Steve Wozniak

Biography of Steve Wozniak | Founder of Apple ComputerStephen Wozniak (Polish: Wozniak, nickname (The) Woz or Wizard of Woz) (born in San Jose, California, United States, August 11, 1950, age 59 years) was the founder of Apple Computer (Steve Jobs). He is regarded as a pioneer of the entry of computers into a private home life. Although it contributes only in the form of a collection of ideas sharpshooter who inadvertently unprepared in conjunction with computer technology for the manufacture of mass destruction, intelligence and boundless creativity made him the right person to be recognized as the initiators of the personal computer revolution.

Before Steve Wozniak founded Apple with Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak was a hacker. Skill Steve Wozniak is indeed seen since she was a child who is very fond of work especial algebra and mathematical algorithms. Steve Wozniak capability is certainly very significant in boosting his life as both Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs during his high school belongs to the people with lower-middle economy.

In 1975, Steve Wozniak worked at Hewlett-Packard and helping his friend Steve Jobs design video games for Atari. Of the profits, they use it to buy a computer that is very simple, one product of the leadership of Alex Kamradt Call Computer to study the mechanism. After seeing the discourse on building your own computer terminal at a magazine called Popular Electronics published in 1975, double the steve assemble your own computer with a spare part available. Computer Conversor assembled consisted of 24 rows and 40 columns, using only capital letters, using a video monitor can be connected to the teletype and Call Computer. Alex Kamradt positive response to this and worked with Steve Wozniak to sell the finished product through a trading firm owned Kamradt.

In 1975, Wozniak started attending meetings of the Homebrew Computer Club. At the meeting the new Microcomputers such as the Altair 8800 and IMSAI inspired him to use a microprocessor to the computer and complete video teletype that he designed.

At that time the only available microcomputer CPU Intel 8080 of U.S. $ 179 and the 6800 is priced at $ 170. At that Wozniak intends to work with Motorola, but it was still not found a deal for the asking price range either Intel or Motorola at that time much of their budget range. But Wozniak did not give up. She saw, studying and designing computer scheme on paper. In his mind, making the CPU is only a matter of days.

When the MOS Technology 6502 chip (CMOS battery now) was released with a price range of U.S. $ 20 in 1976, Wozniak makes the program suitable for the chip with the BASIC language and began designing computer capable of running it. MOS 6502, designed by the same person who made the 6800, because many workers in Silicon Valley who set up or make their own business as side.Wozniak do a bit of small change to the new chip can run well. Wozniak discovery refine and bring it to the Homebrew Computer Club meeting as a show off.

At the meeting, Wozniak met his old friend Steven Jobs, who are equally interested in the commercial potential of the computer hobbyist Jobs tersebut.Setelah was approached by a local computer store, The Byte Shop, which in turn agreed to sell the products Jobs. But with the record, the computer must be properly assembled into a unified whole (assembled). The owner, Paul Terrell, said that he would order a 50 machine computer and pay U.S. $ 500 on each shipment. Jobs agrees that the offer and to contact Cramer Electronics, a distributor of electronic equipment on a national scale as a media partner. This was the beginning designed the Apple I, which became the foundation of the development of Apple products

The Apple I, also known as the Apple-1, an early personal computer and regarded as the mastermind of pure or ancestors of all APPLE computers in the future. This computer was designed and built in hand made by Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs who had the idea of ​​selling computers. Apple's first product was first shown to the public in April 1976 at the Homebrew Computer Club in Palo Alto, California and went on sale in July 1976 at a price of $ 666.66

Unlike the case with the Apple I, which still uses wood as the casing, the Apple II has made up by using different grades of metal casing. Apple II was launched in April 1977, and is intended for personal needs. Apple II has supported the Graphic, language BASIC, Visical (with Excel as a window), and comes with a game Oregon Trail. Apple II is also equipped with twin floppy disk drives and monitors. Apple II also features an integrated keyboard, sound, plastic cases, and eight internal expansion slots.

In the early 1980's, Apple Computer faced increased competition from other companies. Main rival Apple Computer was Commodore. But it did not last long, after the computer manufacturer level mainframes, IBM, entering the market. Although the Apple II was declared ready platform for VisiCalc, the Apple III Apple continue to prepare to compete with IBM PC version

In December 1979, Steve Jobs and Apple computer technician group toured Xerox PARC laboratory and in the presence of researchers from Xerox, they demonstrate the GUI (Graphic User Interface) on the Alto computer. At that time Steve Jobs realized the importance of computer GUI in the future instead of using text-based interface (for example, comparison of the command with the command prompt on the screen compared to the command windows that is more convenient)

In cooperation pact Xerox about providing access to Apple for use of facilities owned by Xerox for 3 days to compensate for the stock exchange when it reached $ 1,000,000. During that time, Apple scientists studying the intricacies of the GUI or WIMP interface so as to produce the first Apple computer-based GUI and named LISA (supposedly the name is derived from Steve Jobs' first daughter is a continuation of Locally Integrated Software Architecture)

Only, Local Intregated Software Architecture or LISA can be regarded as a product fails APPLE because even though LISA is equipped with a mouse and GUI (Graphical User Interface), LISA is priced very expensive, around $ 10,000 and LISA are not compatible with previous products, namely the Apple II so failed to penetrate the market.

In January 2007, Steve Wozniak launched iWoz book (ISBN: 0393061434) which contains the journey of life and career.