Why is apple called apple?

Dear Eve,

Curious name for someone asking about apples. Apple Computer got its name because -- contrary to popular delusion -- Steve Jobs really doesn't have much of an imagination and he wanted to riff off the popularity of the Beatles record label. Little did he know the apple would byte his butt several times. As for the term "Big Apple" as a nickname for New York City, it was originally a horse racing term, IIRC, that was used by jazz musicians to describe the city.

Dear Eve,

Curious name for someone asking about apples. Apple Computer got its name because -- contrary to popular delusion -- Steve Jobs really doesn't have much of an imagination and he wanted to riff off the popularity of the Beatles record label. Little did he know the apple would byte his butt several times. As for the term "Big Apple" as a nickname for New York City, it was originally a horse racing term, IIRC, that was used by jazz musicians to describe the city.

I read that the name was chosen because the new company was stuck for a name and Steve just kind of half-assedly suggested "Apple" based on his having previously worked in an Apple Orchard.

I seriously doubt that Steve was intending to benefit from the popularity of Apple Records. I mean, the fruit is much more popular than the Beatles ever were, and it would seem ridiculous to assume that people would associate the computer manufacturer with the record label of a british pop band.

Still, it is true that Apple Computer and Apple Records did butt heads on more than one occasion and that Apple Computer usually emerged a little worse for the wear.

You are correct in your recollections as to the "Big Apple"...

"Apples" were desirable racing purses in the world of Horse Racing in the early 1900's. The courses and tracks around New York had the largest purses, so when going to New York, you were going for a "Big Apple"... Jazz musicians picked up the term to refer to the city as a whole...

As to "Apple Computer" being named... well, there are many theories, but my favorite is that Jobs and Woz had picked up a particularly strong bag of weed that was flavored with apple peels... While working their way through the fifth bowl, Woz asked "I say, Steve, what shall we ever name this bright venture that we are about to bring forth unto the world?"

Steve, being higher than a Paris Hilton hemline, heard this: "Dude, whunthuhellsinthisstuff?"

So Steve replied "Apple..... dude... apple...."

Or so it goes as I heard it told to me...

You are correct in your recollections as to the "Big Apple"...

"Apples" were desirable racing purses in the world of Horse Racing in the early 1900's. The courses and tracks around New York had the largest purses, so when going to New York, you were going for a "Big Apple"... Jazz musicians picked up the term to refer to the city as a whole...

As to "Apple Computer" being named... well, there are many theories, but my favorite is that Jobs and Woz had picked up a particularly strong bag of weed that was flavored with apple peels... While working their way through the fifth bowl, Woz asked "I say, Steve, what shall we ever name this bright venture that we are about to bring forth unto the world?"

Steve, being higher than a Paris Hilton hemline, heard this: "Dude, whunthuhellsinthisstuff?"

So Steve replied "Apple..... dude... apple...."

Or so it goes as I heard it told to me...

Interesting, but it's in no way consistent with anything that has been published. I'm citing my rather scant account of history from the tomes of the Mac Bathroom Reader...

Hey,

Check out this:

http://www.creativebehavior.com/index.php?PID=27

It also mentions the Apple orchard story in addition to Jobs' adulation of the Beatles record company. Frankly, I find the orchard story to lack any compelling belief. And while I hate to sound like The Steve Jobs Hater From Planet Sarnia, it just seems that some people can't grasp that the reality distortion field can make a mistake and these people need to create unconvincing fables to fool themselves. To me, the answer to the incident is obvious. Do we need the hand puppets here? The PowerPoint presentation? It is totally distressing to me how some Apple fans will believe absolutely anything that's handed to them to save them from realizing Steve Jobs is sometimes a moron.

Still, it is true that Apple Computer and Apple Records did butt heads on more than one occasion and that Apple Computer usually emerged a little worse for the wear.

Hey,

Check out this:

http://www.creativebehavior.com/index.php?PID=27

It also mentions the Apple orchard story in addition to Jobs' adulation of the Beatles record company. Frankly, I find the orchard story to lack any compelling belief. And while I hate to sound like The Steve Jobs Hater From Planet Sarnia, it just seems that some people can't grasp that the reality distortion field can make a mistake and these people need to create unconvincing fables to fool themselves. To me, the answer to the incident is obvious. Do we need the hand puppets here? The PowerPoint presentation? It is totally distressing to me how some Apple fans will believe absolutely anything that's handed to them to save them from realizing Steve Jobs is sometimes a moron.

Actually, I'm not a Steve Jobs hater. I happen to think that he is extraordinarilly gifted at anticipating the direction in which technology will go. True, this is somewhat due to the fact that he has a hand in bringing technology to where he wants it to be, but his uncanny ability to "plot the course" is quite remarkable.

On the whole, I think that Steve Jobs is clever, unscrupulous, underhanded, charismatic, creative, and has a most compelling personality. I don't see him as being a god or godlike, but I do recognize his brilliance as both a visionary and corporate leader. After all, Steve Jobs has two incredible corporate successes under his belt: Apple Computer & Pixar.

I don't think you'd have any trouble finding people less skilled and capable than Steve Jobs. As a matter of fact, Gil Amelio and John Scully immediately come to mind. If you recall, it was Mr. Scully that forced the ouster of Steve Jobs from Apple and it was Doctor Gil Amelio that brought Mr. Jobs back to Apple.

Where are Mr. Scully and Dr. Amelio today? Where are the people that took the reigns of Apple during the period post-Scully and pre-Amelio?

Steve Jobs may not be the greatest thing since sliced bread, but to the shareholders of the current Apple Computer Corporation, he's earning them an awful lot of bread.

Hey,

The quip about Planet Sarnia was a just a joke. It wasn't about you. I'm just so sick of hearing about Sarnia that I thought maybe, just maybe I could deal with it by making light of it. You also totally missed the point about Jobs but talking to Apple fans about Jobs is like talking to the kool-aid drinkers about Jim Jones. So, I'm just going to go away for a long, long time.

Hey,

The quip about Planet Sarnia was a just a joke. It wasn't about you. I'm just so sick of hearing about Sarnia that I thought maybe, just maybe I could deal with it by making light of it. You also totally missed the point about Jobs but talking to Apple fans about Jobs is like talking to the kool-aid drinkers about Jim Jones. So, I'm just going to go away for a long, long time.

You're tired of hearing about Sarnia? That's amazing! Cuz the people that live in Sarnia are tired of hearing about Sarnia too. They're tired of hearing a crappy little radio station profess itself to be "Sarnia's Best Rock!" They're tired of hearing Sarnia's mayor talk about all of the great things that have come to the city -- in spite of a population decline that spanned more than a decade.

Yeah, we're all sick of hearing about Sarnia. I'm sick ohearing about Sarnia. Mr. Ahearn is sick of hearing about Sarnia.

I'm sick of listening to the Sarnia Police tell me that I don't have the right to speak my mind. I'm sick of government not doing their job and prosecuting the corrupt Sarnia police.

Sarnia... I'm so damn sick of it all!!!

Wanna know what else I'm sick of? I'm sick of people telling me that I need a girlfriend! I'm gay! What part of "I'm Gay" do people have trouble understanding? I dunno... Maybe you gotta be a rocket scientist to figure out that gay men don't want girlfriends.

I'm sick of being under unlawful surveillance! I'm sick of people thinking that I want to make a name for myself. I'm sick of people thinking that I want to be famous. I'm sick of people thinking that I want attention. I don't! I don't want attention! I want the people in this town to get a life and leave me the hell alone!

I'm sick of people telling me that I feel left out or lonely. I don't! I don't feel left out and I sure as hell don't feel lonely!

Yeah, I'm sick, I'm disgusting, and I'm crazy... Why? Because K106.3 sucks!!!

That's the bottom line! K106.3 Sucks!

I don't want a girl! I never have wanted a girl! So when I say that I spent five months in jail for a crime I didn't commit, you can damn well believe it. Why? Because I'm Gay and I spent five months in jail for allegedly stalking some girl. Was I stalking the girl? No! I'm gay, remember? So, WTF? Exactly, I spent five months in jail for speaking against a Blackburn radio station in a town controlled by fascists and losers!

Yeah, I'm sick of hearing about Sarnia too!

Hey,

Are the moderaters dead or only waving? This totally obsessed individual continues to interrupt almost every thread on this board with his nonsense about Sarnia and the Blackburn group. The first 500 times it was kind of amusing in an annoying way and now it has become totally disruptive. To boot, his behavior has brought people from other sites where he has antagonized them to applefritter to argue about 419 scams. I've had it. This is ridiculous. Moderators have closed threads for their belief that the argument are getting heated and yet this individual is free to waggle his paranoid wetdreams all over everybody else. Forget this. If the mods can't keep this poster in line then it's pretty pointless posting anything at all.

Eve check out www.woz.com, lots of early apple info there

OOPs, its the woz.org, Steve Wozaniaks website. it has a lot of early apple onfo

and dont nonsense my research.

I only provided a very important lesson: You can't beleive everything you read on the internet.

That's not to say that I didn't tell the story as it was told to me... I mean... seriously... Blue Dalmation? Bondi? Somebody was smokin' sumpm...

...weed indeed...

however, they have been a lot more creative in the past when it's up to inventing nicknames for their products. look at the G5: "Q87" ... hm .... what's that? something you add to artificial, canned tomato soup so it will look like there really are real tomatoes in it???

...what is?

Well I guess you'll never know, unless you ask Steve Jobs himself

Eve, "Apple" is called that 'cause Steve Jobs wanted the "Fruit Of Knowledge" to represent what home computers are.

It was because apple's were their favorite fruit?

i thought it was because there was an apple tree beside their garage and they ate the apples while designing and programing the apple 1

I long suspected that that was an internal reference to the 87th fiscal quarter of the company. 87 quarters works out to 21.75 years. This goes back to the aerly 80's. I do not know the exact release date of the G5 or exactly when Apple founded (of the top of my head at this exact moment), but the math is pretty darn close. If not the founding, then perhaps something around that time - release of the original Mac maybe?

Just a thought...

Eve, "Apple" is called that 'cause Steve Jobs wanted the "Fruit Of Knowledge" to represent what home computers are.

I had heard this one to, and the bite was to represent Man's want to eat of the tree of knowledge. The short of it was we ate from the fruit, and now we are smarter, and the evidence of this eventis an apple with a bite taken out of it, hence Apple.

87 quarters works out to 21.75 years. This goes back to the aerly 80's.

Nicely perceived, DDTM. Perhaps, however, 24 January 1984, the birthday of Macintosh, has more to do with it than the foundation of Apple Computer, Inc.?

de