Customer Reviews

Appledesign: The Work of the Apple Industrial Design Group

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is a beautiful book showing the evolution of Apple's industrial design. Apple is the only company whose industrial design is worth such a book. The history is interesting, and it's fascinating to see how designs evolve.

There are two problems with this book which caused me to give it only 3 stars. The first is that it desperately needs a copy editor. The spelling and grammar errors would be unacceptable from a college freshman. Several times, a reference to a picture gives the wrong plate number. I expect much better from a book on excellent design.

A minor gripe is that it's not clear who the intended audience is. Some technical terms are defined (though for the lay audience it would help to have a couple of pictures to illustrate terms), but many are not. As a lay reader, there were ideas I just didn't get, even as I appreciated the beauty of the work they described.

If these two problems were fixed, I would give it 5 stars.

* Have you ever wondered why there's so many horizontal lines on a Macintosh case?

* Would you believe that Apple was the first company to move a laptop keyboard to the top (which other companies now emulate), yet they almost didn't go ahead with it?

* Or did you realise that a LaserWriter II is exactly the same size as a Macintosh IIfx?

Unlike other written histories of Apple Computer which concentrate on Jobs & Sculley, this is a history of the computers themselves.

For anyone who has grown up with an Apple ][ or an early Macintosh, this is a fascinating insight into the computers we've grown to love. You'll learn how design is just as important as the MacOS when it comes to selling a computer.

The book starts with the Apple //c era, and covers all Macs up to the Quadra, plus printers, screens and the Newton. Unfortunately, it was produced prior to the iMac.

Apple enthusiasts should buy or borrow a copy just to re-live the history. Design students should read it cover-to-cover to learn both good design and the politics of design philosophies.

The other reviews here already cover the important content issues and the fact that a document such as this is a godsend in so many ways. As a lover of both Apple technology and great ID, I've found it impossible to put this book down. However, I'd just like to put in my .02 that this book is BADLY in need of a copy editor and a second edition. I'd be able to forgive the technical errors (e.g., stating that the Quadra 9X0s share the Quadra 800's form factor) if it weren't for typos and "write-os" ON EVERY SINGLE PAGE! It's as though they ran spell check, pressed Command-P, and never looked at the copy again. Honestly, I didn't think I was going to be able to finish this book, the copy quality being as embarassingly bad as it is. I've finally settled on pretending that I've been sent a galley, and that all the errors will be excised before the "real" version ships. One other gripe, then I'm done: A lot of the photos were scanned at too low a resolution to be used at the sizes in which they appear. There are noticeable "stair-stepping" patterns on many of the pieces, particularly when the "Snow White" striping appears at an angle. I could do a better job on my home Mac (maybe they used a PC, who knows). ;-) Anyway, the book still rocks, you should buy it right now, etc. But if you're one of those annoying people like me who expect Apple-like quality in things like editing, you've been warned.

Detailed, rich history of Apple's industrial design.

Given the effort that this book signified, I was very surprised at the hundreds of typos, and many other factual/historical errors which reduce Appledesign's credibility as a definitive reference.

This book deserves a second edition, with better editing & fact-checking.

While this book doesn't include anything made in the past several years, it does have detailed descriptions of how the older Macs came to be. It's a large book and full of photographs as well as detailed text explanations. I got mine in September 2001 and regularly study it from time to time. Every time I read it I learn something new.

This book isn't for the Apple novice, nor is it for someone who simply uses computers. The ones who appreciate this book are those who have used Macs for years (I've used them since April 1989) and appreciate them not just as machines but as a little more. As a computer technician since 1992, I have come across nearly every model in this book and have liked many of them (in particular the Macintosh 512K and Macintosh Classic) so much that I've acquired some. With this book it shows how each computer came to be. Mac IIsi owners, past and present, may be surprised to know that the name IIsi was on a few other concepts before being applied to the pizza box 20Mhz machine that it grew into when it came out in October 1990. This is just one example of what this book is like.

Supposedly this one's hard to find. True Apple enthusiasts will look for one.

For Apple Geeks and Enthusiasts... I bought this book fromJapan, because the Japanese translated version ................ And it was a right choice. I do not read any texts, but glance or look at Insane Designs, just like a coffee table book like that. I do recommend buy this English version if you are planning on buying the Japanese translation.

I just received my much-awaited book early this month a couple of days after my birthday. I found it absolutely stunning and enlightening in some ways.

The sheer extent of products by the Industrial Design Team was overwhelming and found the history behind the design team very useful.

Can't wait for the next updated edition with iBooks, iMacs, PowerBooks, PowerMacs and ASDs and all. :)

This is definitely a must-buy for Mac users as well as those who appreciate well-thought industrial design and innovation.

For those of us who like to use computers as an extension of our creativity, there has only ever been one choice - the Mac.

This incredible book shows you the history behind some the most important computers ever to be invented, along with prototypes for ideas too wacky for even Apple to release. Rick English's photography shows these beautiful machines as they should be shown, as artistic masterpieces as well as innovative pieces of technology.

Breathtaking.

After reviewing this book I must say that I'm really want to see what is going on in that design office at this very moment... ... I can't wait until someone puts together a sequel to this book... ... A superb book...

This is a fantastic "insider" look at the work of Apple's Industrial Design Group. Tons of beautiful photography illuminated by intriguing background information on many projects such as "Blackbird" and "PopEye." A must have for any Apple fan-- especially artists and designers! My only disappointment was that we may never see many of these projects! (And i wish there were even MORE photos and concept art!)