This set includes five magazine spreads printed on 18 x 14.1875 paper and laminated. Each magazine spread is labeled at bottom-center with “TBWA CHIAT/DAY INC. LA” (Apple’s ad agency at the time) and a code number. The spreads feature slot-loading iMac computers and one features the tangerine iBook.
Q200-99-P2618AO features the tangerine iBook with the tagline “iMac to go.” (1999)
Q200-99-3172A features the lime slot-loading iMac with the tagline “And the award for Best Home Movie goes to…” (1999)
Q200-99-3502A features the grape slot-loading iMac with the tagline “Baywatch Baby” (2000)
Q200-99-P3739A features the tangerine slot-loading iMac with the tagline “Rock‘n Roll Machine” (2000)
Q200-99-P3740A features the lime slot-loading iMac with the tagline “Leapin’ Lizards.” (2000)
The iBook magazine spread introduces the iBook laptop and touts its built-in 56K modem as “the world’s easiest path to the Internet.”
All iMac magazine spreads feature slot-loading iMac models and DV camcorders with “Desktop Video” or “Desktop Movies.” Apple mentions the iMovie app in three of the four ads, but the main purpose of the ads is to show the ease of using the iMac to create videos, a relatively cumbersome task before Apple introduced FireWire and iMovie.
Unfortunately, I have no idea where I acquired these magazine spreads. I’m not now—nor have ever been—in the publishing, printing, or advertising business. If anyone has additional history on these, I’d appreciate it!
“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 any Apple products. The original version began with a “manifesto” that began famously with “Here’s to the crazy ones.”
Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. While some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do. Think different.
During the commercial, voiced by Richard Dreyfuss, black-and-white footage of iconic personalities (Apple referred to them later as “Apple Geniuses”) served as visuals to accompany the voiceover of the manifesto. Personalities included Albert Einstein, Bob Dylan, Martin Luther King Jr., Thomas Edison, Muhammad Ali, Ted Turner, Mahatma Gandhi, Amelia Earhart, Alfred Hitchcock, Martha Graham, Jim Henson, Pablo Picasso, and others.
The print and digital ads also did not feature Apple devices, just the Apple logo and the words “Think different.” One of the creative team who worked on the campaign described the print concept: “The rainbow-colored logo served as stark contrast to the black and white photography, and, to me, it seemed to make the ‘Think Different’ statement all the more bold.”
In 2000 this Think different poster set was provided to school leaders. The posters were 11 x 17 inches and arrived in a white box printed with the “Here’s to the crazy ones” manifesto. Each box contained three packs of posters sealed in plastic of 10 posters each.
I have two of these education sets. The one pictured was shipped directly to a high school principal. One set has been removed from its shrink wrap, and two sets are still unopened. I have a second compete set still in shrink wrap and has no shipping label.
The set also includes three 8.5 x 11 sheets inside. One is a letter from Apple, and the other two sheets include a “key” naming each Think different portrait with an adjective and mini-biography of each person’s life. The set contains the following “Apple Geniuses:”
Albert Einstein: “Questioner” Cesar Chavez: “Laborer” Jane Goodall: “Observer” Pablo Picasso: “Creator” Amelia Earhart: “Aviator” Miles Davis: “Improviser” Jim Henson: “Muppeteer” John Lennon & Yoko Ono: “Dreamers” Dr. James Watson: “Code cracker” Mahatma Gandhi: “Leader”
Sources: Wikipedia, Forbes, Apple (documentation included in this set)
This shopping bag is made of glossy white heavy paper and includes a white rope handle. It measures 15.25 inches tall x 16 inches wide x 5.5 inches deep.
Both sides of this bag feature a stylized Apple logo that appears glossy and translucent. This style was in use by Apple in the early 2000s and matched the design aesthetic of the iMac at the time.
My research has not yet uncovered where this bag originated. It does not appear to have been used at the Apple Store. It may have been provided at a technology conference.
This black business card wallet is made of “genuine calfskin” leather and embossed with an Apple logo on one side. The inside is lined with microfiber and has two pockets that hold 10-12 business cards each. The wallet is made by Leeman.
This is one of several Apple-logo products that was available at “The Company Store @ Apple” located in the Infinite Loop Campus (in the 1 Infinite Loop building). When Apple began moving to the Main (“spaceship”) Campus at Apple Park, a new Visitor Center was built near the new campus and The Company Store was closed and replaced by more standard Apple Store.
This business card holder is made of two pieces of metal, a curved top with a flat silver finish and a polished chrome cylindrical stand. It has a matte black Apple logo centered on the front. The holder is relatively heavy for its size.
This is one of several Apple-logo products that was available at “The Company Store @ Apple” located in the Infinite Loop Campus (in the 1 Infinite Loop building). When Apple began moving to the Main (“spaceship”) Campus at Apple Park, a new Visitor Center was built near the new campus and The Company Store was closed and replaced by more standard Apple Store.
This glossy black mug features a white Apple logo. The mug is relatively tall and tapered toward the bottom. It is approximately 4.75 inches tall, its diameter is 3.5 inches, and the handle has a half-heart shape.
This is one of several Apple-logo products that was available at “The Company Store @ Apple” located in the Infinite Loop Campus (in the 1 Infinite Loop building). When Apple began moving to the Main (“spaceship”) Campus at Apple Park, a new Visitor Center was built near the new campus and The Company Store was closed and replaced by more standard Apple Store.
The Power Mac G4 Cube was introduced in 2000 as a small desktop computer in an 8 x 8 x 8 inch form factor (actual measurements including the base were 7.7 x 7.7 x 9.8 inches). The computer ran silently without an internal fan and featured a sound system by Harman Kardon. The G4 Cube was announced on July 19, 2000, at Macworld Expo. It was the last topic introduced by Steve Jobs as “one more thing” at the end of Keynote.
This 36 x 24 inch poster (in landscape orientation) was printed to commemorate the release of the G4 Cube and to depict its exact size. The G4 Cube is shown along with its newly designed keyboard and mouse, each in a crystal clear case with black keys on the keyboard and a black accent in the mouse, and the included clear spherical speakers. Also shown is the then-new 15-inch Apple Studio Display (its design matched the 22-inch Apple Cinema Display that was released at the same time).
This QuickTime 4 CD contains QuickTime 4.1 installers for Macintosh and Windows.
The CD cover states:
Install QuickTime 4.1 and experience QuickTime for yourself as you interact with the demo movie included on the CD.
Control your media experience with the intuitive QuickTime Player.
Open just about any media file you come across.
Watch live content over the Internet.
Upgrade to QuickTime Pro so you can edit and save your own movies.
QuickTime 4.1 was released on December 17, 1999. The release provided support for files larger than 2.0 GB in Mac OS 9, added variable bit rate (VBR) support for MP3 audio, and removed support for older 68k Macintosh systems.
This Macintosh Products Guide CD is from Winter 2000. The cover art shows a graphite iMac DV Special Edition and it specifies that the CD contains “A catalog of over 16,000 products for your Mac.”
The publisher of the CD is ADC (Apple Developer Connection). The back of the CD says that it will help you “learn about the hottest products available for your Mac, including games, productivity applications, printers, scanners, image editing applications, utilities, digital cameras, USB peripherals for the iMac, and much, much more.”
Mac OS 9 was Apple’s final version of its “Classic” operating system. This iteration, version 9.0.4, was released April 4, 2000, and its changes included “Improved USB and FireWire support and other bug fixes.”
This specific boxed version is a 10-client license and features iTools, Apple’s first suite of online services that would eventually become iCloud.
The box also mentions that Mac OS 9 introduces “more than 50 new features” and includes “nine Internet power tools.” The tools include:
