“Think different” was the slogan used by Apple in advertising 1997–2002, and is still used in some circumstances as of 2021. The “Think different” concept was created by advertising agency TBWA\Chiat\Day while working with Apple and Steve Jobs. “Think different” was used in its original concept in a TV commercial and in print/digital advertisements, and the “Think different” slogan was used as part of many TV commercials, print/digital ads, and on product packaging. This advertising campaign was notable in that its original concept did not feature Apple products, just iconic cultural figures that Apple selected to represent their ideals.
Several series of Think different ads were released. The final set of five film directors was never released to the public in poster format, but was run as magazine ads in 2000. This series featured John Huston, Orson Welles, Charlie Chaplin, Francis Ford Coppola, and Frank Capra.
I was able to collect four of five of these magazine ads (I do not have Frank Capra). Each of these ads has been laminated and measures approximately 8 x 10.5 inches.
This “Create. Share. Inspire.” schedule was distributed at the National Educational Computing Conference (NECC) in Atlanta that was held in June 2007. This organization and conference are still held annually, but the conference changed its name around 2010 to the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) Conference.
This trifold brochure measures 4.25 x 6 inches with the message:
Welcome. Inside the Apple booth, you’ll find innovative tools, students can use to express their creativity. You’ll see the latest technologies for sharing content. And you’ll discover powerful ways to inspire students. Join us each day in the Apple booth for hands-on sessions where you’ll learn how to engage students, raise achievement, and manage your digital classroom.
Fully unfolded, six hands-on workshop sessions are described. Session titles include: Let’s Go Global—Using iLife and iWork in Project-Based Learning Meeting Diverse Learner Needs—Built-in Tools on a Mac Publishing Student Voices—Podcasting in the Classroom Managing the Digital Classroom—Tips and Tools for Teachers Creative Expression—Expanding Reading and Writing in the Digital Classroom What’s Hot at Apple?—Bringing Innovation to Learning
This brochure is a horizontal 8-panel, accordion-folded print advertisement with the title “Everything is easier on a Mac.” It is printed in full color on both sides and measures 4.375 x 5.75 inches folded. It is 35 inches wide when fully unfolded.
The front and back covers are similar and depict a Mac OS X (version 10.1) Finder with menu bar, Dock with icons, and the aqua blue default desktop wallpaper. Each panel depicts a single image along with a headline and paragraph explaining the feature. For example, the first panel shows a power button image and the text:
Getting started. Just plug in your Mac, connect it to your phone line, and turn it on. Then let the Apple Setup Assistant guide you through the rest. It automatically registers you with Apple, sets up your Internet connection, and gets you a Mac.com email address. From the moment you take it out of the box, you’ll be up and running in less than 10 minutes.
The panels on one side include the headlines: Getting started. Sending email. Surfing the net. Instant messaging. Enjoying your photos. Sharing files. Managing your music. Listening on the go.
The panels on the other side include the headlines: Making movies. Creating DVDs. Learning. Going wireless. Adding peripherals. AppleCare.
This mini-brochure measures 3 x 4.5 inches folded. Fully unfolded, the trifold layout pictures a Power Mac G3 blue and white tower with the door open and call-out text referring to various features such as drive bays, processor, and memory. The copy reads:
“When we set out to build a successor to the power Macintosh G3, we didn’t just refine it. We completely reinvented it. The new power Macintosh G3 gives you more in every way. It’s the most powerful, expandable—and dare we say, revolutionary—Mac ever built.”
In the early 2000s, Apple Education hosted education events at conferences, schools, and at their Executive Briefing Centers. These events often included providing printed materials to attendees on various topics, product brochures, and/or event agendas.
This small collection of Apple Education folders from 2000–2002 included three different folders from Apple Education. Each folder measures 9 x 12 inches and includes two internal pockets.
In the book Getting Started: A guide for your Apple Mobile Learning Lab, Apple Education outlines the necessary steps to successfully implement a mobile computer cart outfitted with laptops, Wi-Fi, and other equipment. The book also provides basic training on Mac apps and gives ideas about how to use the laptops in the classroom.
The introduction states:
“This guide is designed to help you get started right away using the Apple Mobile Learning Lab in your classroom. It includes suggestions that can help you with setting up, maintaining, and managing your mobile lab, as well as many ideas for great ways to use these powerful tools in your classroom. The information in this guide has been provided by teachers who have extensive experience using mobile labs in their classrooms.”
The chapters include:
Setting Up and Working with Your Mobile Lab
Using the Tools that Come with Your Mobile Lab
More Tools to Use with Your Mobile Lab
Additional Resources
This book measures 9 x 7.5 inches and has 51 pages.
From the mid-1980s to early 2000s, many schools had computer labs where students took computer classes or completed class projects. In general, students used computers at scheduled times during the school day. In the early 2000s, laptop carts became common so instead of going to the computer lab, the computer lab could go to your class.
In the early- to mid-2000s some schools had taken the leap to provide a laptop to every student throughout the school day. At first, these “1 to 1” (or 1:1) programs—one computer per one student—were rare and schools that implemented the programs only allowed students to use laptops while in school. Slowly, 1:1 programs allowed students to take home laptops some or all the time.
Around 2005, Apple Education began creating materials to help schools and school districts create 1:1 computer programs. These two paperback books are examples of Apple Education’s planning materials for school leaders.
In the short, but well-referenced brochure, Implementing a Successful 1 to 1 Learning Program, Apple makes the case for a 1:1 implementation:
“Students today are markedly different than they were a decade ago. Today’s learners are digitally savvy, born at a time and cell phones, handheld gaming devices, iPod, and notebooks are commonplace in homes are filled with computers, TVs, digital video recorders, and game consoles. Today’s students are not engaged by traditional lecture-based modes of teaching, preferring to learn by creating and doing, not by ‘sitting and getting’ (Barth, 2001). They want an active learning experience to match their active lifestyles—preferably enabled by the technology that has become their second nature.”
This brochure measures 7 x 9 inches and 9 pages long.
Another resource for 1:1 planning was a folder-sized brochure with 8 color pages. The brochure is titled One student. One computer. One great way to learn. The first page is a series of quotes by education leaders across the United States, and the rest of the brochure includes information in three more categories: 21st century learning tools for 21st century kids. A complete environment for learning and achievement. Higher achievement, from Maine to Hawaii.
The back page of the folder included a flap to store a series of “Profiles in Success.” The profiles included in my version are: Henrico County Public Schools (Richmond, VA); Manatee County Schools (Bradenton, FL); Michael Petrides School (Staten Island, NY); and Maine Public Schools.
This folder is full color and measures 9 x 12 inches.
These product brochures were available in Apple Stores and elsewhere in the early 2000s. They measured 4.25 x 6.5 inches folded, and designs were sometimes stapled and folded out into different layouts. All of these brochures feature a photo of the product on the front panel, information inside, and specifications on the back panel.
iLife ’04 (2004) This brochure’s cover features five interlocking puzzle pieces—picturing a video camera, headphones, digital camera, MIDI keyboard, and DVD—that represent the iLife suite along with the headline, “Every new Mac comes preloaded with some amazing software. We call it iLife.” The brochure folds out into an 8-up mini-poster that shows an iBook G4 surrounded by items that work with iLife, including a MIDI keyboard, a digital video camera, a digital camera, an iPod, and a stack of DVDs. The headline reads, “iLife ’04. The easiest way to organize, create, and share the things you love.”
Power Mac G5/Apple Displays (2004) This brochure is two-sided. One side features the Power Mac G5 and the other side features Apple Displays. When opened, the 2-up layout headline reads, “Think fast. Think big.” and a Power Mac G5 is pictured along side a 23-inch Apple Cinema HD Display. Inside, the 4-up horizontal layout shows all available default configurations of Power Mac G5 computers and Apple Cinema Displays.
These product brochures were available in Apple Stores and elsewhere in the early 2000s. They measured 4.25 x 6.5 inches folded, and designs were sometimes stapled and folded out into different layouts. All of these brochures feature a photo of the product on the front panel and specifications on the back panel.
Apple Displays (January 2003) This stapled Apple Displays brochure features a 3-up fold out section showing three models: 20-inch Apple Cinema Display, 23-inch Apple Cinema HD Display, and 17-inch Apple Studio Display. The next 2-up layout includes: 10 reasons why Apple all-digital LCD displays are clearly superior. All-digital active-matrix LCD. Pure digital interface. Wide viewing angle. Fast pixel response. Save on energy bills. Color fidelity. Uniform color. Stable colors. Easy to calibrate. Clutter-free. The final pages include product specifications.
Power Mac G4 (January 2003) This stapled 8-page brochure features a Power Mac G4 (mirrored drive door) on the cover. The next 2-page spread shows the Power Mac G4 with the door open and the copy: “Power Mac G4. Super fast. Super affordable. Supercomputer. The new Power Mac G4 features faster performance, more expansion, and the highly efficient Xserve-based dual processing architecture.” The center spread features the headline, “The ultimate system for the digital pro.” The last pages contain Technical Specifications and Power Mac G4 configurations.
iPod+iTunes Mac and Windows (October 2003) The cover of this brochure is bright yellow and features the iconic “silhouette” iPod imagery—a black silhouette of a person holding a white iPod wearing white earbuds connected by white wires. The opening copy reads: “iPod and iTunes. Perfect harmony. Together, iPod and iTunes changed the way Mac users listen to music. Now everyone can join the digital music revolution, because iTunes now works on Windows PCs—the same way it does on a Mac. So no matter what computer you use, you can enjoy the most acclaimed portable digital music player and jukebox software ever created. And go anywhere with up to 10,000 songs in your pocket.” The remainder of the brochure features iPod and iTunes features and specifications.
Power Mac G5 (July 2003) The Power Mac G5 brochure opens to a 2-up layout with the headline “Power Mac G5 The worlds fastest personal computer.” along with a “hero” photo of the product. The next 4-up horizontal layout features four stunning photographs, each representing one of four disciplines: color graphics, video production, scientific research, and music production. It fully opens to an 8-up mini poster with the headline, “The Power Mac G5. Unprecedented everything.”
These product mini-brochures were available in Apple Stores and elsewhere in the early 2000s. They measured 3 x 4.5 inches folded, and designs folded out into different configurations. All of these mini-brochures feature a photo of the product on the front panel, information inside, and specifications on the back panel.
iMac (January 2002) This brochure features an indigo iMac on the cover. The horizontal 4-up layout features several tasks that can be completed on an iMac with four photos and the headlines “Surf the Internet,” “Make movies,” “Mix music,” and “Make a photo album.” The fully unfolded 8-up poster features a birds-eye view of an indigo iMac with the headline, “Your digital life starts here.”
The new iMac. (January 2002) This brochure features the first flat-panel iMac (with a white half-sphere base) on the cover. The opening 2-up layout features the copy, “iMac redefined. With a state-of-the-art 15-inch digital flat panel display, a PowerPC G4 processor, and a SuperDrive that burn CDs and DVDs, the new iMac completely reinvents the all-in-one computer.” The fully unfolded 8-up mini-poster features the headline “Here we go again.”
