't had that happy result in its Windows versions over that same period, with two
wins and two flops (G. Gruman, Pg.3).
The source used below comes from the article Apple products outshine windows,
Android in enterprise, survey shows (Reisinger, 2015). The article was published on the 11th of
December in 2015. The author of this source is Don Reisinger, a freelance technology columnist,
and has written extremely popular columns for CNET. The audience of this source would be
scholarly. The purpose of this source would be to inform readers on how Apple products staying
ahead of their competitors. This article is important to the research because it talks about how the
OS X software is favored more.
When it comes to the corporate world with businesses, a higher majority prefers this
software. This is because of the fact that OS X is easy to use, and the security it offers. JAMF a
software expert company on Apple software ran several surveys to support this claim. They

asked IT professionals to compare OS X to Windows. The company found that 64 percent of

respondents believe Macs are "easier to manage" than computers running Windows or Linux. In
addition, three-quarters of IT professionals said that their interest in Macs is due to OS X being
"more secure" than Windows (D. Reisinger).
The iPod
The next item is one of Jobs crowing jewels while he was at Apple. A device that would
change the music world, and the way people listen to music. That device was the iPod that came
out in 2001. After Steve Jobs' 12-year journey with Next and Pixar, he returned to his first home
Apple and came up with the iPod. MP3 players already existed, but none really mattered. The
ruler at the time was the Walkman by Sony. A heavy rectangular box, that was heavy and a hassle
to carry around. Steve Jobs saw a product that would change that all, that would let people carry
thousands of songs. Instead of lugging around a heavy brick weight.
So in 2001, the iPod changed all that, thanks to a better user experience. It also changed
the music industry: Songs now mattered, not albums, and with the iTunes Store, Apple shifted
the distribution of music from physical stores to downloading music from home (G. Gruman, Pg.
4). The music business and the way people listen to music in 2014 bears little resemblance to the
experience in 2001.
The article The iPod turns 10: How it shaped music history (Miller, 2011) was used to
help further the research. It was written by Jared T. Miller, a multimedia journalist from New
York, he graduated from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University with a
bachelor's degree in journalism and a concentration in Spanish. Jared has won staff awards from
the National Press Photographer's Association for photo editing at Newsweek, and awards from
the Society of Professional Journalists for his work in video. The intended audience of this

source would be general readers. This article is important to the research because it helps explain
the iPods impact.
The device was also one of the first released by Apple to redefine an industry. The
iPhone and iPad that came after it were revolutionary in their own right, but it was the iPod that
first explored the notion of a touch-sensitive device that also doubled as a status symbol (J.
Miller). Before it, we had a relatively unwieldy Walkman as our only option for mobile music.
Apple replaced it with a sleek slab of metal and white plastic, whose luxury status quickly gave
way to total ubiquity, and inspired generations of copycat products that still fail to outsell it (J.
Miller). Successive generations refined a physical wheel and buttons into progressively
minimalist control schemes, and primed the company and consumers for the engrossingly touchsensitive experience of the iPhone.
Like many Apple products, the iPod wasnt the first device of its kind. Although, like
many examples of Jobs legacy, it was the product that did it best; it was the first to show
listeners that a piece of technology could be more than useful; it could be cool, and eventually
impossible to imagine living without (J. Miller).
The iPhone
The next revolutionary product that really changed Apple and the world is the iPhone.
Galen Gruman stated the end of the cell phone, the beginning of mobile computing he said this
for several reasons. When the iPhone debuted in 2007, InfoWorld's Tom Yager ridiculed it as a
$1,975 iPod, due to its required data plan. A year later, Apple debuted the App Store, and the
iPhone was no longer an iPod that could just make calls (G. Gruman, Pg.5).
Apple smartly created several rich apps such as iMovie, GarageBand, Pages, Keynote,
and Numbers. To this day are unmatched as mobile apps and show that a smartphone isn't a
cellphone that supports email, as the once-dominant BlackBerry had been, but a computer in its

own right (G. Gruman). Apple had this vision back in 1993 with its Newton MessagePad, which
clearly presages the iPhone of 2007 and which was a complete flop for Apple.
Just like the OS X software being favored in businesses so is the iPhone. The iPhone
rules the workforce in corporate offices. The iPhone is by far the most popular smartphone in the
corporate world (D. Reisinger). In fact, JAMF found that 84 percent of companies currently
allow iPhone usage in the office. The IT professionals say the iPhone benefits from its "intuitive
design" and overall "better user experience" (D. Reisinger). As well as just like the software easy
to use and the security it offers to the customers.
To understand the iPhones impact more, one needs to look at the source from Heather
Kelly. The article titled 5 ways the iPhone changed our lives published on the 30 th of June,
2012. The intended audience of the article would be general readers. The author is Heather Kelly,
a technology reporter for CNN. Heather has reported on the major technology players including
Apple, Google, Facebook, Twitter and Microsoft. She's written about innovative new
technologies, examined how smartphones are changing our culture, and spent quality time with
drones and robots. She also has a degree in journalism from NYU. This source is important
because it examines 5 key aspects of the iPhones impact.
Overall the iPhone may have helped kill the BlackBerry, but it gave birth to a new
beefed-up genre of mobile devices. Google went on to release its own more developer-friendly
mobile operating system, Android. Microsoft threw its hat into the ring with Windows Phone OS.
Most major mobile phone companies now produce touchscreen smartphones. Some might say
the iPhone and its cousin, the iPod Touch, helped spawn the larger iPad, with its identical
touchscreen interface (H. Kelly). That hit device was birthed in 2010 and quickly created a new
gadget market, leaving rivals scrambling to catch up. Now Amazon, Google and Microsoft all
have new or forthcoming tablets.

The iPhone's popularity as a portable gaming device also helped usher in a new era of
mobile gaming. Five years after the iPhone hit the market -- and the culture -- the tech industry
as a whole is thriving and innovating. It probably won't be another five years before the next big
thing shakes up technology again.
Steve Jobs
The final part of the research used 3 different sources. The first one being The real
legacy of Steve Jobs (Tetzeli, 2015) written by Rick Tetzeli. The intended audience of the
source would be a scholarly audience. Rick Tetzeli is the executive editor of Fast Company, has
covered technology for two decades. He is the former deputy editor of Fortune, and editor of
Entertainment Weekly. This source is important because it gives a good idea of who Steve Jobs
was.
The second source used is How Steve Jobs changed the world (Nath, 2015) published
by Investopedia. The articles intended audience would be general readers, who are interested in
Steve Jobs impact. The author of this source is Trevir Nath, graduated in 2011 from Rutgers
University with a Bachelors in Economics & Psychology. His Psychology and Economics
degrees increased his understanding of financial markets from a human behavior perspective.
Looking to further his understanding of financial markets, he went on to obtain his Masters in
Economics from the New School graduating in May 2014. He focused his research efforts in
macroeconomic effects in developing countries with econometric analysis. This source is
important to the research because it gives key aspects in Jobs impact to the world.
The final source used to help explain Steve Jobs impact was the article titled Well miss
you Steve: How the death of a technology innovator emotionally impacts those who use and love
his digital devices (Przybylski, 2012). The intended audience of this source would be a
scholarly audience. The author of this source is Andrew K. Przybylski, who is the Department of

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Psychology at the University of Essex, and is a doctor. This article is important to the research
because it can help explain how Jobs death not only effected the company but the people who
bought his products.
The final ingredient to Apples success and impact would be the main guy himself, Steve
Jobs. Because without him, who knows where computers would be today. Would we still have
the technology with smart phones that we have now. Eventually, someone might have come up
with these ideas of innovation, but it was Steve who really pushed it into existence.
Steve Jobs was an interesting man for several reasons. For one he dropped out of college
and stated a soon to be multimillion dollar company from his garage. Many people would say he
was a crazy man, and others would say he is a great man. For instance, Susan Barnes was the
financial manager for the Mac team and CFO of NeXT Computer. She left NeXT because she
believed Steve was squandering its capital. Steve totally cut her off, immediately, turning off her
email and phone the day she resigned. Yet Barnes was deeply emotional when recalling Jobs,
You read the books, and you cant understand why anyone would ever work for this guy, she
continued saying, He is an amazing boss (R. Tetzeli).
Steve was someone with a deep hunger for learning, who breathed in an education
wherever he could find it (R. Tetzeli). Powell Jobs goes so far as to call him a learning
machine. He learned from his many failures and relentlessly applied those lessons. Although
like most of us, he tried to use what he learned to take better advantage of his strengths and
temper his weaknesses (R. Tetzeli). It was a lifelong effort, and, like most of us, he succeeded in
some ways and failed in others. Steve was always changing, thinking of him this way casts him
in a very different light from the more common view of him as a stubborn force of nature.
Many people saw him as a self-centered human being. That is not the case because he did
lots of work with different charities, and helping the environment. As seen at NeXT, Pixar and
Apple, Jobs had a visible role in the success of products and companies. However, behind the

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scenes Jobs was known by a select few as a philanthropist. The article by Trevir Nath stated,
While his philanthropic efforts were rarely made public, many have attested to Jobs charitable
nature. Jobs donated over $50 million to Stanford hospitals and contributed to various projects to
fight AIDS. As a philanthropist, Jobs goal wasnt to be recognized, but to help those who needed
it.
How Jobs helped the environment had to do with his companys products. Not only are
Apple products innovative, they are also environmentally friendly. Jobs promoted an initiative
for environmentally friendly products during his time as CEO. Apple utilizes eco-conscious
materials such as recycled plastics and papers in its products to conserve global resources (T.
Nath).
Eventually the world lost this great man on October 5th, 2011. His death not only
impacted the company, but people of the general population and the people who actually used his
devices. Steve Jobs death was accompanied by public mourning; millions who did not know
him personally expressed grief at his passing (A. Przybylski). Studies from Andrew Przybylski
research showed that people who already had his devices felt closer to these items and sadness
about his death. Further, his research suggests that it was these psychological affordances, which
created a closer relationship between people and their technology, and this experience extended
to the creator of the devices, Steve Jobs.
In conclusion, as the initial creator of upscale user-friendly mechanisms, Steve Jobs and
Apples accomplishments in technology continued to have profound effects today. The
competition created from the introduction of the Macintosh, OS X, iPod, and iPhone has
revolutionized the technology industry. Consumers have benefited from developments in phones
and computing and have a wider array of choices when purchasing computers, phones, and
tablets.

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Works Cited
Colt, Sam. "Here's How Apple's Products Have Evolved Over The Years. Business Insider.
Business Insider, Inc., 18 Aug. 2014. Web. 30 Mar. 2016.
Dormehl, Luke. "5 Ways The Macintosh Changed Creativity Forever. Co.Design. Co.Design,
30 Jan. 2014. Web. 30 Mar. 2016.
Gruman, Galen. "10 Ways Apple Really Has Changed the (tech) World. InfoWorld. InfoWorld, 9
Sept. 2014. Web. 28 Mar. 2016.
Kelly, Heather. "5 Ways the IPhone Changed Our Lives." CNN. Cable News Network, 30 June
2012. Web. 30 Mar. 2016.
Miller, Jared T. "The IPod Turns 10: How It Shaped Music History | TIME.com." Time. Time, 21
Oct. 2011. Web. 30 Mar. 2016.
Nath, Trevir. How Steve Jobs Changed The World, Investopedia. Investopedia. Investopedia,
28 Jan. 2015. Web. 30 Mar. 2016.
Przybylski, Andrew K. Well Miss You Steve: How The Death Of A Technology Innovator
Emotionally Impacts Those Who Use And Love His Digital Devices. Cyber Psychology,
Behavior & Social Networking 15.7 (2012): 335-338. Psychology and Behavioral Sciences
Collection. Web. 30 Mar. 2016.
Reisinger, Don. "Apple Products Outshine Windows, Android In Enterprises, Survey
Shows." Eweek (2015): 1. Business Source Premier. Web. 30 Mar. 2016.
Taylor, David. "A complete brand evolution: Apple goes from David to Goliath." Central Penn
Business Journal 17 May 2013: 15. Regional Business News. Web. 28 Mar. 2016.

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Tetzeli, Rick. The Real Legacy Of Steve Jobs. Fast Company 194 (2015): 70-76. Business
Source Premier. Web. 30 Mar. 2016.