September 21, 1999: A little startup called Google comes out of beta, with the launch of a website that will let the general public easily search the internet for information.
To Apple, which is embracing the internet with its twin iMac G3 and iBook products, Google seems like the perfect ally. Sadly, the relationship doesn’t remain rosy for long.
September 18, 1989: Steve Jobs’ company NeXT Inc. ships version 1.0 of NeXTSTEP, its object-oriented, multitasking operating system.
Incredibly advanced for its time, NeXTSTEP is described by The New York Times as “Macintosh on steroids.” In an ironic twist, the operating system Jobs plans to use to compete with Cupertino turns out to be one of the things that saves Apple a decade later.
September 16, 1985 and 1997: Twice on this date, Steve Jobs makes significant moves with regard to his career at Apple. In 1985, he quits the company he co-founded. Then, more than two decades later, he officially rejoins the company as its new interim CEO.
In terms of the emotions associated with those historic occasions, it’s hard to think of two more polarizing days in Jobs’ life.
September 14, 2010: Airport security workers reportedly stop Steve Jobs at Japan’s Kansai International Airport. The reason? The Apple CEO supposedly tried to bring ninja throwing stars onto his private plane while heading home from vacation.
It’s one of the most bizarre Steve Jobs stories ever. Apple, however, quickly spoils the internet’s fun. Cupertino issues a statement describing the reports as “pure fiction” (although Apple acknowledges that Jobs visited Japan over the summer).
September 9, 2009: Steve Jobs makes his public return to Apple after successful liver-transplant surgery.
Appearing onstage at Apple’s fall event, Jobs receives a standing ovation that lasts almost a minute. He then opens the keynote on an unusually personal note by discussing his health.
September 7, 2005: Apple and Motorola launch the Rokr E1, the first Cupertino-sanctioned cellphone to run iTunes.
Steve Jobs is very unhappy with the results. The device shows that it’s a compromise to let an outside designer create a phone under the Apple banner. The company won’t make the same mistake twice.
September 4, 1997: The writing is on the wall for Apple’s Newton product line as Steve Jobs tells executives at the newly spun-off company not to bother moving into their new offices.
It’s quite the turnaround for the Newton division. Only months earlier, it was being portrayed as large enough to become its own company.
September 2, 1985: Reports claim Steve Jobs is on the verge of setting up his own company to compete with Apple. The rumors fly after Jobs sells Apple stock holdings worth $21.43 million.
For anyone who thinks speculation about Apple’s future is an invention of the blog era, today’s “Today in Apple history” is a reminder that the tech rumor mill was alive and well in 1985.
August 30, 2010: Just two years after opening its virtual doors, the iOS App Store passes a key milestone: one-quarter of a million apps for sale.
It’s a massive demonstration of success for a service Steve Jobs didn’t even initially want to offer.
August 27, 1999: Apple replaces the striped, multicolored logo it used since 1977 with a new single-color version.
The replacement of the iconic logo shocks many long-time Apple fans. However, it is part of a sustained, company-wide overhaul on the part of Steve Jobs. The makeover includes new products, the “Think Different” ad campaign, and eventually the removal of the word “Computer” from the company’s name.
