Apple Computer was founded in 1976 by Steve Wozniak (1950–) and Steve Jobs (1955–) to market the Apple I computer. Released the following year, the Apple II began the personal computer (see entry under 1970s—The Way We Lived in volume 4) revolution. It offered speed and computing power at an affordable price. Since then, Apple has gained a reputation for producing well-thought-out, high-quality machines. In 2002, Apple remained the only computer manufacturer using software designed specifically for its own machines.

The success of the Apple II made Apple the leading personal computer company of the early 1980s, but the Macintosh made the personal computer an everyday tool. The "Mac," as it became known, was the first affordable machine to use a Graphical User Interface (GUI). A GUI is a system that allows users to operate programs using small images called "icons" rather than type out commands in computer code. In...