Leading our History of Science and Technology, Including Space History auction on 25 October in New York is a Macintosh SE previously owned and used by Steve Jobs. The computer resided in his office at NeXT from 1988 through 1994 at which time he gifted it to his executive assistant.
There has never been an item so intimately connected to this great innovator at auction before.
“What a computer is to me is the most remarkable tool that we have ever come up with. It’s the equivalent of a bicycle for our minds.”
THE TOOLMAKER'S TOOL
When Steve Jobs first happened upon the Macintosh project after being removed from the Lisa team, he saw the future of Apple. He quickly inserted himself and took over the project from originator Jef Raskin in January of 1981 and changed the direction. He wanted to build a "friendly" computer—the personal computer as a tool for personal empowerment. He engendered a non-conformist attitude in his team and a shared vision of a product that was "insanely great."
However, Steve Jobs was pushed out of any meaningful role at Apple in mid-1985 and he began to consider his next steps. Jobs enlisted some of the disgruntled employees from Apple's Macintosh division, several of whom had been urging him to start a new company and offering to join him. He had struck upon the idea of "starting a company to build a powerful but personal workstation" (Isaacson Steve Jobs p 212).
The present computer was used by Jobs while at NeXT. It was installed in his office from 1988 through 1994. These were key years in the executive’s development, when he would gain some of the skills and experience that would help him guide a failing Apple from near bankruptcy to one of the most successful companies in the world.
Lot 1094. A Macintosh Used By Steve Jobs At Next, Inc.Macintosh SE Computer, Cupertino, CA, Apple Computer, late 1987, with 20MB internal hard drive, keyboard, mouse and with additional backup hard drive. Estimate: $200,000 - $300,000
Lot 1094. A Macintosh Used By Steve Jobs At Next, Inc.Macintosh SE Computer, Cupertino, CA, Apple Computer, late 1987, with 20MB internal hard drive, keyboard, mouse and with additional backup hard drive. Estimate: $200,000 - $300,000
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