1984: the birth of a digital graphic designer

How the Macintosh transformed a newly-minted, traditional graphic artist into a digital graphic designer.

- Lynne Browne, IDT 507, Module 4

www.apple.com/30-years/1984/

Armed with a an AAS Degree in Advertising Design, I got my first “real” job in the fall of 1983 working at PAR Technology in their graphics department.

We sat at drafting tables all day, using tech pens, X-Acto knives, templates, and a Kroy lettering machine to create technical drawings for the engineering department.

The clunk, clunk, clunk, of the Kroy machine could drive you crazy–and you had to be very accurate in your typing, otherwise, you had to splice out your mistakes.

This was the norm until....

Artist April Greiman, from the Apple history time line: www.apple.com/30-years/1986/

1984

The Macintosh was introduced in January 1984 in the now-famous “Superbowl Ad.” Sometime that spring, the computer technicians where I worked brought two computers to our office, plopped them down and told us to use them for our drawings instead of our tech pens, Kroy lettering and drafting boards.

No training. No help. Nada. And we didn’t need it.

http://www.apple.com/30-years/1984/

Apple Macintosh Introduced January 24, 1984 Cost: $2,495 RAM: 128k Processor Speed 8 MHz Hard Drive: None Floppy Drive: 400K manual Monitor: 9” monochrome Size 13.6” x 9.6” x 10.9” Weight 16.5 lbs

Software

We used MacDraw almost exclusively for creating flowcharts and other technical drawings. We still needed to use some rub-down Letraset products (like arrowheads) because they were not initially available in the program.

The computer was easy to use and we were excited about learning how to use a mouse. We were pioneers in learning how to make a circle, add text to it, and then duplicate the circle.

We celebrated our victories, and relished that we didn’t have to use computer prompts and commands like the computer nerds.

As designers, the Macintosh was the perfect tool that made our lives 1,000 times easier.

MacPaint (bitmap-based painting) MacWrite (word processing) MacDraw (vector-based drawing) Flowchart Example

• 3.5 floppy disks had to be swapped back and forth between the system disk and another disk to save files.

• An external hard drive available in May 1984 allowed users to save files to a 3.5 floppy disk without having to swap them in the internal disk drive. The cost for the drive was $495.

www.everymac.com/systems/apple/mac_classic/specs/mac_128k.html www.aanda.org/articles/aa/full/2008/03/aa8568-07/img33.gif www.ebay.com/itm/Early-Macintosh-Disks-1984-85-SystemMacwrite-Macpaint-Disk-Tools-etc-/251488106670

Affordances

• Easy to use interface allowed more people to become computer users. The friendly smiling face when started, to the folders and trash can, were user-friendly and not scary.

• Portability of the machine meant that the Macintosh could be moved and used in more than one place (16.5 lbs). A special bag could be purchased to take the machine anywhere that had a place to plug it in.

• MacWrite, MacPaint, and MacDraw were easy to use programs and allowed users to create and save documents to a floppy disk.

• Users could make changes to the documents they created by easily retrieving them from the disk.

Uses and Gratifications

• Users felt a sense of accomplishment by being able to figure out how to use the computer and create and print their own documents.

• The need to go to a professional designer and/or typesetter was diminished because a person could “do it themself” with this easy-to-use computer and user-friendly software.

Image right: Page 1 of the 18-page introduction brochure featured in magazines in December 1983. (Bill Gates appears in this brochure on page 11.) www.macmothership.com/gallery/Newsweek/p001.jpg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_Inc._advertising

Affordances

• Ability to take text and artwork created on the Mac and laser print as “camera ready” artwork (vs. dot-matrix printers) • Postscript allowed more fonts to be used and at a higher resolution • Speed of which it could print (8-pages per minute) was fast for the time • The AppleTalk network allowed multiple computers to use the printer and make the cost per machine for printing less expensive

1985

John Warnock had left Xerox to found Adobe Systems in order to commercialize PostScript in a laser printer they intended to market. Steve Jobs was aware of Warnock’s efforts and worked on convincing Warnock to allow Apple to license PostScript for a new printer that Apple would sell. Negotiations between Apple and Adobe over the use of Postscript began in 1983. An agreement was reached in December 1983, one month before the Macintosh was announced. Jobs eventually arranged for Apple to buy $2.5 million in Adobe stock.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_Laserwriter

Cost: $6,995 Serial or LocalTalk ports Speed - 8 pages per minute Postscript language

The term desktop publishing is coined by Aldus Corporation’s Paul Brainerd for the PageMaker application. When the program is released in 1985 it changes the publishing industry almost overnight. lowendmac.com/2004/killing-quark-three-layout-alternatives/ www.theappletimeline.com/images/color1000.jpg

1986 The Macintosh Plus is introduced.

The LaserWriter is improved.

As far as my job goes, I’m getting bored making flow charts in MacDraw. I test a proposed system that is touted as a great system to make colored slides/ overheads and give it the thumbs down. I’ve seen PageMaker in action, and I want to do more. I continue to develop my computer skills and start looking for a new job.

Image left: This 1986 advertisement shows the MacPlus with an external hard drive. The external hard drive eliminates the need to swap disks to save files.

$40,000 Bitmapped Slides

A third party company attempted to sell PAR a computer system that created color overhead slides. The cost of this system was approximately $40,000 and consisted of a Macintosh Plus (not included in the price) and their proprietary software and hardware additions. The software used with this system was MacPaint which was a bad idea because the text was bitmapped and could not be easily manipulated if there was a change to the slide. It was a fun tool, but not a good fit for the needs of the company at that time. A 35mm camera could be used to make film slides or another adapter could make 8 x 10 Polaroid transparencies.

Uses & Gratifications

• I was able to use click art and drawing skills to make creative artwork instead of the boring, black and white flowcharts.

• The system was not useful for slides or overheads as the company pitch described. However, it was fun to colorize the black and white images created in MacPaint.

Artwork created by Lynne Browne in 1986/87 with MacPaint and “click art.”

Colorized with the $40,000 system and saved to Kodak slides.

1987

The Macintosh SE is introduced in March I started a new job at a small printing company in downtown Utica in September of 1987. The building was falling down but the computer was top of the line for desktop publishing purposes.

The owners of this “mom and pop” print shop struck a deal with Sears and Roebuck in the local mall to create a space where users could rent time on the computers. There were five stations with Macintosh SEs to rent by the half hour. Most customers used their time to print because they could not afford to purchase their own laser printer.

Cost: $2,900 (dual floppy) $3,900 (with 20 MB hard drive) RAM: onboard 0 MB, 4 MB max Processor Speed: 8 MHz Hard Drive: Optional 20MB Monitor: 9” monochrome Size: 13.6” x 9.6” x 10.9” Weight 17 lbs Floppy Drive: 1 or 2 800K 3.5”

PageMaker vs. QuarkExpress 1987 was an exciting time in the desktop publishing world. QuarkExpress was introduced and began to compete with Aldus PageMaker. Both programs were expensive and took some time to learn. Once a company chose one or the other, they typically stayed with that program because it was cheaper to upgrade. I started with PageMaker and stuck with that program throughout my print career. Quark became the program that higher-end design firms seemed to choose over PageMaker.

Affordances

• PageMaker and Quark become the software of choice for desktop publishing and graphic design.

• Each program allows users to create brochures, business cards and other types of printed materials.

• Adding click art to the document can be done on the computer instead of at the drafting board.

• Printed to a laser printer, designers can now easily create camera-ready artwork, especially helpful and a huge cost savings for a small printing business.

www.guidebookgallery.org/splashes/pagemaker www.guidebookgallery.org/splashes/quarkxpress

http://switch2mac.blog.zive.cz/files/2010/12/pagemaker12.gif

1987

Macintosh II is introduced on March 2...

The first color-capable Macintosh

Affordances • • • •

Those who could afford this high-end machine could see their projects in color.

Faster processor speeds allowed for more complex work Larger internal hard drives afforded additional space for saving files The first “open Mac” this computer had 6 NuBus slots which made expansion and customization of the computer easier than the “closed” models.

Cost: $5,500+ (video card sold separately) RAM: onboard 1-4 MB Processor Speed: 16 MHz Hard Drive: 40-80MB Size: 5.5” x 18.7” x 14.4” Weight 24 lbs Floppy Drive: 1 or 2 800K 3.5” The first color-capable Macintosh and set a new standard for color in the computer industry by supporting true color (16.7 million colors) courtesy of the new Color QuickDraw language in ROM.

www.everymac.com/systems/apple/mac_ii/specs/mac_ii.html appleinsider.com/articles/07/10/25/road_to_mac_os_x_leopard_quicktime_itunes_and_media_features

1988

Macintosh IIx is released on September 19 And, Matt Groening creates an poster for Apple using his Life is Hell characters in exchange for a laser writer.

Affordances

• The poster pokes fun at PC users and how difficult it is to network their computers by using the cartoon characters from the “Life is Hell” books by Matt Groening.

• The artwork establishes a connection between Groening and Apple. In 1989 he creates a brochure aimed at selling Macintosh computers to college students called “Who Needs a Computer Anyway?”

vintagezen.com/zen/2013/2/26/matt-groenings-artwork-for-apple

vintagezen.com/zen/2013/2/26/matt-groenings-artwork-for-apple

1989

The local Pennysaver purchases the printing company I work for and I’m moved from the mall location to their headquarters to work at OMP Printing. The new computer (SE/30) and I replace 4 people (typesetters, and layout people.) I work on the offset printing side of the house and create brochures, catalogs, business cards, and other small 1 and 2 color jobs.

Cost: $4,369 Onboard RAM: 0 MB RAM Slots 8, upgradable to 32 MB Processor Speed 16 MHz Hard Drive: 40-80 MB Monitor: 9� built-in Floppy Disk Drive: 1.4 MB SuperDrive Dimensions: 13.6" H x 9.6" W x 10.9" D Weight: 19.5 lbs.

Adobe Photoshop is Released March 1989

Affordances

• Users can upload images, manipulate them, and then add to any document.

• Although somewhat difficult to learn, once experienced with the program, more photos can be manipulated in a shorter period of time at a considerable cost savings than to have them “shot,” touched up, and separated into four-color overlays (or black and white) for printing.

• The downside at this time is slides and photos need to be scanned at high-resolution because digital photography was in its infancy.

John and Thomas Knoll invent Photoshop. This invention helped change design and photography forever.

Before that, photos were manipulated by hand in the darkroom. Originally developed on the Mac, Photoshop gave photographers new, faster ways to manipulate images and allowed them to push creative boundaries.

It’s become so embedded in culture that whenever someone alters a photo, the name of the application is used to describe what they did.

www.apple.com/30-years/1989/ www.guidebookgallery.org/splashes/photoshop

1990

I apply for a job in the School Communications Department at a local BOCES and get it based on my computer skills and ability to manage multiple projects.

Although the pay is not great, the department head buys the best available equipment and rotates new machines in when possible.

Working with more than 20 school districts and departments requires multiple programs to create and manage projects. This computer helps get the job done.

Cost: $6,700 Onboard RAM: 0 MB RAM Slots (8, upgradable to 128 MB) Processor Speed 25 MHz Hard Drive: 40-80 MB Monitor: 13” (separate) Floppy Disk Drive: 1.4 MB SuperDrive Dimensions: 5.5” H x 11.9” W x 14.4” D Weight: 13.6 lbs. apple-history.com/iici

Affordances

• The fast processor and memory capability allow for more work to be done in a shorter period of time.

• Storage allows users to keep and organize files on the hard drive.

• More complex software packages can be used because the computer can handle the requirements.

• The CPU is easy to open and add more RAM when funds are available to purchase upgrades.

1991-1995

I remain at my job in the School Communications Office working with school districts to create their publications. We purchase Syquest 44MB ad 88MB drives to store all of our documents, then proceed to Zip Drives that are smaller and can hold as much information. Apple continues to launch newer and better products including a portable computer called the PowerBook in October 1991.

In 1994, we explore digital photography with the purchase of an iCamera (released in February 1994 for $749 )but the size and quality of the photos are still not good enough for our publications and continue to shoot black and white film that we use a proportion wheel to size and let our print shop manually strip the images (they were not equipped to use Photoshop.)

In 1995, my boss goes out on maternity leave and her position is filled by a temp worker. The temp service guy describes a new thing he is making: Web pages and I am intrigued. I buy a book “Create Your Own Home Page” and teach myself how to make web pages in my spare time. My boss comes back and I show her the website I made (by today’s standards, it was awful) and attempt to explain why I think websites will be very important in the future and why I should be able to get more training. However I don’t convince her and continue to work on the same old projects – but start honing my website making skills so I can look for a new job. www.cnet.com/news/the-icamera-a-look-back-at-apples-first-digital-camera/

The apple sticker we all wanted to show how cool we were.

www.vintagecomputing.com/wp-content/images/retroscan/apple_sticker_large.jpg